Hello,  Today I lost my Inspire 2 with X4S.  Some background. I do not complain on forums and this will be my first not so positive post.  I have about 5 years of experience with UAV's, I fly 3d helis as my main hobby, and 1/4 scale gas planes.  Just some background, I am not new to the hobby.  I was not recording the flight but here is excatly what happened.  I came back from vacation yesterday and notied the 240 had an update to 330 firmware.  I updated my Inspire2 using the Assistant as always, did not see an update for the radio. Update went well.  i checked all my settings and made sure I was back to where I was.  


First flight:


Flew Inspire about 500 meters out and was loitering for a bit, calm winds. I then tested RTH and noticed my ipad immediately said "lowering landing gear" and I lost signal.  It said "lowering landing gear" immeditaley after I hit RTH.  This should occur before final decent not on its way back.  Then, I regained signal and the Inspire flew back and landed within 3 feet of takeoff point.


Second flight on 330 which resulted in a complete loss


I flew out about 400 meters out at 110meters altitude using 5.8 as I always do because 2.4 is not good for my area.  Tested RTH again, once again "Aircraft disconnected"  I noticed that it had automatically switched to 2.4 and it said lowering landing gear right as I hit RTH again. Then I changed immediately back to 5.8, nothing (still disconnected)......
I could see the Inspire but it was cloudy so I eventually lost it.  Never returned and I seached for hours and nothing.  So now I lost my Inspire 2 and Camera, and since I was not recording, I have no proof.  I am looking for some insight on what could of happened. I have had about 25 flights on 240 which were flawless, 330 was the only change.  I am very disappointed in this.  Compass was recalibrated, Accelerometers were around.002 or less.  All perfect.  So Over $3500 gone in a flash.  I have never lost a UAV, I have many Tarots with Pixhawk I built from scratch which are much less reliable and still never have had an issue.  Any insight would be appreciated. Awful day.  Jeff

Hi Jeff,
   Were you using your transmitter when you attempted to look for it?  Did it every reconnect?  If you can get the transmitter to connect, it will tell you where it is.  Also, if you review  your flight data, did it help at all?  

GabeZ Posted at 2017-4-15 14:36
Hi Jeff,
   Were you using your transmitter when you attempted to look for it?  Did it every reconnect?  If you can get the transmitter to connect, it will tell you where it is.  Also, if you review  your flight data, did it help at all?

Yes, I was holding my transmitter, no luck.  Very wooded area..  I think by looking at the warnings I can see what may of happened, which shouldn't of occurred.

When I hit RTH, it immediately lowered the gear and landed, behind the tress, loss of signal, this is a possibility but not certain. .   What would cause the landing gear to go down immediately after a RTH?? I am not in any restricted area, not even close.  Am I correct that when you hit RTH the gear should stay up until its over the home point?  Thanks Jeff

Yes, I believe your right that when you command RTH it should go to the RTH altitude you have set in the app (Go 4?) and then fly back to the home location before lowering the landing gear.  Were you using the Go4 app?  Did you command RTH from the App or the controller.  Some time it is easy to hit the 'land now' button on the app rather then the RTH button right near it.  If you hit the 'land now' button it will lower the gear and land right where it is at.

JeffP Posted at 2017-4-15 14:56
Yes, I was holding my transmitter, no luck.  Very wooded area..  I think by looking at the warnings I can see what may of happened, which shouldn't of occurred.

When I hit RTH, it immediately lowered the gear and landed, behind the tress, loss of signal, this is a possibility but not certain. .   What would cause the landing gear to go down immediately after a RTH??  I am not in any restricted area, not even close.  Am I correct that when you hit RTH the gear should stay up until its over the home point?  Thanks Jeff

Leaves me wondering what was set in the RTH dialogue box. One option is return to takeoff point. But, another option is to land immediately.

raven4 Posted at 2017-4-15 15:21
Leaves me wondering what was set in the RTH dialogue box. One option is return to takeoff point. But, another option is to land immediately.

Dialogue box? RTH is return to home
If you are close to home point it will just land. Not if you are 400m away. I was unaware of that setting. I willl take a look. On my Go4 App I have a takeoff and a RTH icon
Where is the land now button in Go App?? I hit the RTH button.
Thanks Jeff

raven4 Posted at 2017-4-15 15:21
Leaves me wondering what was set in the RTH dialogue box. One option is return to takeoff point. But, another option is to land immediately.

RAVEN
would you please telll me where in version 6 of Go-4 APP gives option of RTH landing Immediatley without returning home. I need to know where this setting is that You mention in your post that I am not aware of. Thanks for your help. Jeff

JeffP Posted at 2017-4-15 16:03
RAVEN
would you please telll me where in version 6 of Go-4 APP gives option of RTH landing Immediatley without returning home. I need to know where this setting is that You mention in your post that I am not aware of. Thanks for your help. Jeff

And one more please.  One of the most important parts of my post. Why would my radio switch from 5.8 to 2.4 automatically two times.  Is this in the firmware design. Thank you

The 'land now' button in the app is just above or just below the RTH button.  Don't have my setup here right at the moment but that 'land now' button is very close to the RTH button.  Another thing, do you remember the voice prompt announcing 'returning to home' and the R/C beeping indicating it was indeed returning to home?


I'm unaware of an app setting that when you hit the RTH button in the app that would allow you to select land immediately.

Viper Pilot Posted at 2017-4-15 16:25
The 'land now' button in the app is just above or just below the RTH button.  Don't have my setup here right at the moment but that 'land now' button is very close to the RTH button.  Another thing, do you remember the voice prompt announcing 'returning to home' and the R/C beeping indicating it was indeed returning to home?

Thanks for clearing that up. Incorrect information on the forum can be dangerous.
Tomorrow I will take my second (now only)!inspire 2 and do a RTH from where I can see it perfectly then I will know exactly what happened. Will report back. Thanks

Good luck and anxious to get your report.

In the Go4 App, click the 3 dots in the upper right hand corner of the screen. Then select the top most icon-the little Phantom icon. Next, select 'Advanced Settings'. Down near the bottom of that screen, you'll see the title: :  "Remote Controller Signal Lost"...and to the right of that you can select what happens when that happens....click on the box to look at your options. This is the option that works if 1) the signal is lost, or 2) if you press the RTH button.
So much for "dangerous posts".

raven4 Posted at 2017-4-15 18:49
In the Go4 App, click the 3 dots in the upper right hand corner of the screen. Then select the top most icon-the little Phantom icon. Next, select 'Advanced Settings'. Down near the bottom of that screen, you'll see the title: :  "Remote Controller Signal Lost"...and to the right of that you can select what happens when that happens....click on the box to look at your options. This is the option that works if 1) the signal is lost, or 2) if you press the RTH button.
So much for "dangerous posts".

That area has always been set to if signal is lost to RTH. Even when I updated the software that value remained unchanged. If signal is lost the vehicle returns home.
When I pressed RTH on my IPAD in the GO-4 APP I had full signal. That was the issue. There is no parameter that says when you press RTH the vehicle just lands. It only lands if you are close to the home point when you initiate a RTH. I don't recall the  exact distance. That is what I commented on. As for if you lose signal , RTH has always been set. Totally different then what was said in your post. Thanks for your help Jeff

Hi Jeff,

Sorry to hear of your loss. Like you say, it should only land immediately on activating RTH when it is within 20m of the home point, was the home point set before take off? if you replay the flight from within the app, it will show if the home point was set or not, it should also show where it was when it was last connected to the controller.

Mark G.

Mark Guille Posted at 2017-4-15 22:46
Hi Jeff,

Sorry to hear of your loss. Like you say, it should only land immediately on activating RTH when it is within 20m of the home point, was the home point set before take off? if you replay the flight from within the app, it will show if the home point was set or not, it should also show where it was when it was last connected to the controller.

It's tough to admit but from all my tests on my other Inspire I hit the land button not RTH. My fault and I will own up to it. Painful loss but I know I will never do it again. Firmware is fine thanks for all of your help

JeffP Posted at 2017-4-15 16:39
Thanks for clearing that up. Incorrect information on the forum can be dangerous.
Tomorrow I will take my second (now only)!inspire 2 and do a RTH from where I can see it perfectly then I will know exactly what happened. Will report back. Thanks

Hello Jeff

Firstly I am very sad to hear about your Inspire 2 loss and very sorry for you. You seem to have a lot of experience and I am sure that you did everything correctly. After completing the FW update did you go over all of the Go 4 App settings? With DJI FW updates, many of these settings can change without warning (Sometimes it leaves things alone and other times it changes everything).  The additional  RTH  settings are found in advanced settings from the drone icon (see screen shot)  Yes, the Inspire 2 can be set to land when the RTH button is pressed.  Maybe you can download the flight data record to see what could have happened (Healthy Drones)

I have found that the 2.4G channels are stronger for long distances, it would seem that you were loosing the 5.8G band and it switched to a stronger signal.

Please keep us posted of your findings.

All the best
Rich

JeffP Posted at 2017-4-16 07:31
It's tough to admit but from all my tests on my other Inspire I hit the land button not RTH. My fault and I will own up to it. Painful loss but I know I will never do it again. Firmware is fine  thanks for all of your help

Sorry Man.....   I just saw this after posting


Rich

its a long shot, but did you purchase with a card that has purchase protection?  Some cards have insurance independent of other policies.

thomasakira Posted at 2017-4-16 09:19
its a long shot, but did you purchase with a card that has purchase protection?  Some cards have insurance independent of other policies.

I didn't  purchase insurance.
But one question, as it was landing behind the trees, when I lost signal shouldn't it of flew home or once you start landing sequence it doesn't matter if you lose signal?
Thanks Jeff

JeffP Posted at 2017-4-16 10:28
I didn't  purchase insurance.
But one question, as it was landing behind the trees, when I lost signal shouldn't it of flew home or once you start landing sequence it doesn't matter if you lose signal?
Thanks Jeff

No, it will continue the landing sequence until it either lands or you manually cancel it.
Rich

Jeff, glad you figured it out what happened but sorry for your loss.

BTW, I flew today for quite a few hours and I am totally delighted with how the bird flew with this latest F/W update from DJI.  THe top speed runs once again indicate that SPORT mode is working just like advertised and the speed I averaged was approx 60-62 mph , again, just like in the current specs.  I also flew several Litchi waypoint missions, some over 5 miles long with a RTH programmed at the end and they worked flawlessly.   I am more then pleased how this thing is performing now.  Oh, and all flights were with the X5S and the Panasonic 14-42 mm camera and also two cube lights also attached , one on each main leg.

Very pleased!

JeffP Posted at 2017-4-16 07:31
It's tough to admit but from all my tests on my other Inspire I hit the land button not RTH. My fault and I will own up to it. Painful loss but I know I will never do it again. Firmware is fine  thanks for all of your help

Oh man..... that sucks!

Just for info, there are several threads about this very problem of pilots tapping the outermost LAND button meaning to tap RTH. I've done it myself but was luckily at 300 ft and could cancel.

From an ergonomics perspective, the RTH and LAND buttons should not be near each other, no matter how distinctive the button may seem. For me, the learning point was to always, always, always use the RC RTH button. Hold it for three seconds and that way I'm sure not to land accidentally.

Sorry Jeff......

Jeff,
I know how you feel. I lost one but mine was in front of a crowd of people. That was really a bad day! I know if that were my I2, I'd be out there everyday trying to find it. Do you think it landed somewhere in the tree tops? I saw a video a guy posted on YouTube that tracked his Phantom down that crashed into trees on the way back in RTH mode.He was flying way out over a lake and lost connection. He hit the RTH and his height wasn't set high enough. He used the map on the app and was able to trace it back to the last point of flight. Then some guy in a boat gave him a ride out to it and he found it in the top of a tree.

NanoPixel.Studi Posted at 2017-4-16 16:49
Jeff,
I know how you feel. I lost one but mine was in front of a crowd of people. That was really a bad day! I know if that were my I2, I'd be out there everyday trying to find it. Do you think it landed somewhere in the tree tops? I saw a video a guy posted on YouTube that tracked his Phantom down that crashed into trees on the way back in RTH mode.He was flying way out over a lake and lost connection. He hit the RTH and his height wasn't set high enough. He used the map on the app and was able to trace it back to the last point of flight. Then some guy in a boat gave him a ride out to it and he found it in the top of a tree.

Thanks, appreciate it.  The woods are so dense I have no way in there.  It was my fault, from now on if I need RTH  I will use the button on the transmitter.  Thanks again for all of your help!  Jeff

Why not try doing some aerial searching over that area with your current I2?  You could use an app to fly preprogrammed grid patterns and take pics (videos or stills) and then analyze them at your home base for any possible clues.

Viper Pilot Posted at 2017-4-16 10:50
Jeff, glad you figured it out what happened but sorry for your loss.

BTW, I flew today for quite a few hours and I am totally delighted with how the bird flew with this latest F/W update from DJI.  THe top speed runs once again indicate that SPORT mode is working just like advertised and the speed I averaged was approx 60-62 mph , again, just like in the current specs.  I also flew several Litchi waypoint missions, some over 5 miles long with a RTH programmed at the end and they worked flawlessly.   I am more then pleased how this thing is performing now.  Oh, and all flights were with the X5S and the Panasonic 14-42 mm camera and also two cube lights also attached , one on each main leg.

Viper
When you flew waypoint missions with Inspire what App do you use? Or anyone else can chime in? Thanks Jeff

Viper Pilot Posted at 2017-4-17 03:51
Why not try doing some aerial searching over that area with your current I2?  You could use an app to fly preprogrammed grid patterns and take pics (videos or stills) and then analyze them at your home base for any possible clues.

Good point. I only had one camera. Should have replacement tomorrow
Thanks

For waypoint missions I have used Litchi and also Autopilot.

Viper Pilot Posted at 2017-4-17 08:05
For waypoint missions I have used Litchi and also Autopilot.

Thanks. When my new X4 arrives tomorrow do I flash 330 completely again.  Is the process any faster because it's only updating the camera ?
Thanks Jeff

Good question.  I don't know.

JeffP Posted at 2017-4-17 06:09
Viper
When you flew waypoint missions with Inspire what App do you use? Or anyone else can chime in? Thanks Jeff

DJI has an iOS app called Ground Station Pro
DJI GROUND STATION PRO web site link.
With the new camera, the GO4 app will see any firmware disparity and will prompt you to upgrade....

On Friday I took my inspire 2 out for a fly earlier in the morning I didn't want to go to far so I keepet it in the parking lot then I flew it close then I raised up a about 195 ft then flew it before the water the drone said air craft said landing so I  Amediately hit cancel it from landing and my friend said it was still flying away from me I raised up to 205 ft was hitting return pause button that didn't do anything then return home and I have it set for a 187 ft for return home still nothing the whole time I had 13 satellites and had a signal the whole time. I just got the drone back about 1 week and a half ago this is the 3rd time it had a problem with it the first week I bought it  I hit return home and it hit the roof of my house and crashed and broke the arm and bent the camera the 2nd time it was in the house on the floor and it burned out the camera and the main bord on the drone. I knew there was something not right with it so I would not fly it. So they changed me another 5 hundred dollars and I told them that the drone signal would not go only 2 thousand ft I have never used any footage it would constley break up sense the day I bought it so the when I sent it in I told them to fix the problem I can't fly only 2 though ft and I talked to one of the   Representative they lied and told me it was water damage my drones have never been in any way plac or any damp places and I'm would not be stupid to fly a drone that I have about 13 thousand dollars invested in they didn't give me any reason of what happened to the drone and gave me another $489 dollar bill and I bought the cendence remote I  thought that would help. I had the chance for a while and when I got the drone back it still flew the same distance with the break ups of the videos. I looked at the flight route and watched what the controller stick now the stick shows I was pushing it forward it's not possible I don't have 3 hands I realised the sticks to stop it from trying to land and 205 ft would not have hit the mountain at the height it said it was at. I would not fly it over the highway and the woods are a government facility it's camp Smith it's a no fly zone. I know they are going to lie to me and I  know that they will not replace it because they don't care about us we are just dumb Americans. I'm going to bring it to my lawyer I'm so   Disgusted with DJI I WILL NEVER FLY  AN INSPIRE 2 EVER AGAIN if they do replace it I can't  trust it but I know they are not going to it's my fault that ther drone is a useless piece of garbage I want autel to step up there game there quilty of ther drones are way better built hands down looking at the quilty of the phantom 4 and the x star premium  and you would see.

You may not let me post what I have to say I noticed if my inspire is not replaced I'm going to bring it to the all the news channels I'm going to do every thing I can to put out there that you don't stand behind your products

Hello Jeff me and you are dumb Americans and we don't care about you guys losing your drones thank you suckers for spending your hard earned money on our product witch is un stable and will fly away on you it's your guys fault for believing in our  Product thank you for your money and have a good day.

They want to see your flight record witch is a lie what the firmware shows the controller sticks are not showing what you are really doing with them I have people that stood right next to me and seen me release the sticks and the inspire 2 started to land for no reason what so ever but the sticks show that I'm pushing the forward stick. It's  Impossible to push the stick forward when I'm hitting the pause button the return home button it's all a bunch of liars telling me my drone had water damage inspir 2 has been nothing but problems after problems sens the day I bought it it's been sent back twice and none of the other problems that I told them to fix has never been solved a week and a half and another 4 hundred and 85 dollars and now I don't have a drone anymore but it's my fault again they tried to say it was water damage I fought them in a lie  they had no  Explanation of what happened to the drone but here's the 500 hundred dollars bill now I don't have a drone they're making billions of dollars and they won't replace your drone because they have no idea what is going on its there fault they didn't fix what I told them to fix but it's my fault. Now go buy another 4 thousand dollar drone from us you dumb Americans

Viper Pilot Posted at 2017-4-17 03:51
Why not try doing some aerial searching over that area with your current I2?  You could use an app to fly preprogrammed grid patterns and take pics (videos or stills) and then analyze them at your home base for any possible clues.

It's exactly what I was going to suggest, Since the woods are so dense maybe the bird got tied up somewhere in the canopy where your other bird might see it if you run a recovery  mission, maybe you can rig a way to pick it ups with the second bird, we are talking $3000.

All you guy that have lost their inspire 2 is not your fault I lost mine to get a lawyer and have them take care of it