Spark flyaway update, response from DJI - Bad news
- Thread starter Punkinv
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Several people have reported here that they have gotten free replacements from DJI after fly aways....They probably get so many that ARE pilot error that it makes it a little difficult to distinguish....I hope to never have to find out!
Don't blame yourself. I think you made the right decision in throttling down the Spark instead of having it fly away.
Pretty disappointing to not want to fly a new drone. Speaks to the quality of dji's mass production and lack of QA. Not to mention their "customer disservice " Never going to buy anything dji again
Pearson
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Just a question, perhaps an uninformed one as I'm a very new pilot, but how can you throttle down the plane if you don't have control? Perhaps that's DJI's reasoning. The drone was in P-GPS and responsive (presumably to your input). Then once hitting the tree, the logs show you throttled down. I can see where this would be a hard case to prove but I've got to believe the guys who do log analysis should be able to shed more light.
Sorry for the hassle Punkinv. I agree you should develop your case/argument and go back to them.
Sorry for the hassle Punkinv. I agree you should develop your case/argument and go back to them.
Ah, that's too bad. The DAT log from the drone would likely show if the compass was being negatively affected by some type of external source.
My 1st drone was a $30 toy that I kept crashing into walls when j tried to learn indoors. So it took to a big park where I never saw it again after 1st take off. Then a guy showed me his Spark Wow. My new Spark lasted a lot longer but after losing that bird and a 2nd spark to flyaways (many hours of flying time and trying to be careful) I'm wondering if upgrading to say a mavic or phantom I'd have better luck or just be out more money after flyaway. (Are the higher end drones less susceptible to flyaway) Any thoughts?
I have a lot of carefree time on my mavic pro. The mishap with the spark has caused me to look at everything DJI makes with a jaundiced eye.
That's probably something good to say to DJI if you decide to try again, although maybe you already did....Just thinking they might give you a little more credibility if they knew you were a seasoned pilot. It does seem this happens too often and I know I worry every flight I take!
Better luck with the MP, but I read about them flying off too.
I also had a flyaway with my spark last year, only one month after I bought it. It happened during an active track mission when I was only 5 meters away from the AC. The new Go4 app version which officially supported the OTG connection for the Spark was just released and I was using that. The remote disconnected and the AC ascended up a little bit and with full throttle it hit the tree next to it.
I had luck with the DJI CS, they replaced my AC free of charge but the whole process took almost a month. They advised though not to use the OTG connection.
After the incident I exclusively used the Mod app which can be found in this forum with OTG connection. It was rock solid all the time until I sold my spark and replaced it with the Mavic Air.
I highly recommend to everyone to look into the Mod app which can also offer cinematic mode that I was using constantly. It makes the Spark a really reliable drone according to my experience.
I had luck with the DJI CS, they replaced my AC free of charge but the whole process took almost a month. They advised though not to use the OTG connection.
After the incident I exclusively used the Mod app which can be found in this forum with OTG connection. It was rock solid all the time until I sold my spark and replaced it with the Mavic Air.
I highly recommend to everyone to look into the Mod app which can also offer cinematic mode that I was using constantly. It makes the Spark a really reliable drone according to my experience.
Calibrating compass, before every flight, is not a good idea.
If you calibrate in an area with interference (even a little), once Spark will be airborne, it will become unpredictable (without error message).
Calibrate compass once, in a interference free place, with no electronics on you, and that's it.
Sparksupersonic
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I can relate to your frustration, about the situation and their response, but I’d agree about the wording when writing to them about it. Certainly nothing wrong with being assertive, but I agree write in a detailed way that paints of a picture of you being a responsible flyer, taking precautions before and when taking off, and so on. I believe the way it’s worded matters with this business, if it was in fact their products’ fault. Not suggesting you weren’t polite dealing with them either, but maybe rewrite them.
I looked at the .txt which is consistent with Yaw being incorrectly initialized. There is a .DAT on the device running the Go App. It will have the data to determine if Yaw wasn't initialized correctly. Look here to see how to retrieve that .DAT. It will be the .....FLY098.DAT file.
A few times my spark on return almost to me stops responding
The RTH did work or I would have lost the spark at least 2-3x
The end result is the same. The bird looks good on take off
Flight far and away no problems then allmost back & oh no not responding again.
The RTH did work or I would have lost the spark at least 2-3x
The end result is the same. The bird looks good on take off
Flight far and away no problems then allmost back & oh no not responding again.
I had a fly off also. And dji told me it must not have had gps. I asked them if there was no gps then why can you see me on the map durring the fly away? They couldnt qnswet me. Ive argued with them for over a year now. I truly believe that there needs to be a class action brought against them. Tjey knew and know there was a problem withthe spark or honeatly why would they discontinue production of it? Especially when they still make much older models.
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