Lost Drone

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07-30-2015, 06:02 PM
n2ize

Lost Drone

A couple weeks ago I was flying a mini quad copter in front of my house. I did a routine high altitude climb. Or at least I thought it would be routine. It wasn't. I reached high altitude and started a decent. Everything was as it should be. And then, it happened. The drone started drifting away from me. I fought to pull it back but I got no response. I decided to cut power, a precautionary measure. I felt it would be better to ditch it and let it hit the ground than to let it continue to drift under power. Fortunately it responded to the cut in power but it was too late. It was too high and it was falling at an angle. It fell into a tree high up and way off into the distance. I could still see it's lights blinking. I could still establish radio contact but I couldn't get the motors to pull it out of the tree. I tried to locate the tree but it was to no avail. The closer I approached the direction of the tree the lower I went in altitude and the harder it was to see. Eventually it's lights faded as it's battery drained. It is possible I still may find it. Since it is in fluorescent color I may be able to locate it at night with an ultraviolet beam. If I find it it will be plus the damages suffered by weather and rain. In the meantime I have a replacement here today. In this business we stay aloft. Occasional losses are just a part of the game.
07-30-2015, 08:30 PM
KG4CGC

Dude ... you just got drone jacked.
07-30-2015, 10:44 PM
KC9SQR

1 Attachment(s)

Quote:

Originally Posted by n2ize

A couple weeks ago I was flying a mini quad copter in front of my house. I did a routine high altitude climb. Or at least I thought it would be routine. It wasn't. I reached high altitude and started a decent. Everything was as it should be. And then, it happened. The drone started drifting away from me. I fought to pull it back but I got no response. I decided to cut power, a precautionary measure. I felt it would be better to ditch it and let it hit the ground than to let it continue to drift under power. Fortunately it responded to the cut in power but it was too late. It was too high and it was falling at an angle. It fell into a tree high up and way off into the distance. I could still see it's lights blinking. I could still establish radio contact but I couldn't get the motors to pull it out of the tree. I tried to locate the tree but it was to no avail. The closer I approached the direction of the tree the lower I went in altitude and the harder it was to see. Eventually it's lights faded as it's battery drained. It is possible I still may find it. Since it is in fluorescent color I may be able to locate it at night with an ultraviolet beam. If I find it it will be plus the damages suffered by weather and rain. In the meantime I have a replacement here today. In this business we stay aloft. Occasional losses are just a part of the game.

That sucks :(
Sorry to hear about that.
Hopefully you find it to at least have some spare parts for the one you ordered ;)
Attachment 14196

^^^^
That's mine :)
I also fly a SJ4000 attached to the Go-pro mount.
07-31-2015, 06:03 AM
n2ize

Quote:

Originally Posted by KC9SQR

That sucks :(
Sorry to hear about that.
Hopefully you find it to at least have some spare parts for the one you ordered ;)
Attachment 14196

^^^^
That's mine :)
I also fly a SJ4000 attached to the Go-pro mount.

Looks nice.

It happens. Every now and then you can lose one. This was my first loss of an rc aircraft. I lost it at night. There is a good chance that if I do find it soon it may still work. The problem is that it seemed like it got stuck high in a tree some ways off in the distance. Possible a tree in someones back yard or along the highway. But I don't know which tree. And even if I can find the tree I may not be able to retrieve the aircraft unless the wind blows it down.
Fortunately it was an inexpensive quad and replacement cost was low. The new one arrived today and I gave it a test flight.

My main interest is in regular RC helicopters. I fly a 250 and 450 sized electrics, one fixed pitch and one collective pitch. I also have an old GMP Cricket fixed pitch helicopter from the 1980's. It's gas powered. I am in the process of restoring it.

I mostly fly the quad when I can't get to a field and just want to fly something small around my own property. From now on I am going to fly the quad at a lower altitude. That way if anything goes wrong I can get it on the ground quickly and close by.
07-31-2015, 07:26 AM
W3WN

Well, at least nobody shot it down...
07-31-2015, 08:05 AM
KG4CGC

Quote:

Originally Posted by W3WN

Well, at least nobody shot it down...

Apparently they do in Kentucky.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/...ing-down-1800/
07-31-2015, 09:10 AM
W3WN

Yes, but N2IZE is not in KY. Thus the quip.
07-31-2015, 05:36 PM
n2ize

Quote:

Originally Posted by KG4CGC

Apparently they do in Kentucky.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/...ing-down-1800/

Technically it is a violation to shoot at any aircraft, manned or unmanned. That said, the question here is were they simply photographing a house as they claimed or were they photographing the guys daughter. And even if they were it is not necessarily illegal. I can understand his concern. The other question is, were they flying the aircraft in direct line of sight from the ground. Currently the rules are that the pilot must at all times maintain a visual line of sight between himself and the aircraft. Flying beyond the line of sight using visual aids (such as cameras) or GPS for navigation is not permitted for model aircraft. However, the rules are a bit fuzzy. While the guy was wrong for firing a shotgun (he should have called the police if he was concerned) the problem is many of these quadcopters are available, extremely easy to fly, and equipped with video cameras, etc. At some point clear rules are going to have to be drawn up regarding drone operations. Hopefully a set of rules that protect the hobbyist and the average everyday citizen can be developed.
07-31-2015, 05:45 PM
n2ize

Quote:

Originally Posted by KG4CGC

Apparently they do in Kentucky.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/...ing-down-1800/

BTW the guy sounds like a perfect Teabagger. Note he said that the fed (i.e. Obama...hint...hint) is trampling his rights everyday. Note he lives in "Bullitt County". That sounds very appropriate.
07-31-2015, 06:47 PM
W3WN

Quote:

Originally Posted by n2ize

Technically it is a violation to shoot at any aircraft, manned or unmanned. That said, the question here is were they simply photographing a house as they claimed or were they photographing the guys daughter. And even if they were it is not necessarily illegal. I can understand his concern. The other question is, were they flying the aircraft in direct line of sight from the ground. Currently the rules are that the pilot must at all times maintain a visual line of sight between himself and the aircraft. Flying beyond the line of sight using visual aids (such as cameras) or GPS for navigation is not permitted for model aircraft. However, the rules are a bit fuzzy. While the guy was wrong for firing a shotgun (he should have called the police if he was concerned) the problem is many of these quadcopters are available, extremely easy to fly, and equipped with video cameras, etc. At some point clear rules are going to have to be drawn up regarding drone operations. Hopefully a set of rules that protect the hobbyist and the average everyday citizen can be developed.

I don't blame that guy for being upset at what (he claims) was a camera equipped quadcopter playing voyeur with his daughters.

His actions, though, were more than inappropriate.

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