I was flying my drone over Loch Leven in Scotland when I lost both the GPS signal and visual line of sight (VLOS).
I completed my drone pilot's license which feels like years ago now but was only about 18 months but thanks to the flight training and practice I have had, it helped me to recover the drone safely. It was a bit dramatic for a while.
The simple tips in this video may help you when you find yourself in a similar situation and allow you to recover your drone safely.
If you are flying a sub 250 gram drone like the DJI Mini SE, DJI Mini One, DJI Mini Two or DJI Mini 3. You do not need any training or certification to fly the drone for recreational purposes.
If you are going to be selling the drone footage or monetizing it in any way (Youtube etc) then you will need to get properly qualified, certified and insured for public liability.
Current UK law states that the drone must be in visual line of sight at all times.
In order to fly your drone safely you need a spotter to keep an eye on the drone while you are busy looking at the display screen.
Drones can move very fast and be out of sight in seconds.
1,000's of drones are lost every year due to fly aways and VLOS.
Being able to recover from VLOS is a critical skill for any drone pilot.
Tips for recovering from VLOS
(1) Always have a spotter.
(2) Stay calm and work the problem.
It's easier to say rather than do but try not to panic if you lose sight of your drone.
Remember that most modern drones will hover if you stop using the controller so.
(3) Stop trying to fly it. It's important to stay calm and think clearly.
(4) Rotate the drone and use its camera to search for your take off location.
It is not very common to lose both GPS signal and have VLOS at the same time but knowing how to handle it is a useful skill to have.
If it does happen, knowing how to recover your drone can make a huge difference between recovering the drone or losing it.
If your GPS signal is lost, your drone will not be able to return to home.
If you have VLOS and do have GPS signal use the Return to Home (RTH) function.
If you're unable to regain sight of your drone, you can use the RTH function to have it return to its starting point.
If your drone's battery is low, it will automatically return to the home point.
Basic drone safety pre flight checks
Check you drones propellers are tightly attached. Inspect the overall condition of the drone and remember to remove the camera cover and that you have a full battery on the drone and controller.
Set the return to home height to fly above any obstacles. Trees, hills, buildings etc.
Be aware of your surroundings and make sure to get that first location establishing shot as shown in the video so you know what your home take off location looks like.
Make sure you're flying in an area where there are no obstacles that your drone could hit if it loses control.
By following these tips your chances of recovering from VLOS will be improved and you can get the drone back safely without losing your drone.
I was very relieved to have recovered the drone safely to say the least but I also learned a valuable lesson.
Always make sure you have a spotter with you. Another pair of eyes is always going to help in situations like this.
What's the key point of this video?
Make sure that you have proper training and practice before flying any drone.
I hope this story make you think a little bit and helps you to avoid losing your drone.
Drone flying regulations and training bodies.
Each country will have their own regulations so make sure you check them out before flying as fines can be very expensive.
United Kingdom
Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)
https://register-drones.caa.co.uk/individual/prepare-for-the-drone-theory-test
United States
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
https://www.faa.gov/uas/commercial_operators/become_a_drone_pilot
Europe
European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA)
https://www.easa.europa.eu/en/the-agency/faqs/training-requirements-open-category
India
It's behind you! Lessons learned? I'd be worried if I lost something that expensive.
These drones are cool, but I'm not sure I'd use one much.
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Haha yep very panto like 😂👍🏼 the wind just blew it a long way down the loch in jùst a few minutes.
I was hoping to get some cinematic drone footage but it turned into search and rescue 😂👍🏼
These drones are not cheap and losing vlos is very common. Expensive mistake avoided 👍🏼
Good tips and something nearly all drone flyers will experience at some point. As you show, it's better to do some practice runs first. I definitely remember going into panic mode for a few seconds on my first VLOS loss, lol. It's certainly easy to get turned around up there at times. Another helpful trick that works even without the camera, is to look at the distance readings. Many drones show the distance how far away and how high up you are. Simply fly one direction, and if the numbers get smaller, you're coming back home, if they get larger, you're going the wrong direction!
Hi ksteem, yeah it was a bit freaky for a while plus I couldn't see the display screen it was so dim! Lol
I think I need to upgrade my controller as the iPhone is pretty tricky to use. Apparently it's a known problem with the iPhone?
I'm just glad that I got the drone back safely 👍🏼
Yes, they are even worse with various Android versions. Always seem several versions behind. I used to dedicate an older phone to flying rather than deal with the bugginess or running down my main phone battery. I really loved switching to the dedicated RCPro controllers. Much brighter, bigger screen, Much longer battery life (can easily get 5-7 full flights), and much better performance. Even more so now with the zoom features, can zoom in and out by just using the finger wheel, can flip the landing light on/off with a button, trigger a drop package, etc. Plus for me, I can plug in the mini-hdmi cable and view using my Epson glasses as FPV while still having the screen there and visible. They are expensive for sure, but was well worth it imho. I would never go back to using the phone.
Yep the phone issues are numerous. I'll have to get the pro controller at some point. It's just so expensive. Maybe I'll be able to get one if they ever go on sale?
Saludos amigo imagino la preocupación que sentiste al no poder localizar tu dron, debió ser algo horrible.
Fue bastante aterrador durante unos minutos pensar que podría perder el dron. Son £ 300 en juego, lo que no es bueno perder 😂👍🏼
Lo imaginé y un dron menos afecta el bolsillo, saludos amigo.
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