FIRST FLIGHT - omg !!!!

Lil' C · Jan 18, 2017

Well today was the day ! No wind and not too chilly here in the UK.

So, calibrated everything this morning, batteries charged everything ready to go !
Note here on calibration.. I had the Prop Guards fitted - you cannot calibrate the compass with those on, they just get in the way trying to turn the bird over and over so compass calibration failed first time, took them off and hey presto ! its easy ha ha

Took her to the field next door, switch everything on step back at least 30 feet, waiting for what seemed like forever just to make sure GPS was good, had 17 on the H and 11 on the ST16 !

This is it ! (hmm shaking now...) Switch the motors on - all OK
Slowly powered up and she gracefully lifted off the ground, took her 20 feet up, and then landing gear up !
Hands off the sticks, and she just hovered in the same place, no twitching and sway to be seen. Gear down,
Slowly lowered the throttle stick, landed every to gently waited a while, then motors off !
Did that 3 or 4 times no problems what so ever...

Next steps tomorrow I hope !

It just goes to show, listen to people on here, read the manual again and again, watch as many video's as you can and away you go !!!!

Thanks to everyone who gave advice in my previous post, it sure helped !

Chris

PatR · Jan 18, 2017

I remember my first flight with an expensive multirotor, and the nerves that went along with it. It's quite pleasing to learn of others experiencing successful first flights. Just keep doing what you're doing

Guest22 · Jan 18, 2017

Chris,

I had the same response as you (Ask my GF)!! I was shaking and tickled with excitement! Take it in baby steps. If I may make a suggestion, if you change your 'take off' point, re-calibrate everything (That's what I do just to be safe).

Enjoy your 'H" and I hope you have many more fun-filled flights!!

Bert2006 · Jan 18, 2017

YUP Scary at first but confidence grows with usage. I keep re-reading the manual regularly and watching video's..

laidback · Jan 18, 2017

Glad that all went well.

CraigCam · Jan 18, 2017

laidback said:
Glad that all went well.

The first time I got a gps lock on my 350 was huge. I flew maybe up to about ten feet and was crazy nervous. Take your time. I still get elevated heart rate during critical jobs. Despite all the obsessive insanity found here, the H is a very amazing piece of technology that can provide immense satisfaction with its stability and camera features. I'm currently documenting our washes running with snow runoff and the quality of the footage compared to last year with a GoPro is very gratifying.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

Bionic816 · Jan 18, 2017

I also had my first flight today. Very exciting, I do have a question. When I push the left stick away from me the H flies toward me. when I pull it toward me the H flies away from me. Isn't it suppose to be the other way?

Guest22 · Jan 18, 2017

Bionic816 said:
I also had my first flight today. Very exciting, I do have a question. When I push the left stick away from me the H flies toward me. when I pull it toward me the H flies away from me. Isn't it suppose to be the other way?

Bionic816,

You are flying in "Angle/Pilot" mode (Far right toggle is in the middle). This is the mode that you should learn quickly. If you want it to act the way you were thinking, switch it to "Smart" mode. Far right toggle needs to be all the way up.

Bionic816 · Jan 18, 2017

yes I was in Angle, I read that is the best one to learn in. This is my first Drone. I will take it slow. Thanks for the help.

Guest22 · Jan 18, 2017

Welcome to the forums and happy droning! Stay safe and like you said, take it s l o w!!

CraigCam · Jan 18, 2017

Bionic816 said:
yes I was in Angle, I read that is the best one to learn in. This is my first Drone. I will take it slow. Thanks for the help.

Learning orientation while flying towards yourself takes a lot of stick time. You should fly with the rear facing you while learning. Pull backs are always great shots anyway. Get a small quad and practice flying in clockwise and counter clockwise circles indoors. Learning not to crash into household obstacles is good training for trees and shrub avoidance with the H when filming later outdoors.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

PatR · Jan 18, 2017

Face the part with the two round holes on it pointing away from you when you take off. That's the front. Sounds like you had the aircraft "nose in".

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Bionic816 · Jan 18, 2017

PatR said:
Face the part with the two round holes on it pointing away from you when you take off. That's the front. Sounds like you had the aircraft "nose in".

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

ok, I had the front facing me. thanks for the tip.

PatR · Jan 18, 2017

Another hot tip. With the Pan Mode switch in the upper position the camera will always point to the front of the aircraft..

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Bionic816 · Jan 18, 2017

Thanks, I just pulled in out of the box and switched it.

PatR · Jan 18, 2017

Sounds like you're good to go

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Chilcotin · Jan 19, 2017

White lights=front
red =back

Cheers, great job

nicholas hickman · Jan 19, 2017

great to hear LiL`C, avoid any taxing situations if possible, panic leads to crash! Take your time and build your confidence.

If you are going to fly to take video or photos of something try planning it first so you can make full use of the flight time and keep in mind that cold = shorter flight times due to battery performance in the cold.

Tree · Jan 19, 2017

I just started using mine, and I was nervous as heck, and stressed, but this bird is pretty powerful, and smooth. Still using it in Turtle mode, but that's because I was flying it low on my property which has a lot of trees, and just was walking it through the trees. Going out to a field soon, to give me some more room, and fly it around 50-100 feet in a clear area.