landing issues

[AH-1G]

OK, here are 4 landing events. 3 at the same location, 2 different days, the last was an event I did for Ace. Windy that day.
I love the challenge landing softly as I can, for me it's a rush. The camera will always shake due that it is a gimble.
Many of you can land softly and that fantastic, for others I challenge you to practice these soft landings you'll be proud you did.

 

[AeroJ]

I almost always hand-catch my H because it can be quite drifty near ground level. I have always found it quite difficult to land in a precise spot in a way that I haven't with any other UAV so far, so I think it's fair to say the H is harder than most other craft in that respect. I've certainly noticed that positioning it remains quite tricky because it takes a while for GPS lock to kick back in after any input, so it tends to drift off where you put it before it locks in place.

 

[NDJollyMon]

I can land my DJI Spark on a piece of bread in my yard. Hovers spot-on.

I have a hard time bringing my H Pro down in my own yard! It's night/day different in flying. It blows all over the place. I've gone through all the calibrations and I'll try it again. To me, seems like the GPS just isn't working well. Hovering in one place is impossible, which makes it really hard to land without crashing. Winds were 10mph, but I have no trouble with the Spark in that, hence I've got some issue to work out.

So no, you aren't the only one with problems landing.

 

[AH-1G]

Not able to hover in one place could be an issue with your sticks need cleaning, have you tried that?

 

[thetrecker]

OK, here are 4 landing events. 3 at the same location, 2 different days, the last was an event I did for Ace. Windy that day.
I love the challenge landing softly as I can, for me it's a rush. The camera will always shake due that it is a gimble.
Many of you can land softly and that fantastic, for others I challenge you to practice these soft landings you'll be proud you did.

nice landing examples with the bonus of a great sunset or sunrise nice

 

[thetrecker]

I almost always hand-catch my H because it can be quite drifty near ground level. I have always found it quite difficult to land in a precise spot in a way that I haven't with any other UAV so far, so I think it's fair to say the H is harder than most other craft in that respect. I've certainly noticed that positioning it remains quite tricky because it takes a while for GPS lock to kick back in after any input, so it tends to drift off where you put it before it locks in place.

see lots of vids on hand catching and think the h is perfect for it with the power switch but worry about the antenna on the outside but will give it a go when more confident ( and nobody watching me lol )

 

[AH-1G]

sunset

 

[Eagle's Eye Video]

The comparisons to any DJI model, or for that matter any other UAV are BS. If another UAV gives you more precise landings, and that precision is critical to your situation, go for that. Landing is mandatory, so the more options the better.

But stop playing the role of a fanboy and crying about one specific model doing better... there are so many factors that play into a purchase decision... do any of the DJI models mentioned, land with a motor/prop out? How's the gimbal quality? I'm sorry, but there is not one rational person on the planet making a UAV purchase choice based on landing precision. They choose factors as we all did... 6 motor redundancy... gimbal and camera quality... even the retractable landing gear would be more of an influence.

 

[Sureshot]

Two landings same location:

 

[Docdor]

Good advice from @AH-1G and @Murray Martz. The thing is you do not want to linger close to the ground and let the turbulence get the upper hand. If you do you will be wandering around the LZ all day fighting it and never make your intended mark. Commit to the landing from about 4 to 6 feet, come straight down with purpose but not so fast as to hit hard, just let up a little at the last moment, you want the process to be fast enough so the turbulence doesn't get a chance to throw you off. It does take practice, and practice makes almost-perfect. As a side note, I actually find the the prop wash from the H easier to land thru than that of the Q500.

Sometimes the H can get confused at the last minute when landing with GPS on and hop around as it makes minor adjustments in location. This calls for immediate abort and full power up for a second attempt. The problem is it sometimes takes a second or two for the H to realize it has landed and idle down. For this reason it is always good practice to have a finger on the Kill Button while landing and hold it as soon as you touch down.

In fact many people like the alternate "Kill Button" method to land, where you tap the Kill button repeatedly when you are close to the ground, causing the H to drop about 6" each time, then once it contacts the ground hold the button until the motors stop. I have tried this myself and it works pretty good, though not my preferred way to land. And NOT to be attempted with an H Plus or H520.

I don't worry too much about landing right on target anymore, to me a good landing means no tip-overs, and no broken props! If you don't put a target on the ground, no one will ever know you missed it!

Whenever in doubt, I'm a big fan of the hand catch -something every drone pilot should practice (unless they have a H920!)

10-4 on not attempting to hand catch an H920!

 

[PatR]

Because of the large size of the H, plus having 6 rotors, you will get a lot of rotor wash when trying to land at a crawl. Do not hover above your landing target at any point. Commit to the landing, then land. If you feel you are losing it, climb back up and try again. Going down too slow will create a lot of wash and blow the air back up at you causing you to most like toilet bowl(swirl). Some pilots will hit the kill switch for the rotors just before the touch down, but constant practice will allow you to get more confident in piloting the craft.

That's exactly the opposite of what I do. I stop the descent a foort or so over where I want to land to dissipate energy velocity, which in turn eliminates or reduces the bounce that would otherwise accur and induce a roll over. Using Rabbit mode I then land where I want to set it down. As the H is more maneuverable and faster in control response than the Q series there are some minor positional deviations in the low hover but those with practiced skills should have no problems with small control corrections needed to complete the landing.

 

[PatR]

10-4 on not attempting to hand catch an H920!

It can be done but only if using someone else using both hands for the catch. It's definitely not a one handed machine.

 

[Murray Martz]

That's exactly the opposite of what I do. I stop the descent a foort or so over where I want to land to dissipate energy velocity, which in turn eliminates or reduces the bounce that would otherwise accur and induce a roll over. Using Rabbit mode I then land where I want to set it down. As the H is more maneuverable and faster in control response than the Q series there are some minor positional deviations in the low hover but those with practiced skills should have no problems with small control corrections needed to complete the landing.

I do agree with you PatR, but how you and I do it is not as easy for someone that does not have as much flight time as we do. I feel that until Bpwants2ski has more hours in, it would be best to err on the side of caution. There will be some pilots that are the exception to the rule, but as he is already having issue with it, caution is probably best for now.

 

[Dougcjohn]

I'd agree with PatR on landing technique, all larger or top heavy platforms land better to me if hovered down to 10-18" above ground, settle the wash, then lower it down gracefully... the hover wash actually provides a little cushion of air. Also agree, a quick touch down may provide less time to create a poor landing... the longer you hover the more stick input you may apply... more practice accumulated but also more likely to land off the mark. I'd suggest hover higher, 4 feet and just practice and learn the AC's reaction to sticks, make small movement, quick movements, etc... learn the controls & response form a safe altitude then bring it down into the wash and learn the behavior in the dish wash. The challenges are one of the elements that makes it enjoyable.

But I can also relate to those indicating the H can present a challenge to land at times. I got my H in dead of Winter and had problems in freezing temps... frustrating. But with warmer temps and more minutes on AC it smoothed out, I assumed it was probably a little tight or rough in the motors and reacted a little edgy at first... not sure how many minutes to break in, but there was an improvement after several batteries.

@NDJollyMand also indicated another point that many may realize if they fly both brands. I read his post content more in the tone of sharing a commonality with OP and that he realized he needed to find his zone; I didn't interpret mentioning DJI as an attack. It is worth noting that those that fly both or coming to Yuneec from DJI there is a distinct difference in landing, so much so that it can make landing the H "appear" more difficult. The DJI bird once 12" above the ground basically goes into a slow controlled self landing.... if Pilot is used to this behavior, the H presents an unexpected behavior to learn.

All radios & platforms are configured & respond a little different, all platforms fly a bit different... sharing the experiences is a learning tool regardless of brand.

 

[Dougcjohn]

It can be done but only if using someone else using both hands for the catch. It's definitely not a one handed machine.

LOL.. It can be done for sure... but... On the humorous side... the sound of the large props & motors, hovering down above you is a little like standing under several small lawn mowers. It'd require more trust in the Pilot and electronics for me to stand under the H920 or any large platform... those motors don't stop at biting skin like small motors, they knife a bit deeper before stalling. I stood under it to inspect a few things & gimbal, and that wasn't comfortable even being in control.

 

[PatR]

That is true except for one thing, the motors won’t stall as the more restriction they encounter the more current that will be consumed trying to overcome the restriction. The motors will stop only if the obstruction has enough mass to prevent them from turning. In a hand catch situation that mass would probably be one of the larger bones in our arm. Smaller bones like fingers would likely become separated. A friend wound up with 95 stitches and staples on his face after being hit with a “run away” 800mm rig at low speed. The props didn’t slow down and functioned very much like a large kitchen blender.

Perhaps of entertaining historical interest; some years back when DSLR’s and larger cinema cameras were introduced to multirotors, all the airframes were large and often used large wood props. The later introduction of the panning gimbal brought the need for retractable landing gear. For the first couple years retractable gear from all makers was prone to failure, often raising or lowering only one leg or failing to lower both legs. That generated a need to have a helper with steel nerves and no fear to be present to make a hand catch. As many of the aircraft were in excess of 1000mm and weighed 20-30lbs it helped if they were also in decent physical shape. Something also often attempted was landing a failed gear aircraft on an open, empty 30 gallon trash can but arriving just a little wrong was prohibitively expensive. At times landing events looked more like something from the old Keystone Cops or Three Stooges movies.

 

[Dougcjohn]

That is true except for one thing, the motors won’t stall as the more restriction they encounter the more current that will be consumed trying to overcome the restriction. The motors will stop only if the obstruction has enough mass to prevent them from turning. In a hand catch situation that mass would probably be one of the larger bones in our arm. Smaller bones like fingers would likely become separated. A friend wound up with 95 stitches and staples on his face after being hit with a “run away” 800mm rig at low speed. The props didn’t slow down and functioned very much like a large kitchen blender.

Perhaps of entertaining historical interest; some years back when DSLR’s and larger cinema cameras were introduced to multirotors, all the airframes were large and often used large wood props. The later introduction of the panning gimbal brought the need for retractable landing gear. For the first couple years retractable gear from all makers was prone to failure, often raising or lowering only one leg or failing to lower both legs. That generated a need to have a helper with steel nerves and no fear to be present to make a hand catch. As many of the aircraft were in excess of 1000mm and weighed 20-30lbs it helped if they were also in decent physical shape. Something also often attempted was landing a failed gear aircraft on an open, empty 30 gallon trash can but arriving just a little wrong was prohibitively expensive. At times landing events looked more like something from the old Keystone Cops or Three Stooges movies.

Still chuckling, ahhh the visual! Nasty! I recall some of the horror stories I’ve heard reguarding landing gear... development has come a long ways!

I realized fingers and wrists weren’t a challenge... was attempting to be little less raw... indicating lawn mowers, but you’re spot on; these Choppers will create havic to tissue & bones! Had a Sarg share a similar event he witness years back watching a crewman attempt a hand catch... once the event went sour it only got worse, the crewman survived but required several surgeries to reattach fingers, hand, ear, partial scalp, etc.

These big platforms sound awesome... but 18-24” blades (or bigger) aren’t play things! Thus, the reason I would’nt be the one underneath performing the arrest.

Great Story, thanks for the share!