- Joined
- Jul 22, 2016
- Messages
- 115
- Reaction score
- 36
Hi ensemble,
today was a pictures day. I decided then to load the car with the box filled with copter, batteries and enthusiasm.
Went for make a 3D model of a small mountain hamlet, but the road was closed: snow? landslide?
Well, just go a little bit more up toward a mountain pass.
At that place the TH went in fly and turned around or few minutes, recording video and taking pictures of the fog rising.
As a flight end I was putting the copter in a wide turn, diving slowly and approaching for a low pass.
But as soon as I started the maneuver I lost video link. Ok it's not the first time. Stop then and wait.
Then telemetry went black. Ok I was a little bit far, but not that much. What's happening?
Then RC link loss!
What? Never seen that.
I tried rising the TX and moving it around to help for polarization, nothing.
I guessed I had to walk then and started approaching the last known position of the copter, hoping to regain any radio link. Nothing ...
It was time to start using the technology available. First set an hot spot with the cellular phone and a very tiny data connection class E, switch on FlightCenter, wait an infinity to download the map and watch for the exact last position.
At first my thoughts were: finished with Yuneec! Enough!
During that time I started doing an analyze of what could be had happened.
Battery fail? Very low possibility. I take care of them and had voltage under control, plenty of juice to come home.
Battery disconnected? What?
Flight controller fail? Why?
Mhmm, pilot fail? Which one?
Was I not aware of the video loss and continued to fly into a rock or a tree? At the end did not think so, I was in the middle of the valley, well away from walls and trees and at three mistakes high... but who knows?
After some research I did remember I saw just after video loss an eagle crossing the valley at low altitude in full relax. Seemed satisfied.
At the end of a good hour walking around I found the camera and the gimbal. Ok, at least I have the footage, but where's the copter? Walked around another amount of time and finally discovered the copter at about 40m from the camera. Battery was missing. Another round around then and found the battery at another 30m between camera and copter.
At this moment I really started to focus what really happened: an eagle attack.
On the copter body there are two small holes, which very likely are where the eagle sunk its claws.
I'm pretty sure it grab the copter, shaken it so hardly that the gimbal broke away, or it ripped it off. Then it was able to rip off the battery and finally when the copter was finally dead it left it dive.
This could explain the video loss before telemetry and RC.
At that point I was almost sure, but would like to have a proof of that.
When I reached the car I first put the SD card into the ST16 to watch the video and surprise, no video, the card is broken.
No chance then?
I watched the video recorded by the ST16, but it stopped too much early to see any shake.
In the evening I watched the video again and after a couple of times I saw the eagle(s, there were two!).
I had some chicken skin seeing that.
That's not the first eagles experience I have, but I never thought they could come so low in the valley.
Now my TH is destroyed, I'm sad, I loved it.
Cheers, my beloved Typhoon = : (
Sorry for long post, but maybe someone will enjoy the short tale.
Best regards,
Ric
P.s.: I have a debt with Tuna now. FlightCentre helped me finding the TH quicker. I was already very prone to buy the final release of the app, but now it's sure!
today was a pictures day. I decided then to load the car with the box filled with copter, batteries and enthusiasm.
Went for make a 3D model of a small mountain hamlet, but the road was closed: snow? landslide?
Well, just go a little bit more up toward a mountain pass.
At that place the TH went in fly and turned around or few minutes, recording video and taking pictures of the fog rising.
As a flight end I was putting the copter in a wide turn, diving slowly and approaching for a low pass.
But as soon as I started the maneuver I lost video link. Ok it's not the first time. Stop then and wait.
Then telemetry went black. Ok I was a little bit far, but not that much. What's happening?
Then RC link loss!
What? Never seen that.
I tried rising the TX and moving it around to help for polarization, nothing.
I guessed I had to walk then and started approaching the last known position of the copter, hoping to regain any radio link. Nothing ...
It was time to start using the technology available. First set an hot spot with the cellular phone and a very tiny data connection class E, switch on FlightCenter, wait an infinity to download the map and watch for the exact last position.
At first my thoughts were: finished with Yuneec! Enough!
During that time I started doing an analyze of what could be had happened.
Battery fail? Very low possibility. I take care of them and had voltage under control, plenty of juice to come home.
Battery disconnected? What?
Flight controller fail? Why?
Mhmm, pilot fail? Which one?
Was I not aware of the video loss and continued to fly into a rock or a tree? At the end did not think so, I was in the middle of the valley, well away from walls and trees and at three mistakes high... but who knows?
After some research I did remember I saw just after video loss an eagle crossing the valley at low altitude in full relax. Seemed satisfied.
At the end of a good hour walking around I found the camera and the gimbal. Ok, at least I have the footage, but where's the copter? Walked around another amount of time and finally discovered the copter at about 40m from the camera. Battery was missing. Another round around then and found the battery at another 30m between camera and copter.
At this moment I really started to focus what really happened: an eagle attack.
On the copter body there are two small holes, which very likely are where the eagle sunk its claws.
I'm pretty sure it grab the copter, shaken it so hardly that the gimbal broke away, or it ripped it off. Then it was able to rip off the battery and finally when the copter was finally dead it left it dive.
This could explain the video loss before telemetry and RC.
At that point I was almost sure, but would like to have a proof of that.
When I reached the car I first put the SD card into the ST16 to watch the video and surprise, no video, the card is broken.
No chance then?
I watched the video recorded by the ST16, but it stopped too much early to see any shake.
In the evening I watched the video again and after a couple of times I saw the eagle(s, there were two!).
I had some chicken skin seeing that.
That's not the first eagles experience I have, but I never thought they could come so low in the valley.
Now my TH is destroyed, I'm sad, I loved it.
Cheers, my beloved Typhoon = : (
Sorry for long post, but maybe someone will enjoy the short tale.
Best regards,
Ric
P.s.: I have a debt with Tuna now. FlightCentre helped me finding the TH quicker. I was already very prone to buy the final release of the app, but now it's sure!