Motor Pod falls off in flight

[Brian Mackey]

Since its not a repairable section for Yunnec repair they would say new arm, as far as I know, I'm thinking epoxy !

 

[KR200]

Talked to Yuneec Support today. They answered immediately!!! I didn't even have time to switch to speaker for the anticipated voicemail **** and Muzak. They requested log files and sales info.
In searching the log files on the transmitter, I discovered a media folder that contained the continuous video received right up to the crash. The camera sd recording was broken into 5 min. segments. Unfortunately the crash segment was corrupted.

I got the H back at last! It even has a test flight report. They replaced the entire craft plus another 10 props plus another 12v charge cable so now I've got a, hopefully, lifetime supply. I'll do the update today on the transmitter and see how she runs.

 

[Rayray]

I'll do the update today on the transmitter

Glad you got it back. I think I would try it awhile before updating. You said Transmitter. When you update, update both, the ST16 first.
I hope you have good luck now, a lifetime of it, lol.

 

[KR200]

Glad you got it back. I think I would try it awhile before updating. You said Transmitter. When you update, update both, the ST16 first.
I hope you have good luck now, a lifetime of it, lol.

Both updated, calibrated, and briefly tested ok. I need to charge up my only battery now for some real testing.

 

[PatR]

If that's the battery that dropped to 9v, be wary. I bought a used battery from a person that arrived in a 12.8v charge state. I cycled it back to storage voltage and then performed two 1/2C charge/discharge cycles. Flight time is quite short with this battery. I suspect some cell damage occurred due to deep discharge.

 

[KR200]

Nope! The battery's the original and it charged up just fine. I put it on my balance charger right after the crash, cycled it then put a storage charge on it. I had it flying today after the updates and calibration.

 

[cameraman52]

Yesterday I was flying my H over water along the shoreline of lake Huron when the video twitched about 90 degrees and corrected itself in forward facing mode. About 30 seconds later I got a warning that the H was in 5 motor mode, then all connection was lost. It was approximately 1000' away so I missed seeing the actual crash. The video ends before the drop to the water. It took 20-30 minutes to get to the H. It was in approximately 30 cm of water. The H and camera were physically intact except for one motor pod hanging by it's wires with a broken prop. The gear was still retracted, so I guess 5 motor mode doesn't lower the gear. I noticed the body light was still dimly flashing red. I quickly removed the battery to prevent further electrical damage.

Returning home I immediately put the battery on my charger/ballancer using QUADCAM's connector. The voltage was just over 9v !!! I charged it to storage charge successfully, so I guess it's ok despite the low voltage discharge. I drained as much water as I could and left the H to dry for a few days.

I found that the rivet holding the motor pod to the arm was missing but there was no damage to the arm or pod. It appears that the rivet came out in flight causing the video twitches. The pod then worked it's way off, breaking the prop resulting in the 5 motor mode warning and subsequent water ditching.

I will give the H and camera a few days to dry then pack them in rice for a few more days before I try to power up. I will contact Yuneec today.

You said the H was in 5 motor mode, then all connection was lost. 5 motor mode does not mean that you loose the connection from transmitter to the bird, isn´t it?

 

[KR200]

The 5 motor mode can level the drone, but with the separated motor flailing could not control it. A simple motor failure could still be landed successfully but not in this case. The connection was lost due to the impact and water immersion.

 

[cameraman52]

OK, that make sense. Thanks for your reply