So as the title says, I was flying my DJI Mini 4K downtown last night around 8:30 PM, and out of nowhere, it just dropped straight down. I didn’t touch the controls or do anything unusual, but I found it later in the street with the battery actually on fire. Not sure what happened, and I’m hoping someone here might know if this could be covered under warranty?
Maybe something hit the propeller? Those reflective stickers everyone’s putting on drones can come off and jam the prop mid-flight.
Could you have clipped a building behind you? It looked like something hit it, maybe a bird sneaked up on it?
Eli said:
Could you have clipped a building behind you? It looked like something hit it, maybe a bird sneaked up on it?
Definitely not—it was clear behind it, and I was watching closely. No building or anything in its path.
@Nico
There’s definitely impact in the video. Were you keeping visual line of sight (VLOS) the whole time?
Battery might’ve caught fire from the high drop. That was really high up. I’ve seen bird strikes do that to my Mavic in corn fields—just out of nowhere, a bird swoops in and down it goes.
Frances said:
Battery might’ve caught fire from the high drop. That was really high up. I’ve seen bird strikes do that to my Mavic in corn fields—just out of nowhere, a bird swoops in and down it goes.
That’s a bummer. Any idea if this would be covered under warranty?
@Nico
Nope, not usually.
@Nico
But they might give you a new one at a reduced price.
@Nico
If you have DJI Care, you can get a replacement with a discount.
Why’s the camera tilt when you turn? Maybe GPS issue?
Noor said:
Why’s the camera tilt when you turn? Maybe GPS issue?
Probably has the gimbal mode set to FPV instead of Follow in the app.
Noor said:
Why’s the camera tilt when you turn? Maybe GPS issue?
Good point. Here’s the crash log if it helps: crash log link
Noor said:
Why’s the camera tilt when you turn? Maybe GPS issue?
By the way, happy cake day!
Since you’re clearly not doing any building inspection at night and you’re over 400ft, looks like karma caught up.
Looks like a bird might’ve hit it. Sometimes they mess with drones until they fall. The battery probably caught fire from the fall.
This is why you shouldn’t be flying over crowded places. You’re making us all look bad.
Update: So I found the battery melted on the sidewalk and the drone itself was in the street. The battery was literally smoking and had somehow come loose from the impact.
Nico said:
Update: So I found the battery melted on the sidewalk and the drone itself was in the street. The battery was literally smoking and had somehow come loose from the impact.
Yeah, the impact could have popped the battery out and caused it to rupture.
Nico said:
Update: So I found the battery melted on the sidewalk and the drone itself was in the street. The battery was literally smoking and had somehow come loose from the impact.
Dear customer, we’re sorry to hear about this. Please ensure your safety first. Cover the device with a wet cloth to prevent any flames, or pour water over it if needed. I’ll message you more info for further assistance.