Multirotor, multicopter and quadcopter discussion - The Drone thread

Rilot · 16 Apr 2021 at 11:22

Just passed my A2 CofC. I did it though UAVHUB and it was very slick. TBH, I could have passed it without the training material if I'm being completely honest based on the question I answered.
If you have a spare £100 and want to be less restricted in where you can fly I strongly suggest taking it.

rhysduck · 16 Apr 2021 at 12:30

Rilot said:
Just passed my A2 CofC. I did it though UAVHUB and it was very slick. TBH, I could have passed it without the training material if I'm being completely honest based on the question I answered.
If you have a spare £100 and want to be less restricted in where you can fly I strongly suggest taking it.

But isn't it all changing soon?

Rilot · 16 Apr 2021 at 15:43

No, this is what it has changed to. New rules came in Dec 31st 2020.

rhysduck · 16 Apr 2021 at 20:44

Rilot said:
No, this is what it has changed to. New rules came in Dec 31st 2020.

Ah brill thanks Rilot

Considering doing it for myself, don't fly that often to be honest but think it may be worth it...

Gerard · 16 Apr 2021 at 23:23

DJI are still miles behind Skydio in terms of obstacle avoidance.

Rilot · 17 Apr 2021 at 12:14

The Skydio is very impressive for sure. To me it seems more for people who aren't really interested in flying but just want footage.

Gerard · 17 Apr 2021 at 21:48

Rilot said:
The Skydio is very impressive for sure. To me it seems more for people who aren't really interested in flying but just want footage.

Yeah it's more of an "action cam" type of drone, tracking\avoidance aside the mavics are probably better in every other way.

Lakeland · 17 Apr 2021 at 22:27

Rilot said:
Just passed my A2 CofC. I did it though UAVHUB and it was very slick. TBH, I could have passed it without the training material if I'm being completely honest based on the question I answered.
If you have a spare £100 and want to be less restricted in where you can fly I strongly suggest taking it.

What are the benefits of certification? It’s changing so frequently it’s hard to keep up! I had a quick look on some sites and it’s still quite confusing. They seem to make it sound as though the training is required to fly drones like the big mavic which I have but then other places say it just gives you the ability to fly in more places?

Rilot · 17 Apr 2021 at 23:23

Without it, under the new rules, you can only fly 150M from any uninvolved persons. This also includes flying anywhere that's residential, industrial, recreational, etc. etc. So yeah, if you want to fly the Mavic anywhere other than on your own private estate you need it.
With it, you can fly legacy drones under 2kg (All Mavics are legacy as they aren't class certified) down to 30M from uninvolved persons. Once there are class certified drones than it will allow you to fly as close as 5M in low-speed mode.

Lakeland · 17 Apr 2021 at 23:39

Rilot said:
Without it, under the new rules, you can only fly 150M from any uninvolved persons. This also includes flying anywhere that's residential, industrial, recreational, etc. etc. So yeah, if you want to fly the Mavic anywhere other than on your own private estate you need it.
With it, you can fly legacy drones under 2kg (All Mavics are legacy as they aren't class certified) down to 30M from uninvolved persons. Once there are class certified drones than it will allow you to fly as close as 5M in low-speed mode.

Thanks for clearing that up succinctly! I must have spent 30 minutes researching and ended up more confused than when I started.

Sounds like something I’d want and need to do. Do you think this would be a decent route? Looks like the course is free with just the the exam free that needs paid? https://coptrz.com/shop/cpd-training-courses/a2-certificate-of-competency-a2-cofc/

Rilot · 17 Apr 2021 at 23:59

No idea. How much is the exam?
I went with UAVHUB simply because others I know have gone via them and spoke highly of the material. The exam fee is included.

Lakeland · 18 Apr 2021 at 08:54

Rilot said:
No idea. How much is the exam?
I went with UAVHUB simply because others I know have gone via them and spoke highly of the material. The exam fee is included.

Just shy or £60 so not a great difference. They have some expensive courses so I presume it’s subsidised to get you on the hook.

Gerard · 20 Apr 2021 at 17:16

So airsense is enabled for the 2s? I thought it was still MIA going by some of the moaning i seen on the dji forum.

tribz · 20 Apr 2021 at 17:39

What are the rules for Mavic Mini 249g drones now?

Gerard · 20 Apr 2021 at 19:53

Have an air 2s on the way and am in 2 minds about keeping it or not, seen a few side by side videos comparing the air2 and the 2s and for the most part the difference is negligible. You really have to do a lot of "pixel peeping" and zooming in to see any real difference between the 2.

Might hold out for the pro 3 which is rumoured for this year at some point.

Rilot · 20 Apr 2021 at 20:56

tribz said:
What are the rules for Mavic Mini 249g drones now?

Pretty much fly wherever you want. You can even over-fly uninvolved people. Just not big gatherings of people.
I'm about to spring for a Mini 2 just for the additional flexibility it brings with where I can fly.

Rilot · 20 Apr 2021 at 21:01

Gerard said:
Have an air 2s on the way and am in 2 minds about keeping it or not, seen a few side by side videos comparing the air2 and the 2s and for the most part the difference is negligible. You really have to do a lot of "pixel peeping" and zooming in to see any real difference between the 2.

Might hold out for the pro 3 which is rumoured for this year at some point.

So, I have both. The difference for me is in the dynamic range. There is more detail in the shadows without the highlights being blown out. I do mainly stills and the additional dynamic range will come in handy when post processing.
However, for most use cases I can't see there being enough difference that you would actually notice. The Air 2 is still a bloody fantastic drone with an excellent camera.
If someone didn't have a drone then I'd absolutely say get the Air 2S but if you have an Air 2 already then unless there is a specific deficiency in the camera that will be alleviated with the larger sensor, then save you money.

Gerard · 20 Apr 2021 at 23:03

Rilot said:
So, I have both. The difference for me is in the dynamic range. There is more detail in the shadows without the highlights being blown out. I do mainly stills and the additional dynamic range will come in handy when post processing.
However, for most use cases I can't see there being enough difference that you would actually notice. The Air 2 is still a bloody fantastic drone with an excellent camera.
If someone didn't have a drone then I'd absolutely say get the Air 2S but if you have an Air 2 already then unless there is a specific deficiency in the camera that will be alleviated with the larger sensor, then save you money.

Yeah i think i'm gonna hold out for a mavic 3 instead, it's a pretty minimal upgrade over the air 2 for the most part. Take the master shots out of the equation which they could add to the air 2 (but probably won't as it's a selling point) and it's essentially a bigger sensor (with marginal image improvement depending on the scenario) and 2 more obstacle sensors with slightly less flight time and a bit more speed. I could probably get £700 or so for my air 2 fly more but even then the additional cost for the 2s flymore combo with refresh is a bit much for what it offers over the air2.

Mavic 3 pro has been rumoured for at least a year now and more rumours pointing to a possibility of it appearing later in the year.

Gerard · 21 Apr 2021 at 00:00

Seems legit, bought for a laugh.

Gerard · 22 Apr 2021 at 18:37

Gerard said:
Seems legit, bought for a laugh.

Dodgy account unsurprisingly, order cancelled.

here's what flying a drone on crack sounds like.