I did it. I went out
and bought a remote control drone. The flying sort.
I had some
trepidation, as did my wife, as a few years ago I had gotten into flying model
aircraft and after a spectacular crash, got out again, deeming it too expensive
and needing far more skill than I had. Would this time be any different or
would it be another few hundred pounds down the drain?
I bought a cheap drone
- just 12 inches across, with a camera that did not transmit a live picture and
so, for the princely sum of £60, I could be airborne again.
The remote control
looked familiar and appeared to do similar things to my old aircraft
controller. The drone looked quite flimsy but needed minimal assembly with the
enclosed tools to make it totally airworthy. The battery looked minuscule but
at 500mA was rated to keep me in the air for 5 minutes at a time.
Battery charging is
done through a computer USB port (lead provided) and takes about 2 hours. First
lesson - if you want to fly a lot, get more batteries. They're about £2 each on
Amazon with a multi-port charger, so not too bad.
This is not a hobby
for the impatient!
So fully charged up
and AA batteries obtained for the remote control, I switched it on and as per
the instructions, put the throttle all the way forwards then all the way bake
to tie the controller to the drone. The props started spinning, lights were
flashing then steady and it was ready to go.
The first thing that
strikes you when you start flying is how skitterish the thing is. There is a
sequence to learn when it comes to flying a drone. Forwards and backwards seem
simple enough but you also have left and right slewing as well as clockwise and
anti-clockwise spot turns.
As recommended in a
video I found on YouTube, I spent the first battery-load at low-level, trying
to keep the altitude even and learning that the drone flies in relation to its
own forward, not mine. If you see 2 red lights, it's facing you and 2 green lights
it's facing away.
Keeping an even
altitude proved quite difficult and I had a few heavy-ish landings but nothing
that dented the drone or my pride. I did think though, that by the time my 5
minutes was up (all 4 lights go from steady to flashing to give you enough time
to find space to land) that I was beginning to get the hang of it.
I must say here that I
am lucky enough to have access to a large enough area that I can do my flying
indoors. This is not a living room flying machine and I understand that
anything above a light breeze can make outdoor flying quite tricky.
I am now going through
my 2-hour wait for the battery to charge (a 5 day wait for the extra batteries
to arrive). But I'm all fired up and eager to fly again.
I now really
appreciate the drone footage I've seen on TV. I realise that professional
quality drones are a lot heavier, have GPS stabilisation and probably many
other mod-cons that make them easier to fly. They still need a skilled operator
though and I will be practising hard so I can justify something a bit flashier
for my next acquisition.
Steven Lucas
Article Source:
http://EzineArticles.com/9636528
- I now really appeciate the drone footage.
S V O- I bought a cheap drone – just 12 inches across.
S V O- The remote control looked familiar
and appeared to do
similiar things to my old aircraft controller
S V O- This is not a hobby for the impatient.
S V O- The battery looked minuscule
but at 500mA was rated to
keep me in the air for 5 minutes at a time.
S V V- The first thing that strike you when
you start flying is how skitterish the thing is.
S V O- As recommend in a video I found on
youtube, I spent the first battery-load at low level.
S V- I was beginning to get the hang of it .
S V O- I am now going throught my 2 hours wait for the battery to charge.
S V O- I went out and bought a remote control drone.
- I now really appeciate the drone footage.
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