P3A - Prop came off at 390 feet....update - Yay Amazon

AndyO · Feb 7, 2016

New flyer here....had it 3 days. Crashed hard, destroying the camera, battery and the shell. I had hand tightened as instructed.

Am I screwed or can I get some sort of warranty repairs?

msinger · Feb 7, 2016

Props generally fall off for two reasons:

1) The pilot did not hand-tighten them properly.
2) The prop is damaged prior to the flight.

That certainly doesn't mean there aren't other possibilities, but your case most likely falls into one of those cases. You could try returning your Phantom to DJI for repair, but I'm thinking the best you'll get is 30% off a new Phantom. I suppose that's better than nothing though if you don't mind waiting.

exit 4 · Feb 7, 2016

Sorry for the loss. Did the prop fall apart, as in if it broke apart? Are you sure you did not tighten the wrong way, maybe cross thread? Sad to say it doesn't sound good. Wish you luck.

adfischer · Feb 7, 2016

Check your credit card terms. Some cards will cover loss or damage in the first 90 days. I recently bought my son a PlayStation Portable which he promptly dropped and broke the screen. They covered the full cost of a replacement.

Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots mobile app

exit 4 · Feb 7, 2016

adfischer said:
Check your credit card terms. Some cards will cover loss or damage in the first 90 days. I recently bought my son a PlayStation Portable which he promptly dropped and broke the screen. They covered the full cost of a replacement.

Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots mobile app

Good point, there are many benefits hidden in the fine print. At this point it can't hurt to look.

adfischer · Feb 7, 2016

Curious exactly what you were doing when it came off. Ascending, decending, turning, etc. would be interesting if you could post your black box data.

Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots mobile app

AndyO · Feb 7, 2016

AndyO said:
New flyer here....had it 3 days. Crashed hard, destroying the camera, battery and the shell. I had hand tightened as instructed.

Am I screwed or can I get some sort of warranty repairs?

adfischer said:
Curious exactly what you were doing when it came off. Ascending, decending, turning, etc. would be interesting if you could post your black box data.

Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots mobile app

I was climbing and rotating to take a look from this height, which I hadn't done yet. I saw a prop fly off and then it dropped like a rock. Hit tree limbs on the way down.

I'm new to this....how do I pull my flight data from the iPad app into a message?

msinger · Feb 7, 2016

AndyO · Feb 7, 2016

Maybe some good news.......I pieced the battery back together and the drone started up, although the app gave me a battery warning. While the camera glass is shattered, it shows a good image.

The body has one minor crack near a motor. The gimbal is actually in good shape and operates.

I just ordered a replacement battery via 2 day Amazon shipping. Maybe, just maybe, it will work with a good battery.

TheLightSpeedz · Feb 7, 2016

AndyO said:
New flyer here....had it 3 days. Crashed hard, destroying the camera, battery and the shell. I had hand tightened as instructed.

Am I screwed or can I get some sort of warranty repairs?

My bet is they will replace it. If you can return it you should and get a replacement.

Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots mobile app

TheLightSpeedz · Feb 7, 2016

Well on the Phantom adv and pro you can remove the camera lens. It's just screwed on there

Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots mobile app

adfischer · Feb 7, 2016

AndyO said:
I was climbing and rotating to take a look from this height, which I hadn't done yet. I saw a prop fly off and then it dropped like a rock. Hit tree limbs on the way down.

I'm new to this....how do I pull my flight data from the iPad app into a message?

There are 2 sets of log files - one on your phone/tablet and one on the Phantom itself. The one on the Phantom is more detailed. Follow the instructions on this site (Maps Made Easy -) It will create a spreadsheet with an enormous amount of details.

Wold love to see the log from the incident. You could also post the current log and people on here will likely help you determine if anything else is wrong with it.

adfischer · Feb 7, 2016

adfischer said:
There are 2 sets of log files - one on your phone/tablet and one on the Phantom itself. The one on the Phantom is more detailed. Follow the instructions on this site (Maps Made Easy -) It will create a spreadsheet with an enormous amount of details.

Wold love to see the log from the incident. You could also post the current log and people on here will likely help you determine if anything else is wrong with it.

Also, were you talking video when it happened?

AndyO · Feb 7, 2016

adfischer said:
Also, were you talking video when it happened?

No, I had not yet started video when it happened.

Had to leave home for a while. I'll pull the log from the SD card and upload it tonight.

Thanks guys!

AndyO · Feb 9, 2016

Wow - major props (no pun intended) to Amazon. Late Sunday night I contacted them and explained my crash due to the prop flying off in mid-flight. (I had just received my P3A on Friday). I filled out the return/replacement forms.....and here I am less than 48 hours later with a brand new P3A in my hands.

BUY FROM AMAZON.

Oh, like an idiot, I failed to download my flight logs as promised. Sorry.

Thanks for all the input and assistance.

marko1953 · Feb 9, 2016

AndyO said:
I was climbing and rotating to take a look from this height, which I hadn't done yet. I saw a prop fly off and then it dropped like a rock. Hit tree limbs on the way down.

I'm new to this....how do I pull my flight data from the iPad app into a message?

How did you see a prop fly off at 390' ?
I also had a prop fly off at 50' , drone went down spinning madly, bad damage.

AndyO · Feb 9, 2016

marko1953 said:
How did you see a prop fly off at 390' ?
I also had a prop fly off at 50' , drone went down spinning madly, bad damage.

Not sure how to not sound like a smart aleck,other than to say I saw something pop or fly off the top of the bird, then the sickening descent. My app was screaming in alarm.

exit 4 · Feb 9, 2016

Congrats. Couldn't get a better outcome. Thats great.

msinger · Feb 9, 2016

AndyO said:
Oh, like an idiot, I failed to download my flight logs as promised.

Your TXT flight log should still be on your mobile device. I realize you already know what happened, but you should still be able to pull it from there if you wanted to post it here.

shorttimer · Feb 9, 2016

I have heard a number of times where the buyer got it from Amazon and crashed and Amazon either sent them a new one or refunded their money. One was from a reseller through Amazon and Amazon told the person just to send back whatever pieces they had and they would issue the refund which they did. He asked Amazon what if the seller wouldn't take it back and Amazon told them they would deal with seller and not to worry that once Amazon got he parts back a refund would be issued which it was. I know, I am a fan of Amazon but no, I don't work there or even have any of their stock. Glad they took care of you.