DJI Avata was released to the market on 25th August 2022. Since then users have been reporting and posting Avata tumbling crashes when it’s on manual mode from around the place which is not normal. So the drone community is confused about this issue because other DJI drones haven’t behaved like that.
Actually, those crashes are also not usual. It’s pretty much tumbling and crashing to the ground. Also, another questionable thing is it doesn’t power off even though its crashes. Therefore it keeps tumbling on the ground until the battery is thrown. In this article, we would talk about why Avata keeps crashing and how to request help from the DJI.
Huge thanks to RobHK and DronecampsRC for all the valuable info and sources to write this article.
Why does DJI Avata Keeps Crashing On Manual Mode?
The DJI Avata keeps tumbling and crashing because of its Cinewhoop design. DJI Avata is designed as a Cinewhoop drone and those designed drones are more tend to tumble and crash at high maneuver and in windy weather.
1. DJI Avata is a Cinewhoop drone.
DJI Avata belongs to the Cinewhoop drone category which has round frames around propellers. These types of drones were started to design in the last few years by different companies. Cinewhoop drones are more prone to tumble and flip out as many DJI Avatar users experience.
2. Thick Round Propeller guards.
Propeller guards are another thing that causes these tumbling crashes. When flying at high speeds and in windy weather, the drone could experience external pushing forces to the drone’s frame. Therefore Cinewhoope drone manufacturers get rid of this issue by making prop guards why thinner and lighter. But when it comes to DJI Avata, those round propeller guards are so thick. So you don’t have clean airflow around the frame which creates resistance to the drone. I think other DJI drones don’t face this issue because they don’t have this kind of prop guards.
3. Wind or high-speed maneuver.
This type of drone isn’t designed for high speeds and windy situations. So DJI Avata can’t bear high-speed maneuvers and windy situations. when it exceeds the edge, it would tumble and crash to the ground. DJI also advised not to fly the Avata in windy situations. I think DJI also knew this could be an issue.
4. Design.
Many experienced drone enthusiasts had issues with Avata’s design. The battery on DJI Avata is very large and has a high center of gravity on the frame design. Also, it has a very small wingspan. Usually, Cinewhoop manufacturers use a side-to-side mount battery design which actually gives a little bit of help to resist tumble but DJI Avata has a front-to-back battery design.
How to Get Help DJI To Repair Or Replace Your Avata If It’s Damaged.
Usually, DJI would replace or repair the drone if your DJI drone is crashed because of the product’s issue. Many users face this issue because of DJI Avata’s issue. So I’m sure DJI would be responsible for fixing this issue and repairing or replacing damaged or lost DJI Avata. I would walk you through step by step to request help from DJI, so follow step by step.
Step 1: Visit to DJI.com.
- Use your PC and visit DJI.com and hover the mouse over Support Menu. Then click “Request Repair Service Online”.
Step 2: Click “Submit A Repair Request”
- Then Click the “Submit A Repair Request” button to continue.
- After clicking this button, You’ll be directed to log in if you are not login yet. So login by giving your DJI account info connected to your DJI Avata.
Step 3: Give your service area information.
- Select your Service Area.
- Now select your Area and Country/ Region from dropdown lists. Then hit submit.
Step 4: Choose your drone (DJI Avata).
- Choose the DJI Avata from the list. If you are not seeing Avata, hit “Show All” scroll down and select DJI Avata.
- Also, you can find your device by entering your Avata’s serial number. After selecting the drone hit the “Next” button.
Step 5: Filling request service details (The Big Step).
Choose Requested Service.
- Choose the “Repair” option as the requested service.
Choose the issue.
- Then choose your issue from the below option boxes. In this case, usually you need to choose “Crash Damage” or “Water Damage” if you crashed into the water.
Give a full detailed explanation of the accident.
- Then you need to provide a detailed explanation of the accident.DJI expects more clear explanation of the accident. So start explaining from taking off and end with the crash.
Enter the Purchase information.
- Next, enter your purchase data and upload proof of purchase.
- Next, select the “Product Issue” option as the cause of the accident.
Step 6: Apply for Data Analysis.
- Choose the “Apply for Data Analysis” option. This would allow DJI to analyze the last flight details and would help DJI to figure out whether its the user’s fault or the product’s fault.
- Select the “Synchronized” option. In order to analyze the last flight data, flight data need to be synchronized.
- Then give a few requested information about the accident. Then stop at the last field which asks for footage of the accident.
Synchronize your flight records.
let’s pause the above process for a bit and synchronize flight records.
- Power on the goggles and connect the phone using the OTG cable.
- Then launch the DJI Fly app and tap on “Profile” and enter your profile. Before that make sure you are logged in.
- Then scroll down and tap on “Settings”.
- Then Select “Sync Flight Data” and turn on “Auto-sync Flight Records”. If it’s already on, off and on it again.
- Back to the profile section and “More” under your profile details.
- Then tap on the history icon at the top right corner and refresh records.
Collect Requested Data by DJI.
- After refreshing you need to download the latest “Black Box Data” files which are needs to be sent to DJI. Download about 3-4 latest “Black Box Data” files.
- Once the download is completed, go to the DJI Fly app folder of your device.
- Inside the folder, you’ll find a folder named “Flight Records”.
- Then zip this folder to send DJI. Usually, you can do this by tapping and holding on to the folder and hitting the “Compress” option. Or you can use an app to do that.
- Also, DJI would ask for the video of the incident. If you have saved the incident to the SD card you can use that clip for that. If you haven’t recorded or are unable to get the last footage, you still can get them through goggles. For that power on goggles and go to Settings> Safety. Then scroll down and select “Camera View Before Loss”. Now you could see the last footage. You can record this footage and send it to DJI.
- Move the Requested data (FlightRecords.zip and accident footage) from the phone to the PC.
Step 6: Upload All Requested Data to Google Drive.
After collecting and moving all the requested data we need to organize them and give the link to the DJI.
- Login to your Google account and go to your Google Drive.
- Tap on “New Folder” and make a folder named “DJI”.
- Then enter that folder and make another subfolder named “Flight Records” and “Video”.
- Upload your FlightRecords.zip file to the “Flight Records” folder and the last footage to the “Video” folder.
- Then copy the link for the “DJI” folder. Next, we need to give this link to DJI.
Step 7: Paste the link in the DJI form.
- Go back to the form we were filling and paste the copied Google Drive link to the DJI field that asks last footage and data. Then hit next and complete the process.
Step 8: Stay Positive.
DJI also has all the data to analyze your last flight data. If you crashed your Avata because of the product issue, as many users do, your Avata would be repaired or replaced.
Tips when flying DJI Avata.
When you fly Avata again keep these tips in mind. It would help to avoid crashes.
1. Don’t Fly in Manual Mode. Fly in Normal Mode.
Many users face this issue when Avata is in manual mode. So I advise you to fly always in normal mode because it offers you many safety features and promises a safe flight. I have seen a user was able to stop the crash and recover the drone after changing manual mode to normal mode.
2. Fly slowly.
This type of drones are made for slow cinematic drone shots. When you are trying to have the fpv experience through DJI Avata it would exceed its edge and crash. Because it’s not designed for that. I think that’s why DJI Avata comes with the motion controller which doesn’t help with doing acrobatics.
3. Don’t fly Avata in long-range.
Most pilots in the drone community don’t use Cinewhoop drones to fly long-range distances. Even though DJI Avata can fly far, just fly within a recoverable limit.
4. Choose Days and Placed wisely.
As I said before DJI Avata is not ok with the windy environment, DJI also has advised Avata users to don’t fly it in windy weather. Also, you shouldn’t fly this side of the mountain, and places that can’t recover if it crashed. Pick days it not super windy and fly-safe environments.
