Skydio for Sailing

[samsipe]

Hello, Sam here. I’m enjoying the Skydio 2 I have had for almost a month now. I’m expanding my confidence flying it over water and landing it on boats. Anyone else taking footage of or successfully tracking sailboats?

 

[Lifeisfun]

Good for you! Would be great if you can share some footage using it on boats!

 

[Blue Bird]

Welcome to Skydio Pilots! Enjoy the forum!

 

[dirkclod]

Welcome to the forum .?

 

[jan896]

welcome to the forum. I, too, have the Skydio2.... it is awesome.... we have not used it for sailing but we do use it for biking... it follows well thru the woods..

 

[samsipe]

Good for you! Would be great if you can share some footage using it on boats!

Here is something. Still working on the tracking piece.

 

[Lifeisfun]

Here is something. Still working on the tracking piece.

Any tips taking off and landing on the boat it self?
How does it behave flying over the water?

 

[samsipe]

Any tips taking off and landing on the boat it self?
How does it behave flying over the water?

Launching and recovering a Skydio 2 from a boat is hard, not even going to lie. Every flight kinda feels like a close call. Here are some thoughts and best practices I have discovered and found on the internet.

1. Hand launch seems to be the only way to get it airborne safely.
   
   
2. Make sure the boat you are launching from is in flat water with no current. Wind is an issue too!
   
   
3. The beacon might not be a good idea around water, the drone seems to dip as soon as it's tracking you (or looking) and it freaks me out every single time. I am ordering a controller soon for this reason.
   
   
4. Knowing you GPS altitude would be a huge bonus before launch, but that feature isn't out there yet, so check your beacon's GPS indicator before launch. (no way to do this in the app??)
   
   
5. Also as soon as it's airborne, set a home point on land as a backup... this is tedious if you're reading Skydio team.
   
   
6. Land with some battery reserve, auto-land into water would be a game over.
   
   
7. Hand landing is hard on a boat, and the Skydio will never align right above the boat because it sees it as an obstacle.
   
   
8. Keep your finger on the abort button for landings, it might take a few tries to get everything lined up nicely before you can catch the drone. Again, wind, current, and wave state affect all of this.
   
   
9. Flat water looks like a mirror and causes major issues with the AI engine.
   
   
10. Really wish there was a way to make Skydio climb to a set altitude immediately on takeoff. (floor and ceiling option)
    
    
11. Practice at a dock first, it helps build confidence.

YouTube Videos to consider:

 

[Lifeisfun]

Thanks for reply!
Oh boy, that sucks since I was planning to use it 90% of the time while boating
Seen both of those videos but I thought there was some update/progress to make it easier.
I hope Skydio is reading these posts.


This is also awesome footage with close call over the ocean

 

[Captain Ken]

Very cool! I too want to get some boat shots. This is going to be interesting.