Am I doing the right thing?

Flubbs

Member
Hi guys,

just joined up today, I've had my dji phantom for six months now and very happy with it and the results from the h3-2d and all the other bits, that I've since upgraded, so much so that I take delivery of my S800 evo with cine star 2 axis gimbal next week, I've been reading through here a little and although I've been flying the phantom in attitude mode most of the the time I'm quite happy hovering nose in fig 8's and left and right hand circuits are ok as are 45 deg approaches to land. I'm looking at completing the resource RPQ-S qualification as it looks like more people are converting to this from BNUC-S,

are there another things I should be doing before spending the cash on the course? Should I be flying in manual?
is there anywhere in Surrey UK that I can fly other than my garden? I used to hold a PPL so e ground school doesn't really frighten me, but the flight test sounds a bit daunting....

thanks guys, all appreciated, steve
 

bensid54

Member
Looks like you could teach us some tricks here. I have a question what is a "resource RPQ-S qualification" I realize that is in the UK but I'm curious. From your post I assume you are well practiced in RC helicopters is this true?
 

Benjamin Kenobi

Easy? You call that easy?
Sounds like you're doing the right thing to me! I did the RPQ-S qualification and found it brilliant. Don't worry about the flight test, it is quite straightforward. There's two parts to it. First, manual dexterity where you fly to four points (with your camera pointing down) tail-in and read the letters on the ground. Then the same again nose-in and you read the numbers on the ground. The next part is longer and you fly to maybe 5 points as if you were doing photos/videos of those areas at different heights. There will be a couple of simulated emergencies during this part, incursion by a manned aircraft and loss of signal (initiate failsafe). As long as you follow your emergency procedures you'll be fine.

The guys at ResourceUAS are ex-military types so everything is very black and white, which is nice.

How come you decided to put a cinestar gimbal on the S800? The S800 is a bit of a vibe machine and usually only the Zenmuse can eliminate vibes getting to your camera. Just a heads-up.

If you want to talk let me know. Or call ResourceUAS as they are very friendly on the phone.
 

Flubbs

Member
Thanks for getting back, bensid54, the rpq-s is a CAA certified qualification similar to BNUC-s here in the uk, I think I'm right in saying that it's a requirement of insurance companies and clients to prove your competence.

Thanks for the info Ben, I went for the cine star, mostly due to cash, but also the flexibility of using other camera bodies, red's canon's etc, although I'm starting with the GH2, it was also down to advice from the shop, who suggested the cone star with a brushless motor setup, I went for the S800 evo too in the belief that the vibrations were less???

On the test was that flying in Manual or attitude mode?
 

nickedw

RPQ-S qualified
Hi there, I'm pretty much where you are and have attended the RPQ-S course myself. Don't worry about manual, I had the same conversation myself. When Resource UAS say manual, they actually mean ATTI/GPS mode in our world. Manual to them means 'Not Waypoint' So in my Ops manual I have waypoint procedures and 'Manual'(ie ATTi/GPS mode) procedures. At no point will you be asked to fly true manual, unless you specifically say you want to do this in your Ops manual (why the Hell would you?)

Good Luck anyway, it's an excellent course and they're good guys, I enjoyed it thoroughly.

Nick.

Thanks for getting back, bensid54, the rpq-s is a CAA certified qualification similar to BNUC-s here in the uk, I think I'm right in saying that it's a requirement of insurance companies and clients to prove your competence.

Thanks for the info Ben, I went for the cine star, mostly due to cash, but also the flexibility of using other camera bodies, red's canon's etc, although I'm starting with the GH2, it was also down to advice from the shop, who suggested the cone star with a brushless motor setup, I went for the S800 evo too in the belief that the vibrations were less???

On the test was that flying in Manual or attitude mode?
 

Flubbs

Member
Hi there, I'm pretty much where you are and have attended the RPQ-S course myself. Don't worry about manual, I had the same conversation myself. When Resource UAS say manual, they actually mean ATTI/GPS mode in our world. Manual to them means 'Not Waypoint' So in my Ops manual I have waypoint procedures and 'Manual'(ie ATTi/GPS mode) procedures. At no point will you be asked to fly true manual, unless you specifically say you want to do this in your Ops manual (why the Hell would you?)

Good Luck anyway, it's an excellent course and they're good guys, I enjoyed it thoroughly.

Nick.


Thanks Nick, sounds good, indeed why would you fly true manual, I may give it a try on the phantom some time, picking the beast up on Thursday, hope we get some good weather to get some practice in
 

Benjamin Kenobi

Easy? You call that easy?
I didn't fly in Manual as I don't use it in real life on a big rig. I fly mostly GPS when outside in normal circumstances.
 

bensid54

Member
I prefer GPS too unless it's inside a building at that point Att mode is best. The other day I put on the Fat Sharks to fly my quad and the next thing I knew the craft was upside down on the pavement with the blades spinning away until I was able to unplug the batteries. When I checked my radio settings my switch was in manual mode instead of GPS mode which explains my lack of control so for me manual mode is way too reactive also goes to show you better check your settings first before you take off.
 

Flubbs

Member
Thanks chaps, am in the process of joining my local club so I have somewhere to fly other than my garden or in the garage at work.... Have an insurance quote, next step, Resource-UAS, pick the beast up tomorrow can't wait. :pig:
 

Benjamin Kenobi

Easy? You call that easy?
Who did you go with for insurance? I went with John Heath and they are very good. Cover everything from training period to crashes caused by firmware updates. And you can add on things for specific jobs.
 




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