Lost a drone in a field or a wood? The last coordinates get you close.
Photo: Fridi Antrack on Unsplash
Save the flight log, then search downwind of the last GPS position: that is where a drone that lost signal or battery comes down, and the higher it was, the further it travelled. In a crop or long grass it is invisible from two metres away, and a metal detectorist nearby can walk that strip and hear the motors and battery. Here is how to narrow the area before anyone goes, and how to get someone nearby to walk it.
The first hour
- 1
Save the flight log now
Last GPS position, altitude, heading, speed and battery at the moment of loss. Screenshot it before the app clears it or you fly again. It is the single most useful thing you will hand a searcher.
- 2
Work out the drift
A falling or gliding drone lands downwind of its last position, and the higher it was, the further it travelled. Note the wind direction and the altitude at loss. That turns a circle around the last fix into a stretch of ground on one side of it.
- 3
Look up before you look down
Trees catch drones. Walk the line from the last fix downwind and scan the branches as well as the ground. A drone in a canopy is not a detector's job, but it is often visible if you know to look.
- 4
Don't trample a crop looking for it
A field is somebody's livelihood. Stay on the edges and the tramlines, and ask the farmer before you walk in. Whoever searches it later needs the same permission, and Retrievly does not arrange it.
What a metal detector can do with a drone
Motors, a frame, a battery pack: a drone is a big target that reads from further away than a coin does. In anything taller than ankle-height grass it is lying where nobody can see it and a coil can hear it.
- In a crop field
- The usual place. The drone is under the leaves, invisible from the tramline and obvious to a detector walking it. Private land: the searcher has to get the farmer's permission first, and a request is flagged so they know that before they offer.
- In long grass or a meadow
- Long grass closes over a drone completely. This is the easiest ground for a detector and the most frustrating for eyes, which is exactly the point of asking someone with a coil.
- In woods or scrub
- On the ground under trees, a detector finds it quickly through leaf litter and bramble. In the canopy, it doesn't; say in your post if the last fix was over trees so the searcher brings the right expectations.
- In water
- Shallow, still water up to waist depth is searchable with a waterproof detector, and a drone does not drift far once it sinks. Deeper water or a river current is a harder job, and a battery in water needs handling with care.
What makes a search more likely to work
- The last fix and the wind
- Coordinates plus a wind direction narrows a field to a strip. Post both, and the altitude at loss if you have it.
- Photos of the spot
- Not of the thing: of the ground. A photo with a landmark in it lets a searcher stand where you stood.
- Say what it is
- Make and model, colour, whether the lights were on when it went. A white drone in a wheat field and a grey one in stubble are different jobs.
- Answer quickly
- Searchers offer a day they can actually go. Answer soon, and that day is still free for them.
From where it fell to your hand
- 01
It comes down
A gust, a low battery, a lost signal. It's in the crop a few dozen metres downwind of the last position.
- 02
You mark it and post
A pin on your phone, a photo of the spot, the story. Searchers nearby see only a rough area, never the pin.
- 03
Someone nearby goes to look
A detectorist who already searches that ground offers. You pick them, and only they get the exact spot.
- 04
It's back in your hands
They hand it back in person. Any thank-you is between the two of you; nothing goes through us.
How soon the request goes up and how tightly you can draw the area decide most of it. Same day, with a spot somebody can stand on, is a very different job from a whole beach a fortnight later. Retrievly is free, and it handles no money at all. The full version.
What makes the difference
- It is not a guarantee
- A drone is a big target, and a searcher with the flight log finds a lot of them. That log is exactly what narrows the area: post it soon, with the last position, and you have handed over most of the difficulty.
- Nobody is vetted
- Retrievly does not check, insure or verify searchers or owners. Read their profile and rating, meet somewhere public, and trust your judgement.
- No money passes through us
- There is no fee and no cut. Many owners give a thank-you once the item is back in their hands, agreed between the two of you. Nothing is a real option too.
Common questions
- Can a metal detector find a drone?
- Yes. Motors, frame and battery make a big target that reads from further away than a coin, in crops, long grass or leaf litter. What a detector cannot do is reach a drone caught in a tree, so look up along the downwind line as well.
- Where does a drone come down when it loses signal?
- Downwind of its last GPS position, and the higher it was, the further it travelled. Save the flight log with position, altitude, heading and battery before the app clears it, and note the wind direction: that turns a circle into a strip.
- Can a searcher walk into a farmer's field?
- Only with permission. The searcher asks the landowner or farmer first; Retrievly does not arrange that.
- What does it cost?
- Posting a request on Retrievly is free, and no money goes through the site. Any thank-you is agreed directly between you and the person who searches.
You can post without an account; we just ask where to reach you at the end. Signing in is for searchers.