DJI Mavic 2 Pro - How Return-to-Home (RTH) Works in the DJI Go 4 App

DJI's Return-to-Home (RTH) feature is typically misunderstood by new drone pilots and can lead to unnecessary calamities while flying your drone. In this video, we'll use the DJI Mavic 2 Pro to teach how RTH works and what the best settings are.
🎬 Jump to Section
0:00​ B-Roll Footage & Introduction
1:02 Why is Return-to-Home (RTH) important?
1:33 How does RTH work?
4:11 What are the three main actions that trigger RTH?
4:16 1 - Low Battery Failsafe
5:48 2 - Loss of Signal Failsafe
8:09 3 - Smart RTH
8:51 Best Return-to-Home Settings
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[@VideobyHomeworks]

You sir, are an excellent instructor. I spent about 40 years in EMS and Public Safety, and a considerable amount of that time was devoted to developing and delivering training of one kind or another, so when I tell you that you’re good, you should realize that I “knows one when I sees one.” 😉 I’m about to take delivery of my first “non-toy” UAV (DJI Air2s) and plan to review your entire flight training curriculum, as well as your Part 107 certification prep course forthwith. I’m also pleased to see you have a newsletter! I’ll jump on that list as well. Keep up the outstanding work.

[@uavcoach]

Means a lot, thank you for watching this video and for your comments!

[@theskybutlerllc]

Hi Greg, great overview. One item of caution for everyone to remember is to always know what is ABOVE the drone when activating RTH. I do a lot of roofing inspections that involve flying over the roof but under tree branches. This requires vigilance when using RTH, because not all drones have upward obstacle avoidance, and depending on the situation, can sometimes cause the drone to not quite know what to do. Keep up the great videos. Cheers! Ken

[@uavcoach]

Yes, great tip!

[@MatthewPolack]

Thanks.. appreciate the thorough overview.. nearly lost my Mavic today after losing remote control access..and then blindly trying to guess it home.. realize now after watching your video that I should have used rth to help me! Thanks!

[@uavcoach]

Ooh, glad she came home safely! Thanks for your comment, Matthew.

[@jefflee6975]

I knew the basics but this video is very informative on RTH. My screen went blank once and I PANICKED! (Lost the drone but it was deemed a flyaway and replaced for free). If I would have seen this video, I would have not panicked understanding exactly how RTH worked. Great vid - checking my settings now.

[@uavcoach]

Glad it helped, Jeff! Thanks for taking the time to comment.

[@bogman192]

great video - merci.

[@dewarner12]

This was a helpful refresher. Thanks -

[@uavcoach]

Thanks, Dudley!

[@boxybox100]

great video, thank you so much

[@uavcoach]

Glad you liked it!

[@devinlightner7434]

Great refresher before starting my day.

[@uavcoach]

Thank you, Devin!

[@kumarachips380]

How's it going Greg, thank you for sharing your knowledge on this topic, I come from New Zealand and will be sitting my 101 and 102 Certification training next month. I've watched and thumbs up a few of your clips as they are a great help for me going forward with this training. I'm still a noob though but as you said on one of your clips practice and confidence makes you a better pilot. Wish me luck and thank you once again.

[@uavcoach]

Thank you for comment, and yes, best of luck to you! I'm sure you'll do great :)

[@davidb3571]

Great job and very informative

[@uavcoach]

Thank you, David!

[@uavcoach]

Hi Fern, sorry just seeing this. Glad you're enjoying our videos! I like the Air2S experience a bit more. Better for beginners. But the Mavic 2 Pro is still a beast of a drone with some intelligent flight modes and settings that aren't available on the 2S. You can't go wrong with either system!

[@moisemayali]

Hi Greg, thanks a lot dude. I did lose connection between the MAVIC 2 pro and the smart controller, i thought that the drone will fall... as you said the screen became black so I shut the controller and start it again while the drone was coming back. OMG such a experience

[@uavcoach]

Ooh, a rite of passage!

[@blackydon]

You are a absolute genius. The information in your videos makes me a better pilot when flying. What do you think about byte DJI smart controller? Thanks for the fantastic videos. Stay safe.

[@uavcoach]

Ha! Thanks for the kind words. The DJI Smart Controller is cool. I like how bright the screen gets and that everything is integrated vs. having to connect a separate phone/tablet. The set-up is a bit quicker. But it's definitely not a NEED to have. It's an expensive accessory!

[@blackydon]

@@uavcoach I got it in the Mavic 2 Zoom package. I thought I get it as I dislike flying with the phone. I actually love it as it’s so quick to get flying. Stay safe.

[@seanfrench1029]

Great video and channel. Glad I discovered it, even for application with my DJI MA1. How do you change the RTH to where the controller(pilot) is if not at take-off point anymore like on a boat or vehicle?

[@uavcoach]

Sean, thanks for the kind words! I looked through the user manual for the MA1 just now and did not see anything about "dynamic" return to home, where you can set the controller to be the home point. I could've sworn the MA1 had this feature! Have you checked the settings area (three dots, top right of the DJI Go 4 app)?

[@seanfrench1029]

@@uavcoach thanks Greg. I'll check.

[@simoncooper1135]

Great presentation, I'm looking towards getting a Mav 2 or 3 Pro after practicing with a host of reasonably priced drones to hone my piloting skills. I believe there is a 2nd return to home setting that directs the drone towards the remote control as a home point with the app on the move, but I have not found anythin on the tinternet about that function ~ I do get the absolute RTH, but not the roaming remote control RTH and with how that work?

[@uavcoach]

Simon, yes you can change the home point if you're on the move. Fast-forward to about 3:45 in the video, and you'll see some of the options you would have >> kzbin.info/www/bejne/iovHfn2FZrSLbdk

[@gucciericjames950]

👍

[@designsinorbit]

Did you touch on the "RTH at current altitude" button? I think it has to do with if you're drone is nearby it won't bother climbing to the set altitude...?

[@uavcoach]

Yah, good call! Not sure that functionality was in the app at the time we recorded this video. It's kind of a tricky feature and we recommend most folks leave that checked. The reason why - if the drone is between 5 and 20 meters from the home point when RTH is initiated, if the "RTH at current altitude" option is deselected, the drone will land right where it is. More thoughts on this Setting in this forum thread: forum.dji.com/thread-176913-1-1.html

[@RedMushroom23]

whats the specs of this drone though

[@diverdan363]

i have two dji drones new to this field my question would be what height do you set to avoid trees powerlines etc some times sensors dont always pick up objects in its path. why does not these drones allow you to go live on facebook etc.

[@uavcoach]

Hi Dan, yes, you can stream live to Facebook with a drone. As far as height, generally speaking, there's not much happening between 150 ft. and 400 ft. So that's a good place to hang out if you're worried about the tops of trees or telephone poles. But there's always stuff to look out for, regardless of what altitude you're at! Guy wires, birds, low-flying helicopters, etc.

[@bertrandbreyne9970]

Hey Greg, new subscriber here. Are you never afraid that one of the motors stops turning during flight? I have a mini 2 and the last couple a weeks my iPhone X becomes so hot that the screen becomes darker and I hardly can’t see anything. Should I come because I use screen recording? The battery condition of the phone is 85%. Thanks for an answer?

[@uavcoach]

Hi Bertrand, while I've been flying for years and have yet to experience a motor or propeller failure, it could absolutely happen. Yes, possible that your phone is heating up because of the screen recording app. Might be the temperature if it's in direct sun or really hot outside. Could be other apps running on the phone as well. Has happened to be before with an iPad in extreme heat, not fun to lose camera view while flying!

[@ArtyYeo]

Can the HomePoint be set to: - a new location in the Map - or to the RC location ?

[@uavcoach]

Yep! You can set it to either :)

[@carlosburgos7836]

Hi Greg, let's say the programed RTH altitude is 100’; if I launch from a 500’ roof top, do i program the RTH altitud at 600’ or just leave the 100’ because the drone acknowledges the launching altitude? Thanks, Carlos

[@uavcoach]

Hi Carlos, the RTH altitude is based on the take-off altitude. So you could leave it at 100'

[@diverdan363]

updating these drones seems to be never ending some areas also wont allow you to fly within 5 blocks of an airport

[@uavcoach]

Yes, some areas are controlled or restricted airspace and require additional authorization.

[@hanschristiantabuyo6503]

It its good for android ??

[@uavcoach]

Yes, this software is available on Android.

[@benardnathan2467]

My drone remote controller is showing NO RTH and the drone doing force landing....how to solve it please..

[@uavcoach]

Hmm, there could be a number of things happening, Benard. I'd need some more details to better diagnose. Can you shoot us an email at support (at) dronepilotgroundschool (dot) com?

[@martinmcglone8456]

how do I set rth if I am on boat

[@uavcoach]

Hi Martin, without knowing what drone you're flying, I'll assume you're flying DJI and using either the Go 4 app or Fly app. You can set the remote controller (instead of the take-off point) as your RTH location. That's what you'll want to do. As the drone gets closer to the boat, I'd turn off RTH and land manually to be the most safe. Hope this helps!

[@martinmcglone8456]

@@uavcoach Thank you, I am flying a Mavic 2 pro and value your videos highly

[@MarieeBlue]

@@uavcoach Hi! I was testing the RTH to the controller on land because later I want to do this on a boat, but when I set it it says the mobile device GPS signal is weak so it doesn-t detect its location and I can only use RTH take off location, do you know why is this? I am not in a remote area so is weird there is no signal

[@schmidtVFX]

@@MarieeBlue I am having the same issue. I’m gonna need fly from a moving boat next week. I need to get this figured out.

[@MarieeBlue]

@@schmidtVFX Hi, it's a bug from the app for ios, so I couldn't solve it and had to instead always manually land the drone within the boat. It was hard but possible, I did it using the tripod mode as movement is smoother and slower than with P mode.