How to enable the Acro flight mode in iNav

[@wingunder]

Hi Daren, thanks a lot for this video. Acro mode was the missing link, to me. As a bonus, you also showed us where to enable air mode. Great stuff! Keep these tips coming 👍

[@MrD]

No problem. I’m glad the video was helpful 👍🏻

[@AndrewNewton]

Nicely presented Mr D.

[@MrD]

Thank you Sir Newton. High praise 👍🏻

[@nmrlab3807]

@Mr.D - Falling with style Thanks for the tutorial. What would you recommend for a flying wing for novices?

[@MrD]

To be perfectly honest, I wouldn’t recommend a flying wing for a novice. They may look cooler, but they are harder to launch, more critical for CG, and less forgiving that a regular plane. I would recommend a regular plane with either the motor on the nose, twi motors on the wings, or a high mounted motor, mid fuselage. That keep the prop away from hands while launching. The tail adds stability. Something like a VolantexRC Ranger 1600 would be a good starting point. The Bixler os a similar shape, but the build side is more involved for an FPV setup.

[@nmrlab3807]

@@MrD I appreciate it. Thank you.

[@MrDrivesafe]

Thank you very much for putting this out! I could not understand why acro mode wasn't an option for a flight mode in the modes tab. I'm coming from betaflight to fix wing with inev. Acro mode in inab is completely unintuitive so your point at the beginning of the video is completely valid. Days of frustration with this. Again thanks for putting this out there.

[@MrD]

Thanks Jon. Though it’s the same in BetaFlight. Well, it was the last time I used it. But that was version 3.? 🤣 iNav 4.0 will make things much clearer. There will be a box at the bottom of the modes page that shows when Acro is active.

[@johndylan9309]

Any idea why acro mode would not be level? My fixed wing flies level on angle mode but as soon as I go to acro mode the nose points down at a 5 to 10° angle

[@MrD]

Acro doesn’t self level. It flies where it’s pointed, like Manual. Angle will be trying to keep the plane level, regardless of outside influences, such as trim, CG, motor thrust angle, drag on the airframe (VTx antennae as an example), turbulence, or thermals. If the nose is dropping in Acro, you’ll most likely find the same to be true in Manual. If the plane flies great in Manual. Everything else will just fly better. Maybe start with CG. It may be on the markers, but a glide test would confirm if the markers are correct. After that, trim. Once it’s flying nice in Manual, Acro should also be good. Then re-do the autolevel tuning. After that, Angle should also work well again.

[@johndylan9309]

@@MrD OK thank you for replying. I think I will try to adjust the CG but I already had to add lead in the back just so it wouldn’t be too nose heavy. After all the DJI transmitter and camera are in the front. I think I’ll just try to adjust the servo horn‘s so that the ailerons provide a little bit of a pitch upward and see if that helps it at all. Not much you can really do with a little dart 250 g plane

[@MrD]

@@johndylan9309 the Dart 250G is very sensitive to CG. You need to make sure this is perfect. The little foam bumps are really accurate enough. With mine, I installed small pins on the CG. From what I can remember, it needed hardly any reflex, 1-2mm. Again, too much reflex could be a sign that the CG is out. One other suggestion. Instead of adding lead to the back. Use standoffs to move the motor back. This adds much less dead weight. But also shifts the weight bias to hit CG.

[@Synthetic11]

Thank you Darren, you've helped me again.

[@teetsik]

Just leaving a comment. Hehe. Good job! Keep it coming. iNav is for me a lot harder to learn than setting an arduplane. What i really miss is just simple steps to setup flight mode that acts exactely like fbwa. Thanks again!

[@MrD]

You’re welcome. I’ve not yet flown with ArduPlane. But reading the manual, it sounds like Angle mode.

[@M-H433]

Darren does it say Acro in the osd if no mode is selected. Or Airmode?

[@MrD]

Mark, it used to say AIR. A bug which was inherited from Betaflight. From 2.6 it was corrected and shows ACRO.

[@SILVIOFRANCO1]

Hi Darren. I was using Air Mode as Acro. Bad mistake because I use this on drone racers. So, I will change it in accordance to your orientation now. Thanks, man

[@MrD]

Silvio, it’s not bad to use Airmode. I have mine perms permanently enabled. It’s just incorrect to call Acro, Airmode. Acro is the stabilised flight mode. Airmode is something that keeps the PID active at low throttle, so that you have more control on quads, and consistent stabilisation on fixed wing.

[@SILVIOFRANCO1]

@@MrD ok MrD. So, if acro is stabilized mode what is the difference between acro and angle? Just to confirm my thoughts! Thanks

[@MrD]

@@SILVIOFRANCO1 Acro is stabilised Angle is stabilised and self-levelling. Horizon is Angle towards the centre of the sticks and Acro towards the outside.

[@SILVIOFRANCO1]

@@MrD Thanks so much, MrD

[@SILVIOFRANCO1]

@@MrD BTW, Thanks for the video

[@beefybeef1326]

Thanks for clearing this up!. Great video as asways mate. Im interested in having a mode where i have straight and level flight at a fixed altitude when i release all the sticks... but when i hit the elevator i want to gain or lose altitude, then after i release the sticks again it flies straight and level at a fixed altitude. Is there an easy way to get this behaviour? This is basically the assisted flying mode on the parrot disco. I would like to replicate this mode in inav

[@MrD]

Thank you 👍🏻 You could probably have this or similar if you have if you combine Angle and Alt Hold on the same switch position

[@beefybeef1326]

@@MrD thanks. But wouldn't this effectively stop me gaining or losing height unless i turn alt hold off?

[@MrD]

@@beefybeef1326 I believe if you pitch up or down, it should hold the altitude when you let go of the stick.

[@beefybeef1326]

@@MrD i agree 👍🏻

[@Maceyee1]

airmode in betaflight is manual on an inav wing

[@MrD]

No, it really isn’t. Airmode on BetaFlight is the same as in iNav when a quadcopter platform is selected. It keeps the PID loop active at low throttle. With Airmode off, if you have your quad at idle and move it around, it will do nothing different. However, with Airmode enabled and active, if you move the quad around the motors will increase or decrease power to try and keep it at the same attitude. That is Airmode. BetaFlight has no manual equivalent. All the quad flight modes are stabilised. Just having Airmode on the modes page is selecting Acro + Airmode, as Acro is the default flight mode.

[@CP-zi3eg]

But Acro appears as mode on fpv screen, right ?

[@MrD]

Yes, when you select the Acro mode, it will show ACRO as the mode OSD element.

[@alexglikman8629]

Not this video, but previos video was BEST video about Inav 3.0 !!!!

[@MrD]

Thanks Alex, I appreciate that. Hopefully this is the best video about helping new pilots find Acro 😉

[@theroc495]

I was looking everywhere, I didn't see it in the wiki...gotta reset my flight modes now

[@MrD]

It is a shame that it’s hidden like that. I’m sure it’s been that way size CleanFlight (or earlier), and has just made its way in to all more recent forks of that project.

[@theroc495]

@@MrD ..keep the good info going, I'm learning

[@JuliooCesarMatias]

excellent video!

[@MrD]

Thank you Julio

[@RCWilliam123]

Thanks for the video!

[@MrD]

You’re welcome 🙂

[@MsDidits]

Nice Thanks Info

[@rougeneon1997]

Its really embarrassing but Ive been using iNav for years now and I also assumed "Manual" was "Acro" especially since "Airmode" is typically "always enabled" and in BetaFlight Airmode IS acro lol

[@MrD]

That’s the thing though, in BetaFlight, Airmode isn’t Acro. It works exactly the same way as iNav. Acro is the stabilised flight mode. Airmode is a flight mode modifier that keeps the PID loop active at low throttle. It makes it more confusing where you use Airmode on a switch in BetaFlight. But, if nothing else is active at the same time, it’s actually Airmode on top of Acro. The other problem is that BetaFlight uses an incorrect model label in the OSD. iNav inherited that, but it was fixed in the previous version.

[@rougeneon1997]

@@MrD Facinating. You think you know things and then all of a sudden.......you dont. lol On my BF quad I dont have any modes set since I dont use ang/hor. Pretty sure airmode is always enabled and my motors spin when armed. Its been a while since I was in its BF config since Ive been happy with it for a long time. Still on 3.5.7 to boot haha

[@MrD]

I didn’t know BetaFlight had always enable Airmode now. I think the last version of BetaFlight I looked at was 3.4. So having it permanently enabled and no modes, you’re using Acro with the Airmode modifier. The props will spin when armed. But, with Airmode on, if you move the quad, the motors will speed up to try to level it again. With Airmode off, they wont, until the throttle is raised.