Proprietary and Confidential Copyright UAV-America, LLC 2015 All Rights Reserved
Proprietary and Confidential Copyright UAV-America, LLC 2015 All Rights Reserved

 Frame Material: Molded Carbon Fiber

 Frame Dimensions: Motor to Motor 44 inches

 Number of Motors: Four (4)

 Gross Weight without Payload: 18 Pounds (Including batteries & fixed 

landing gear)

 Max Takeoff Weight: 35 Pounds 

 Max Speed: 12 meters/second (26 MPH)

 Max Flight Time: Up to 75 minutes without payload

 Max Altitude: Geofence set by manufacturer at 250 ft – max manufacturer 

set 400 ft (FAA approved maximum).

 Max Distance: Geofence set by manufacturer at 1000 feet – max 

manufacturer set 2000 ft.

 Flight Controller: 3D Robotics Pixhawk/GPS/Telemetry

 Radio 14 Channel 2.4GHz FCC Compliant

XFT=Extended Flight Time

HL= Heavy Lift
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Pre-Flight Checklist

Airframe Specifications and information: 

UAVA Eagle Quadcopter

44 inches (1.12 meters) arm span 

Airframe including Batteries 18 Pounds (8.16 kg)

Max takeoff weight: 35 Pounds (15.8 kg)

Max flight time with standard battery and no payload – up to 75 minutes

Battery: 

Flight pack low battery warning set to 25% by manufacturer

Airframe Checks

NOTE: Take your time. Rushing to get airborne or squeeze your checklist into someone 

else’s schedule is a great way to have a mishap. Go slow, be methodical, and develop your 

own procedures if these are not appropriate for the task you are doing. 

Remove aircraft from case. Unfold and lock each arm into flight position. Listen and feel for the 

‘click’ the knob makes when it is locked. Check again. 

● Unpack pilot and sensor operator radios. Unpack video receiver and mount to tripod. 

● Mount flight battery to battery tray and secure with provided straps. Battery connectors 

will face the rear of the craft when installed correctly.

● Nut and bolt and fastener check: motors, arms, frame center body, landing gear. All 

fasteners in good condition and tight. Loose fasteners should be tightened snug. Any

replacement bolts should have Loctite Blue 242 applied sparingly. Do not fly with 

damaged or loose bolts or fastners. 

● Props must be 100% undamaged. No chips or cracks 

● Visual inspection of fixed landing gear for cracks or worn parts (if using retractable gear, 

inspect retract mechanism for damage and tension springs for proper tension. Check for 

side to side slop in retract mechanism. Springs must be tensioned evenly). 

● Motor visual inspection and end play check (up and down play check). Motors with 

excessive end play should be inspected closely and replaced if bearings are worn. 

● Propeller fastener torque should be checked by performing a visual inspection of 

paint marks on prop blade bolts. Do not tighten or loosen prop bolts unless replacing 

a broken prop! 

● Check balance on pairs of arms. Check all 4 pairs. Fore/aft balance can be adjusted by 

sliding the battery or gimbal to achieve perfect balance. Max imbalance: 3mm in any 

direction. 

● Power up copter by plugging in positive connector last (anti spark feature). Listen for 

ESC startup tones. Keep aircraft absolutely still after plugging in battery while 
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red/blue LED flashes on flight controller. Gyros initializing and zero movement is 

important! 

● Gimbal and camera signal system test. Power up camera operator radio Power up 

camera and gimbal. Gimbal will initialize, be sure nothing can contact gimbal during 

initialization. Power up cameraman monitor and Connex HD video receiver. 

● Gimbal control system check- gimbal pan and tilt and camera functions. 

● Ground station check. Connect to Mission Planner. Note that artificial horizon matches 

reality. If horizon is not level, perform accelerometer calibration. If still out of level this 

indicates a problem with the internal IMU sensor on Pixhawk. Contact UAVA for further 

instructions. Note battery voltage, altitude, and GPS status. Battery voltage > 25V, 

altitude close to zero, GPS status will vary depending on conditions. Recommend GPS 

HDOP be less than 2 for accurate GPS positioning. Cycle the pilot control radio mode 

switch and verify Mission Planner reports the expected mode for each switch position. 

● Ground station video Rx and OSD test- Verify video feed on monitor and OSD data 

matches Mission Planner HUD. 

Flying Field Checks

● Check weather- MAX sustained wind speed for safe flying is 16 MPH. The Eagle will fly 

in winds well above this, however the likelihood of a crash increases. Takeoff and 

landing will require a decisive flying style. Tip over accidents are most common when 

only 1 landing skid is in contact with the ground. 

● Check solar flare (CME) activity. This can impact GPS. Android app ‘Solar Activity

Monitor’. Solar flare activity will degrade GPS and magnetic compass operation.

● Check winds aloft. Winds @ 1000 feet can be 2-3X ground wind speed. There are 

several aviation weather apps available. Tree tops can be a good indicator of winds 

near flight altitude. 

● Position aircraft so the nose is into the wind. 

● Determine your emergency landing plan. Have a backup landing zone and know what 

your plan will be beforehand. In an emergency, land immediately unless people or 

objects are nearby – Never fly above or near people, animals or objects without 

specific safety precautions in place. If ever in doubt of whether you can fly safely, 

don’t. 

Final Checks

● Sensors on and batteries charged 

● Verify video downlink 

● Flight battery voltage 

● If flying waypoint mission, mission uploaded and verified altitude above ground and 

obstructions and other airspace conflicts 

● Timer set for less than 80% max battery capacity. 

● Select desired flight mode. If you have GPS HDOP below 2 you can take off in Pos 

Hold. Otherwise it is recommended to take off in stabilize or alt hold. 
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● Clear your flight area. Bystanders and trees, cars, houses, etc should be at least 100 

feet away. 

● Press and hold safety button until ESCs arm (they will stop beeping) 

● Loudly announce your intentions to take off. 

● Arm the craft and slightly increase throttle. Note propeller RPM, noise or anything out of 

the ordinary. If you are not sure STOP and DISARM. 

● Take off into the wind and be ready to correct for wind related turbulence or 

movement. Increase throttle to 100% and climb to your desired altitude. Reducing the 

throttle after takeoff will make for a more efficient climb. Getting away from the ground 

and out of ground effect is critical, take off decisively. 

Post Flight Checks

● Disarm 

● Approach copter carefully and depress safety button until ESCs begin to beep and 

safety button flashes red. 

● Unplug flight battery. 

● Turn off sensors if necessary

● Turn off monitor 

● Properly stow aircraft and associated equipment.
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Flight Controller Color Codes

● FLASHING RED AND BLUE: Initializing. Please wait, do not move craft as 

the gyros initializing. 

● DOUBLE FLASHING YELLOW: Error. System refuses to arm- connect to 

Mission

Planner to see error. 

● FLASHING BLUE: Disarmed. Searching for GPS. Autopilot, loiter, and

return-to-launch modes require GPS lock. 

● FLASHING GREEN: Disarmed, GPS lock acquired. Ready to arm.

● SOLID GREEN: Armed with GPS lock. Ready to fly!

● FLASHING YELLOW: RC failsafe activated.

● FLASHING YELLOW: Battery failsafe activated.

● FLASHING YELLOWAND BLUE: GPS glitch or GPS failsafe activated.

Pixhawk Safety Switch Color Codes (Red LED)

● QUICK, CONSTANT BLINKING: Performing system check. Please wait.

● INTERMITTENT BLINKING: System ready. Press the safety button to activate.

● SOLID: Ready to arm. Proceed to the arming procedure.

Common error messages:

BAD AHRS - EKF is still warming up. Solution: you may fly and error will clear but occasionally

aircraft will exhibit a small twitch once EKF is satisfied.

BAD GYRO HEALTH Copter was jostled or bumped during gyro initialization. Solution: 

restart Flight Controller by cycling the power. If error is persistent, perform accelerometer cal. 

If still persistent, IMU may be damaged.

BAD COMPASS HEALTH - Compass 1 and 2 mismatch. Strong magnetic field or problem with 

1 compass. Solution: perform compass calibration. If still persistent possible environmental 

interference or compass hardware problem.

EKF FAILSAFE - Compass 1 and compass 2 disagreed by >60* for longer than 2 seconds.

Eagle will invoke LAND command. Solution: Possible electrical fault or high resistance 

connection. Check battery connectors and compass connection. Check video transmitter 

antenna placement.