Resources Thank you for be i ng a r e s p onsible drone operator. For mo r e informa t io n about the X8, visit the pages below . Onl ine in for mat ion porta l : 3DR Suppo rt : Terms and Conditions: Happy f lying!

3DR.com/X8/info help@3DR.com 3DR.com/ term sMeettheX8+ Thank you for purchasing an XB • ! The X8 is a powerfu l octocopter platform for ae rial video. Review this man ual in its entirety before your first flight. Additional instruc tions can be fou nd in the XB info r mation portal at 3DR.com/XB/info. Happy f lying! Specs Battery: Battery Dimensions: Battery Weight: Autopi lo t hardware: Autopilo t firmware:

GPS: G r ound Station Rad io: Motors : F r ame Type: Propellers: Vehicle Dimensions: P a y lo ad Capacity: Vehicle Weight w ith Battery :

Max imum A l titude•: Range•: Max imum Estimated · Righ t Time: · while geofence enabled (default)

4S 14.8V 10,000 mAh 10C 6.6 in x 2.6 in x 1.4 in (16.7 em x 6.5 em x 3.5 em) 803g P ix hawk v2.4.5 ArduCopter 3.2

3DR u-bl ox GPS with Compass (LEA-6H module, 5 Hz update)

3D R Radio v2 (915 MHz or 433 MHz) SunnySky V2216-12 KVBOO II X APC Pr opeller 11x4.7 SF (4) APC Propeller 11x4.7 SFP (4) 13.7 inx2 0 . 1 inx11.8 in( 35cmx51 cmx20cm) 800 g (1.7 lbs)

2 . 56 kg (5.6 lbs) 100m 300 m from laun ch point (1 km when geofence disabled) 15 m in 33

# Appendix:**oubleshootin~**

Pre-Arm Safety Check Failure 

# eo

If the status LED d i splays blinking yellow, the XS is failing one the pre-arm sa f ety checks

. To determine the specific failure, check t he heads-up display on the ground stat i on. There will be an error message specifying the fa il ed chec k

.

Radio Calibr at ion F a ilure : Accelerometer Calibration Fa il ure: Compa s s Calibration Failure: GPS Fa ilure: Perform Radio Calibra t ion or RC controller re
- binding Perform Accelero m e t er Ca l ibra t ion Perform Compass Cal i brati o n Wait for i m p rove d G P S si g nal or mo ve to a more op e n area

Video tutorials for performing calibrations can be found at 3DR

. com/X8 /i nfo.



# Maintenance

Replacement parts for the XS can be p u rc h ased at s t ore.3DR.com.

I n structio n s for r ep l aci n g th e wiring, pla t es , motors , and legs of the XS can be foun d at 3DR.com/X8/info.



# Contents

Pa rt s 2 F l ight P r ocedures Ta k eoff Setup 4 L and i ng Ass e mbly 4 Monitori n g Gro un d Station 

### 5 Miss i ons Po w e r M a n age m ent 7 Planning Charging 

### 8 Saving Safety 

### 8 I ni t iating Controller Battery 

### 9 End i ng Power i ng t h e XS 10 Connecting to a Groun d Sta t i on 11 Ap p endi x Troub l eshoot i ng Flight Bas i cs 

### 1 2 Maintenance Sa

f e t

y 12 Specs Ope r ating Limits 13 Resources Controls 14 Modes 17 Return to Launch 19 Failsafes 20 Status Ind i cators 22 24 24 26

# SfetLY~ 27



### 28

# ·)x-:f~ 29 30 31 31 

# £-eu(Jif



# - 3 2 

# -::::::-- 32

# ~ 

# f 

# f1 / tY 

# vf c; IY>.vfX 32 

### 33 34 32Parts RC Contro ll er Propellers Batt ery K i t Ground Station Radio SF prope l lers (4) Flight battery - Radio SFP propellers (4) •
USB adapter Charger and accessories

5**~** Android adapter Guard bag**lnitiatin~** Once you've saved t he mission to the XS, follow th ese steps to fly the mission. 1 Perform a pre-mission test flight . Follow t h e standard takeoff procedure, and fly a

brief test flight to verify that all controls (throttle, yaw, roll, and pitch) are respondi n g normally.

2 Arm i n standard mode . When you're ready to start the mission,

arm the X8 in standa r d (STD) mode. Controller: mode switch

3 Switch to auto mode. F or automat i c takeoff, arm the X8 in standard mode. Then switch to auto mode, and raise the t hrott l e to ini t i ate the miss i on. For manual takeoff , initiate the mission in f li ght by switching to auto mo de . Controller: mode switch

For auto-takeoff, raise throttle to start mission.**~ ~'J** **~ ~~J**  Contro ll er: left stick

Tool Kit**~** Propeller wrench

II Pixh a wk micro

- SD c ard adapt e r E nd**n~**

F li ght Checklist xa:---_. ,-

-**i:;l~ :;:**  ......... ·

- ..**~** ..... Q• n. To**1~:** . ': ; . .. ' lil

- p · ! 13 · .,. . ' ., . Cl • End the miss ion according to the type of

la n ding configured in the mission. Automatic Landing For missions con figu r ed with a la n d waypoint, the XS will disarm automatically after landing. Ensu re t h at the throttle stick is s et fully down during landing; the

XS will not disa rm automatically unless the throttle stick is set fully down. Manual Landing For miss i ons without a land waypoint, switch to standard or loiter mode in flight t hen land manually. A To avoid sudden changes in altitude when switching from auto mode to s t andard mode, ensure that the left st i ck is set to the center pos i t i on .

2 31

# Saving

A ft er p l anning t he mission, save the mission t o th e XB. The Pixhaw k autopilot
can store one m iss i on at a time

. When you init i ate th e mission, t he XB will sta rt t he miss i on st o re d to t h e auto p ilot at th e time.

Tablet (DroidPianner)

Select the option m en u in the top-right corner, a nd sel e c t 

### Send Missi on. T his will s a v e th e m i ssi o n to the XB

.

DroidPianne r. Se n d M i ssion (option menu)



# xa • Laptop (M i ssion Planner
, APM Planner)

On th e 

### F lig ht Plan sc r een, sele c t 

### Write W Ps to save the mission to th e XB

. Se l ec t 

### Sa ve WP Ale to save t h e m ission to your c o mput er f or future u se

.



## Wnt e W Ps

M is sio n Planner: Fl i ght Plan



# : GP S mast

Pixhawk autop i ot

Front arms (b l u e )
Rear arms (black)

Antenna

Safety button

Stat us LED

M i cro -USB p ort (not pictured
, s id e of Pixhawk) 30

3Setup: Assembly The XB arrives in travel configuration. Complete these steps to prepare the XB for flight. 1 Unfold Arms Remove the bolts a nd thumbnuts outside t h e two fold ed b l ack arms ( 1 ).

Unfold the b l ack arms , re -insert the bolts, and secure with the thumbnuts (2). 2 X8 Assembly : Unfold Arms **Plannin~** To plan a mission, power th e XB and connect to your ground stat ion. Ground station appl i cations require an Internet connection to access maps . Tablet (DroidPiann er) Select the DroidPian n er icon , selec t Editor . Tap to add waypoints, or select the b rush t o ol and d raw a p a t h fo r the XB to follow. :i} **~** Flight Data

**~** Ed i tor ) c9 L oca to r -· · :!..--.. Senings Dro1dPianner: Edit wa :r ;:x>in ts Tak e off and Landing Both ground s tat ion options provide the choice to configure automat ic takeoff and landing into the mission. Missions w ith out automatic t akeoff and landing mus t be init iated and ended in flight.

Lapt op (Mission Planner , A PM Planner) Sel e ct F l i ght Plan, and click to add waypoints. Se lect the green arrows at the bottom of the screen to configure altit u de and change waypoi n t types. E Mission Planner : Fligh t Plan 29

# Missions

The XS's Pixhawk autopilot is capable of flying an auto nom ous mission

w ith out operator input. Ensure that you feel comfortab le operating the XS manually before attempting an autonomous mission.

E nvi ronme n ta l A wa re ne ss

Before you fly, assess the features of your fly i ng area. Determine the b ound

aries of the safe flying area, and be prepared to recover the copt er man ua ll y if it goes outs i de this area

. Be aware of any r i sks at your l ocation, in clud i ng bodies of w ater, structures. trees, etc

. Designate a few areas as safety zones whe re you can safely land the copter in cas e of an unsafe situation.

Radio Signal Conditions

Rying behind solid objects, like buildings a nd trees, will block r ad io s i gnals. Always ma i ntain visual contact with the copter to ensure that the radio signa l is unob str uc ted

. Rad i o towers, cell phone towers, and nearby WiR signals

can also cause interference with the radio sys t em and decr ease its range

. Avoid flyin g in pop ula ted areas to avoid sou rce s of interference

.

Altitude

Select an appropriate a ltit u de for your fly i ng l ocat i on and l ocal regulations

. Rem ember the XS will not avoid obstacles dur in g a mission; it will complete the mission as planned. Se lect alt i tudes that avoid any obstacles, such as t r ees, a nd comply with th e saf ety inf ormatio n in this manual.

Speed

By defau l t, the X8 wi ll trave l at 6

. 5 m/s (14 .5 mph) dur i ng a mission

.



## 2 Unfo l d Legs

Remove the bo lts and nuts to the inside of the folded legs (1 ). unfo l d the l egs, re-insert the bolts
, and secure with the nuts ( 2)

.



### 2

XS Assembly: Unfo l d l egs Power

As the operator, it is yo ur resp onsibility to ensure th a t a ll missions comply with the XS ' s operat in g limits, i nc lud in g flight time. Don ' t fo rge t to take in to account the effec t of cu rrent wind condit ions on power consumption.

Regain ing Manual Control

D uring a mission, keep the controller eas ily accessib l e, and be prepar ed to regain manual control at any time

. To rega i n manua l contro l during the mission, switch to standard mode using the contro ll er. I f you observe i nst a b ili ty in the XS's fli g ht behavio r or it the copter moves outside y o ur designated safe flying area , swi tc h t o RTL. Turn i ng off the cont roll er will automatically trig ge r an R TL and ca n be used in an emergency s i tuation

as a hard recall co m mand.

Fail safes

The XS ' s defau l t failsafe beha vi ors are opt imiz ed for man u a l flight. For autonomous m i ssions, we r ecommend re-configu ri ng t h e failsafe setting s for your flying loc a t ion. For instruct i ons, vis it 

### 3DR.com/XB/info.



## 3 Attach Propellers

The XS uses SF and SFP propellers. Th ese labels can be found on the in d iv idual propelle r packages and on the p r ope ll ers the m se lves. See the diagram below f o r wh ich moto rs require SF or SFP propellers

. T he accuracy of this assem bly is critical f or the XS t o fly correctly

.

To attach each propeller
, remove the nu t a n d washer from the moto r , and add the correct ty pe of p r ope ll e r 

### with the writing on the propeller fac in g the sky

. (Th i s will be a tight f i t ; apply p r essu r e and twi s t the prope ll e r onto t he motor.) Rep l ace the washer over the prope ll er. and ti ghten the nut on top using the propeller w r ench.

lop moto·: SFP 

# .i. 

# .J.
top motor· SF

b otto m motor : SF '

. 

# n

. '

bottom 'l' Oto•: SFP

top motor: SF 

# .i.

**~** 

# .J.
top moto r: SFP

bottom -:-otor: SFP ' •

. , b o ttor, m o: o r· SF

XB P ro peller Order



# ~- 0



# .--------~ **~"~-- --~-** 

XS P ro pe ll e r As s e mbly 

# A

Ensur e th at the wr i ting on all p r opellers faces the sky. 28

5Ground Station A ground station is a la ptop or tab le t running an ArduPilot-compatible miss i on control appl ic ation. In the field, a ground station helps you monitor the X8 during flight, plan missions, a nd troub l eshoot i ssues . We recommend using a ground station at all times with the X8 . To set up a groun d station, choose a platform be l ow and visit 3 0R .com/downl oad _s oftware to ins t all the application. DroidPianner 2 Android Miss i on Planner Windows II APM Planner osx Important Note About Vehicle Setup i n Mission Planner and APM P la nner : Your X8 has been pre-configured at the f actory and is ready to fly. As-performing the calibrations o n the Initial Setup screen, includ i ng the mandatory hardware configurations and setup wizard, can adver sely affect the performance of your aircraft. iOS? There are currently no g rou nd stat i on applications ava ila ble for iO S. **Monitorin~** Monitor the X8 in flight using the controller's flight data sc reens . • Con t roll er GPS status connection strength

**~** altitude in mete r s speed in m/s mete r s from launch point flight t ime

current l atitud e

current long i tude altitude in meters

- - -- - -- • - - - ...

Pre ss and hold th e ON button to access the fl ig ht data screens . Press ON again to toggle between screens. current flight mod e GPS signal strength in # of satellites f ligh t ba tt ery l evel (14- 16 . 8 V) flight battery mAh consumed since armed 1:\ En d your flight at 14.1 V. LJ.._i Do n ot exc eed 8000 mAh fo r a fully charged X8 + battery (80% of available capacity). cont r olle r battery level (9

- 12 V)

6 27

# and**n~**
If you end your flight using the Ch 7 land command or RTL, the X8 will disarm autom a tically; wait for the motors to stop, and proceed to powering off

. Attempting to disarm th e X8 in e ither land or RTL can cause the cause the copter t o flip.



## Di sarm

For manual l and i ng in standard or l oiter mode :



### 2 Press and hold the safety button until it blinks red. Th e motors ar e now inactive, and the X8 is safe to handl e

. To disarm the motors, hol d the left stick down/left until the moto r s s t op.



# eo e o 

# •••• Motors inactive, s a fe to handle

Motors active, deactivat e before handling

Safety button indicators 

# @5 0

Controller left st i ck : d i sarm in g postt i on



### Do not hand le the propellers or pick up the copter w h ile the safety button is active (solid red). Remember to d i sconnect the battery before turning off t he controller when powe r ing off.



# Power**Mana~ement**

The X8 i s powered by a rechargeable l ithium polyme r (Li P o) ba tt ery

. When fully charged, the battery provides up to 15 m i nutes of fl ight time de p end i ng on payload, environmen t al condi t ions, and flying style. Flying w i th a gimbal
, Go P ro, an d FPV sys t em can reduce flight time by up t o 5 minutes

. Flying aggressively o r in high winds
can affect power consumption and reduce flight ti me. Monitor p ower consumpt i on using the flight data d i splay on the controller (press and hold the 

### D N bu t ton).

When the bat t ery reaches the low voltage l i mit, t h e X8 will ini t ia t e a low battery failsafe and land autom a tically a t the current posit i on. (See page 20 for more i nfo r mation abou t failsa f es.) To avoid a low battery failsafe, monitor battery voltage d u ring f l igh t on the controller ' s fligh t data d i splay, and end your fl i ght before the battery reaches the low voltage limit.

fli g ht battery l e v el

F ull battery: Low battery lim i t: 

### 16.8 

# v 14 

# v Press and hold the 

### D N button t o view fl ight data.



# 6 End your flight at 14

. 1 

### V.



# ---

fl i ght batte ry m Ah c onsu me d si n c e a rm ed Co n troller

Controller F l i gh t Data D i sp l a y: Screen 1 

### Another way to mon i tor power consumpt i on is by using milliamp-hours (mAh)

. Moni t or the mAh on the controller
, and ensure that i t does no t exceed 8,000 mAh (80% of the battery ' s available capacity). Exceed i ng 8
, 000 mAh can render the battery permanent l y unusable

. 

# 6 Do not exceed 8,000 mAh for a fully charged X8+ battery. 26**~ Chan~in~**  Charge the battery before your fi r st flight ! Conne c t the cha r ge r to the power adapter ca bl e

and a wall o u tlet. Connect th e red cab l e to the + port a n d the black cabl e to the

- po rt . ..... 0 ::::- 0

2 Se t the ch arger to LiPo a n d 3A. Li Po 3 A Ch ar g e r wit h p o w e r cab l e a n d sp li t
- w ir e ch ar gin g c able Ch a r ge r s e tti n gs 3 Connect the white connec t or to the 4S port, and jo in the two ye ll ow connectors togethe r. UJ.®! ! !!!! !

- 4S .__ F li g h t ba ttery c ha r g ing wir in g 0

4 Secure the battery insid e the guard bag, and charge unt il the stat u s indicator disp l ays g re en .**~ 2~**  J l • .__ 0 f Co mpl ete C ha rg in g i n pro cess en lr> - · "'en!:!!:;! UJ ..., C 0 CD ro3rouro

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A Flying w i th a low battery is a safety risk and can render the battery permanently unusable. Alwa ys fly w i th a fully charged battery . Charge the battery using a designated

LiPo bala nce cha r ger only. Always monitor the battery whil e charging . Protect the battery f rom extre me

heat, extreme cold, punc t uring, and flammable surfaces . Always transport,

charge, and store the battery in the

guard bag. Inspect the battery for damage before

and after flying . I f you observe any swelling of th e package or the battery ceases to func t ion, do not use the battery; l ocate you r loca l battery recycling center, and d ispose of the

battery . I n the U S and Canada , visit call2recycle.org t o find a loca t ion . Do not dispose of the battery i n the trash . _,

- · i6 .g**~** <0 0**~** ro:::l.o**~** "' 0 (!)**~** 3**~se_"Q.** 0 (1) <1l 5e.**~** s· (!) _co '0 :::r**~** en"' :::r --(!) 0 3 0 roc::::r**~** en (!) 3-o**~-** g-**~**

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)> ... 3

824 **Flis~ht** Procedures: Takeoff Follow these steps

to take off. Check

li s t » Propellers

are attached

tigh

t ly to the motors

in the correct order and the GPS mast

is oriented vertically. » The XB
is powered with the battery secured

to the unders

i de of the vehicle. (Remember

to ho

l d the XB still and leve

l while the sensors initialize.) » The controller

is set to CH

7 OFF, standard (STD) mode (loiter mode
for beginners).

and RTL OFF. » The status LED displays

blin

ki ng gree

n

,

i n dicating that the XB

h as acquired GPS lock. This ca
n ta k e a few

m

i nutes depending

on your flying location

. » The XB is situated

at
a safe, unobstructed launch point, facing away from you.

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o

0 ::: **~~o2J** t-£ ljia> '5-oj£ **~Q)>.-~** ::> en

ro **(3~NCi** co._

a> =

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"'theX8FollowthesestepstopowertheXB.Turnonthecontroller.EnsurethattheswitchesaresettoCH7OFF,STD.andRTLOFF.RCcontrollerCH7switch2ModeRTLswitchJointheyellowconnectoronthebatterywiththeyellowconnectorontheXB;thiswillpowerontheX8.KeeptheXBstillandlevelwhileitpowersonandinitializesthesensors.CheckthestatusLED;whenitdisplaysblinkingblue,thesensorshavecompletedinitializationandyoucanmovetheX8.10StatusLEDindicators:e••eInitializing,keepstillandlevel0e0eInitializingcompleteX8:Connectbattery,keeplevelwhileinitlaliztng3Whentheinitializationprocessiscomplete,turnovertheXBandsecurethebatterytotheundersideofthevehicleusingthevelcrostraps.XB:SecurebatteryAItisimportanttoestablishcommunicationbeforepoweringontheX8.flJwaysturnonthecontrollerbeforeconnectingthebattery.WhenpoweringofftheXB,disconnectthebatterybeforeturningoffthecontroller.SafetyButtonThesafetybuttonindicatesthestatusofthemotorstoallowyoutoarmanddisarmtheXBsafely.XBSafetyButtoneoeo••••SafetybuttonMotorsinactive,safetohandleMotorsactive,deactivatebeforehandling2322 Status Indicator

s LED The Pixhawk LED ind

i ca

t es the sta tu s o

f th e X8. During flight,

t he LE D won

' t be visible,

so you will

n eed to use a g rou nd station

to
v

i ew the

s t a tu s of

t he X8

. Visit 3DR

. com/X8/info

to

l isten
to Pixhawk's status tones. XB

S tatus LED • • • • o e o e oeoe •••• o eo o eo

)J) •

•

•

. )J) ••o

S
t a t us LED Initializing,
hold the XB

s t ill and level Acqu

i ring GPS, please wait Autopilot ready,

G PS locked Armed Loss of RC signal

, automatic landing Low battery, automatic landing L oss of GPS signal

, switch

to standard mode (altitude hold) Pre

- arm sa

f ety check failure. Connec

t to a ground

s t a t ion and see the trou ble shooting section.

**Connectin~**

to
a Ground Statio

n To connect

the X8 to
a ground station, connect

the ground stat

i on rad

i o to you

r laptop

or ta b

l et, and power the X8. Laptop (Mission Planner/APM Planner)

2 Con nect

t he ground station radio

to you

r lap top using the USB adapter

. Open Mission

P lan ner or APM Planne

r .

Se le c t 57600 and AUTO

, then select CONNECT (When connec ting directly

to Pixhawk's micro

- USB port, set the
ra

t e to

1 15200.) f tf!iii

**5J6il0** yMission Planner Connect tool (top

- right corner) Ground station

l aptop

w

i t h radio connected 3 Select Flight Oata to view live data

fr om the X8

.

• • Mi ss

i on

P

l an ner Fligh

t Da ta tab

: co nnected

t o a

i r cr aft Tablet {DroidPianner) Connect

th e blue end of the Android adapter to your device and the black end
to the rad

i o. G ro un d sta

ti o n tab

l e t w it h

r adio con ne ct ed

2 Se

l ec

t Connect. Droi dP

i a n ner

: Co nnec

t i con

11**~**

**Fli~ht** Basics: Safety To ensure safe and successfu l flying, always fly in accordance with your location regulations and these best operating practices. Before you fly, determine the boundaries of your safe flying area. If the XB moves outs i de the designated area or exh i bits in stability in flight, switch to standard mode and lan d the XB manually. The XB will not avoid obstacles on i t s own , inclu d ing during missions. As the operator, it's your job to r ecogni ze and avo i d obstructions while fly i ng. A lw ays be ready to regain manual contro l of the XB in the event of an unsafe situation. Locat i on

t '

/ * visu a l line of sight

0 0 400 ft (120m) Nways fly below 4 00 ft (120 m) and within your

visual line of sigh t. Don 't let the X8 get too fa r away from you; make sure you can always see its orientation. D on't fly in low light, heavy wind, rain, or other conditions that m ight impede visibility . **~5~~a};l**

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Always f ly at least 1 00 feet (30 m) away from peop le, vehicles, and

bu il dings. Make th e safety of people and property your first pr io r ity! **S~(l~)** g

Nways fly at least 5 miles (8 km) away from airports and other areas where pilo ts operate manned aircraft . Propellers **~** •••• co ;l

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Spinning propell e r s can cause se ri ous injury. The sa f ety button in dicates th e s t a tus of the motors t o hel p y ou prevent h azardo us co nt act w i th t he X B's high-speed

prope ll ers. • When th e X8 i s powe re d on, the safety button will blin k red, ind i cat i ng tha t the mo t ors are i nactive and the propellers are safe to h and le . • • 0

When you're ready to fly, press and hold the s afety button until it shows solid red. This indicates that the motors are active and the propelle r s can spin if armed. To make the

propell ers safe to h andle again, press and

hold the safety button until it b link s red. • **0~**

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1220FailsafesTheX8isprogrammedwithasetoffailsafebehaviorstopreventacrashintheeventofalossofoneofthedataorcommunicationchannelsrequiredforflight.AlthoughcertainfailsafeshaveassignedLEDindicatorsandtones,itisunlikelythatyouwillbeabletoseetheseatadistance.Monitorthegroundstationforfailsafeindications.Ifafailsafeistriggered,theassignedbehaviorwillactivate.Tooverridethefailsafebehavior,usethecontrollertoswitchtostandardmodeandregainmanualcontrol.RCControllerSignalFailsafe'PhysicalobstructionsandinterferencefromnearbywirelesssignalscanaffecttheX8'sconnectionwiththecontroller.IftheX8losescontactwiththecontroller,itwillreturntothelaunchpointautomaticallyandland,indicatedbyablinkingyellowstatusLED.t······/1··-'*"J.0000c:::>LowBatteryFailsafeEnvironmentalconditions,payload,andflyingstylecanaffectpowerconsumption.Usethecontroller'sflightdatadisplaytomonitorthevoltageofthebatteryduringflight.Ifthebatteryreaches14V,theX8willlandautomaticallyatthecurrentposition,indicatedbyablinkingyellowstatusLEDandaquickrepeatingtone.li:J*.J.0000--==-$Olc(/)+"'(])a.E0_en:.:Jco.l!lX(]).E'01£:Jc::cOJ:iJ:.ccC'a>-"-o=Q)Q)ena.0iO'a.s:+0tO<{Xc·an.Vl.r:QJu:Sc:::J.!!1IiiE-0"'-='0""'""'e""'.;::;:=·::;Vlco<;!'CT..0coe-N....,c.>.!.u'-'EE0c:bO-.E00Vl080a._0(V)l'JcoQ)E-l!!·.;::;(]).1:::=.Q.I'0CllQJc:'0"'Q)E:?;(])-·c;(.);;(Vl"'c:<lJa."'E.>.!.Eu0::Ju::J'0(])E.0E"'OJ(IJ-'·;;:bO·;;:0Q)cVl>."""'"'a._"'"'IXl'Ja._14 Controls Maneuver the X8 in flight using the

controller's two joysticks.

Th rot tl e Move the left stick vertically to control altitude.

To take off and to

gain altitude, raise the

throttle st ic k slightly

above center position.

Set the thrott le stick

to center to maintain

the current altitude. Lower the throttle

stick below center to

decrease altitude.

Set the throttle stick

full y down to land
once the X8 is a few

inches above the

ground. left stick 0 0 0 le ft st i ck: throttle

&yaw ri gh t s t ick: pitch

& roll **~**

. . . ....... .. ... . ..... **~ p,.,~**  **~** Return to Launch

l a nd at the launch point

Set the RTL switch to ON to end your flight and return the X8 to

the launch point automatically. Once you activate RTL, set the

throttle stick f u lly down, and the X8 will automatically d isarm after

landing. The X8 w ill no t disa r m automatically un less the throttle

stick is set fully down. Ensure that the RTL switch is set to OFF

before takeoff. When commanded to RTL, the X8 will:

Ach ie ve minimum altitude of 15 m (50 ft) or maintain current altitude if

above 15m.

2 Move to launch point and loiter for 5 seconds.

3 Land at launch point. Wait a few seconds and disarm automatically.

1 15 meters ? hover 5 seconds

* .... . . . ·· · · · · ······ ·· ·· · · ··· · ·· ·· **····· ····**  **·····** * ....

:l launch point

Reposition during l anding: Duri ng l anding, use the right ,, - " **~** ,<? **®~**

stick on the controller to adjust the X8's position . ) **~** k ) \ ,

' I '\. . _,.

A RTL returns the X8 t o the location where it was armed.

Always arm the X8 at a safe , unobstructed launch point. 1 918AutomodeAUTOflyamissionSelectautomodetoflyanautonomousmission.TheX8willautomaticallyflytheseriesofwaypointssavedtotheautopilot.SeetheMissionssectiononpage28forinstructionsonplanningandflyingmissions.Donotactivateautomodeunless youhavesavedamissiontotheX8usingagroundstationapplication.GimbalcontrolTILTtiltthecameraupanddownConnectaTarotGimbal(soldseparately),andusetheTILTknobtocontroltheangleofthecamerainflight.Visit3DR.com/X8/infoforinstructions.LandCH7landatthecurrentpositionSettheCH7switchtoONtoendyourflightandlandatthecurrentposition.Onceyouactivateland,setthethrottlestickfullydown,andtheX8willautomaticallydisarmafterlanding.TheX8willnotdisarmautomaticallyunlessthethrottlestickissetfullydown.Repositionduringlanding:Duringlanding,usetheright·(·)((_)·stickonthecontrollertoadjusttheX8'sposition.__..·,··V'.YawMovetheleftstickhorizontallytorotatetheX8andchangeorientation.Foraslowrotation,movethestickslightlyawayfromthecenterineitherdirection.Movingthestickfartherfromthecentercreatesafasterrotation.Movethesticktothelefttorotatecounterclockwise.Movethesticktotherighttorotateclockwise.Releasethesticktostoprotatingandmaintainthecurrentorientation.FlightTipleftstick000Whenadjustingonentation.movetheleftstickhorizontallywithoutchangingitsverticalposition.1516 Pitch and R o ll

The r ight stick allows you to control the X8's position in the air. Move the r ight stick to tell the

X8 to move in that direction: forward (toward the blue arms). back ( t oward the black arms),

left (toward the le ft ar ms) , or r ight (towards the right a r ms). How far you move the s t ick from

the center before releasing i t te ll s the X8 how fast to move.

Move the right

stick forwa rd

to f ly forward. 0

Move the ri g ht 0

stick back to fly

backward. Move the r ight stick l eft to f ly

left. Move the right

stick right to fly

right. Flight Tip 0 0 right stick **p,.,~ ~**  **~ ~** 

T h e X8 moves acco r di n g to it s onentaliOn. The blue arms face forward, an d t he b lack

a r ms face bac k wa r d. Befo r e u s1ng the right stick, use yaw to keep the X8 f ac1ng in .

o utw ard o ri e nt a ti on so t h a t t h e black arms face towa r ds yo u and the blue arms and f ace

a w ay f ro m yo u . Modes
The X8 includes three flight modes: manual flight

(STD -al t itude hol d), h o ver mode (LTR-Ioiter), a nd

missio n flight (AUTO). Use the switch on the

right side of the contro ller to se lect a flight mode .

Standard (altitude hold mode)

STD fly manually Start you r flight in standard to select altitu de hold mode,

and fly manually u si ng the controller.

Loiter mode

LTR hover Select loiter to hover in place automatically. Use the controller

to adjust the X8's pos i tio n then release the sticks to ho ld

that position . L oiter is a great way for beginners to learn how to fly!

I f you're n ew t o f lying , start your first f light i n lo i ter i nstead of standard.

To avoid sudden changes in a l titude, set the t hr ottle

stick to center position before switching modes,

including in the event of a GPS failsafe. See page 20

for more information about failsafes . mode switch 1 7