NTO: Skydio X10 Unrequested Stick Inputs - 11 April 2024

Published: Updated:

  1. Skydio
  2. Notice to Operators
  3. Notice to Operators

OSB Number: SOSB-24-V-04

Date First Published: 09 April 2024

Date Updated: 11 April 2024

 

11 April 2024 - Updated Guidance

Safety Risk: Vehicle flyaways

Products affected:  Skydio X10 and Skydio X10D

Description, Identification, and Manifestation:

Skydio recently issued a Notice to Operators regarding an urgent update to your Skydio X10 Controller intended to prevent potential uncommanded vehicle behavior - that Notice remains in effect. As a supplement to the guidance in the original Notice, once the updated software has been loaded onto your controller, please follow these additional precautions.

DO NOT LAUNCH if either of the following warnings appears on the screen:

[warning] Sticks Not Centered - The Controller sticks must be centered to launch. [/warning]

[warning] Wheels Are Not Centered - Center the Controller wheels to launch. [/warning]

Your vehicle is at risk. Instead, power off the controller and remove it from operation. You may pair another controller with this vehicle to continue operation.

Example warning:

CS_X10_UI_sticks_not_centered.png

Skydio testing and customer feedback indicate that the software update referenced above does not completely prevent a rare condition in which the X10 will become unresponsive to controller inputs. If this occurs, it may be possible to regain control of the X10 by immediately rebooting the controller. If that is unsuccessful, power off the X10 Controller. The vehicle will then initiate its pre-established Lost Connection behavior.

Mitigations:

  • Per initial Notice to Operators (9 April 2024), an immediate software update is required:
    • Skydio X10 controller version 31.5.71
    • Skydio X10D controller version 31.6.88 and X10D vehicle version 31.6.117
      [note] This update provides some protections against this uncommanded behavior; however, until Skydio provides a final update for this issue, all operators need to be vigilant and prepared in case this behavior manifests during flight (see final bullet below). [/note]
  • Do not touch the controller inputs (sticks or wheels) during vehicle calibration.
  • Do not fly using this controller if the “Sticks Not Centered” or “Wheels Not Centered” message appears at any time - even if the notification disappears it is not safe to fly as it may recur during flight and potentially result in uncommanded vehicle behavior.
  • Set Return Location to a safe area before initiating any flight.
  • If persistent uncommanded vehicle behavior occurs, immediately reboot the controller. If control of the X10 does not resume, power off the X10 Controller - the vehicle will then initiate its pre-established Lost Connection behavior.

 

09 April 2024

Safety Risk: Vehicle flyaways 

Products affected:  Skydio X10 and Skydio X10D

Description, Identification, and Manifestation: Skydio has recently discovered a potential X10 Controller issue that may cause uncommanded flight behavior, causing the drone to move away erratically due to inputs failing to respond to commands. The software update mitigation for this issue was released on March 25, 2024. All operators must apply this update immediately to mitigate the risk of this potential uncommanded flight behavior.

Mitigations:  An immediate software update is required 

  • Skydio X10 controller version 31.5.71
  • Skydio X10D controller version 31.6.88 and X10D vehicle version 31.6.117

Learn More:

How to update your Skydio X10

How to update your Skydio X10D

 

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