Yes, the DJI Air 3S has Waypoint Flight. In DJI Fly, tap the waypoint icon on the left side of the camera view, add points on the map or by flying to them, choose what the camera does at each point, and start the route. The drone flies it on its own, and DJI Fly saves the route to your Library so you can repeat it later for time-lapses across seasons or day to night.
Before your first mission
- Update everything. Drone, controller and DJI Fly. See Air 3S firmware update.
- Turn on obstacle avoidance. In settings, then Safety, set Obstacle Avoidance Action to Bypass or Brake. With either setting, the Air 3S brakes if it detects an obstacle during the mission. If it's Off, it can't avoid anything.
- Load the map. Connect the controller or phone to the internet and download the map before planning on it.
- Before takeoff, you can only add waypoints on the map. After takeoff you can pin them where the drone is.
Plan and fly a route
- Tap the waypoint flight icon on the left of the camera view.
- Add waypoints: tap the map, or fly to a spot and pin it from the waypoint panel. Flying to each spot gives the most accurate framing.
- Tap a waypoint to set its altitude, speed, heading, gimbal tilt, zoom and camera action (take a photo, start or stop recording, or none).
- Optional: add a POI. If you set heading and gimbal tilt to face the POI, the waypoints link to it automatically and the camera stays aimed at it.
- Set what happens at the end of the route and if the signal is lost.
- Review the route, then start it. Follow the on-screen prompts.
- Tap the waypoint icon again to exit. The route saves to the Library automatically.
If you set camera action to None, the drone only flies the path, and you run the camera yourself.
Safety on autopilot
- The path curves between points. The drone can dip below your waypoint altitudes between points. Leave room over trees and roofs.
- Repeat from the same takeoff spot. Altitudes are relative to takeoff.
- Stay in sight and in the rules. Waypoints don't change FAA rules: line of sight, 400 ft, and LAANC in controlled airspace.
- Keep a hand on the sticks. You can pause or take over at any time.
Good uses for Air 3S waypoints
- Repeatable time-lapses of a construction site, a garden or a skyline at sunset.
- Real estate: the same smooth reveal on every listing.
- Tele shots: the 70 mm medium tele camera compresses backgrounds on a slow, steady pass.
Related
Want to plan routes on a computer? See DJI Fly waypoint KML missions. For the bigger picture across models, read the DJI waypoints guide. Comparing waypoint apps? See DJI Fly vs Litchi.
Fly routes with a bright screen in hand using the DJI RC 2, or see the DJI Air 3S.
Related guides
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