Connect to a drone

Every drone manufacturer uses different communication protocols. To establish a connection between ArcGIS Flight and a drone, follow one of the workflows below depending on your hardware.

Mavic 3E and Matrice 4E

The workflow below is supported for Mavic 3E and Matrice 4E drones using the ArcGIS Flight Connection app. The app is needed to establish communication between the iPad and drone because DJI no longer offers an iOS SDK.

Download the ArcGIS Flight Connection app

To download the app, complete the following steps:

Note:

An internet connection is required.

1. On the drone controller, download the ArcGIS Flight Connection .apk file.
2. Once the .apk file has been downloaded, in the files app, tap the file to install it, read the Master License Agreement, and tap Agree.
3. Tap Okay, and tap Allow only while using the app.

Work offline

If there is no internet connection, complete the following steps for offline use.

Caution:

Before going into an area without a reliable internet connection, save a flight plan and download the basemap.

1. Open the ArcGIS Flight Connection app on the drone controller.
2. Turn on the Mavic 3E or Matrice 4E drone and ensure that it is communicating with the controller.
3. Open the ArcGIS Flight app on the iPad, and select Mavic 3E or Matrice 4E from the drop-down list.

   The Connection Assistant window appears.

4. Tap Continue.
5. Follow the instructions to create a hotspot on the controller, and connect the iPad to the controller hotspot.
6. Tap Done.

   You are set up for offline use and can begin flying.

Work online

To use an internet connection, complete the following steps:

1. Turn on the Mavic 3E or Matrice 4E drone and ensure that it is communicating with the controller.
2. Open the ArcGIS Flight Connection app on the drone controller.
3. Open the ArcGIS Flight app on your iPad, and do one of the following:
   • If the iPad has cellular data, start the hotspot on the iPad, and connect the controller to the hotspot.
   • If you are using a Matrice 3E drone and the iPad does not have cellular data, select Matrice 3E from the drop-down list, start the hotspot on the controller, connect it to the iPad, and connect the controller to the Mi-Fi hotspot.
   • If you are using a Matrice 4E drone and the iPad does not have cellular data, select Matrice 4E from the drop-down list, and connect the controller and iPad to the Mi-Fi hotspot.

Freefly Astro with Pilot Pro

The workflow below is supported for the Pilot Pro controller on the Freefly Astro Max and the Freefly Astro (NDAA Blue) drones using a wired connection with an ethernet RJ 45 cable.

Note:

For an iPad to work with the Pilot Pro controller, the iPad must have a USB-C port and be running iPadOS 16.0 or later.

To connect a Freefly Astro drone with a Pilot Pro controller, complete the following steps:

1. Ensure that the drone is on the ground and disarmed.
2. Use the Pilot Pro app to enable the ethernet port, which is off by default, on the Freefly Astro (NDAA Blue) drone.
3. Connect the iPad to the controller using the ethernet cable, and in the iPad settings, tap Ethernet.
4. Tap Interfaces, and in the IPV4 Address section, set IP address to Manual.
5. Change the iPad IP address for the ethernet connection to one of the following:
   • IP address—Any value in the range 192.168.144.100-15
   • Netmask—255.255.255.0
6. Open ArcGIS Flight to create a connection to the drone.
7. Once you access your project, select Freefly Astro Wired as your drone.

   If the drone connection has been established correctly, the connection status appears as a green dot next to the drone model, and telemetry information appears.

   This setup is only needed once per initial connection between ArcGIS Flight and the Pilot Pro controller. If you experience any connectivity issues, contact Esri Technical Support.

Freefly Astro with Herelink

The workflow below is supported for the Herelink controller on the Freefly Astro drone using a wireless connection.

To connect a Freefly Astro drone with a Herelink controller, complete the following steps:

1. Review the Astro documentation.
2. Confirm that the firmware installed on the Freefly Astro drone is supported by ArcGIS Flight.

   To update the firmware, refer to the Astro documentation.

3. On the Herelink controller, press the power button (between the B button and the Home/Return button) until the screen turns on.
4. Swipe down from the top of the screen, and tap Settings.
5. Under Wireless and networks, tap More, and select and enable Tethering and portable hotspot.

   The hotspot settings appear.

6. In the Setup Wi-Fi hotspot settings, provide a name and password for the controller network.
7. In the iPad settings, enable Wi-Fi, and connect to the Herelink controller network you created in step 6.
8. Open ArcGIS Flight, browse to the main menu, and in the drone list, select Freefly Astro Wi-Fi.

To confirm that the drone is connected, information about the drone's status appears in ArcGIS Flight.

Legacy DJI drones

For older DJI drones, use an Apple certified cable to connect the iPad to the drone controller.