If you’re thinking of getting a DJI Phantom 3, (or you already own one,) and you are looking to start drone fishing, you might be wondering if the Phantom 3 makes a good fishing drone or not?
The DJI Phantom 3 is a brilliant fishing drone because it has a flight time of 23 minutes, a long-range of 3.1 miles, a high-quality camera capable of shooting 2.7K video, and it can carry up to 2.6 lbs. On top of that, it only costs $649 here.
Keep reading this article to find out more about what makes the Phantom 3 a great fishing drone and how to fish like a pro using a Phantom 3!
What Makes DJI Phantom 3 a Brilliant Fishing Drone?
The DJI Phantom 3 was the drone that set the standard in the drone industry for how we look at quadcopters. Even though it was discontinued after the release of the Phantom 4, the drone was still available for purchase on Amazon, and people continue to use the Phantom 3 to this day.
Due to high demand, DJI brought the series back with the addition of the Phantom 4 Pro V2 which did not disappoint!
Flight Time: The flight time of 23 minutes will allow you to spend quite some time out on the lake or at sea when drone fishing.
Range: The Phantom has a maximum range of 3.1 miles which is quite the distance. The drone can take your line far out to allow you to catch fish at a further distance or from the shore if you want.
Price: You can find this drone for around $649 on sites like Amazon because it has been discontinued by DJI. The drones specs show that it has the DJI quality backing it up, you are definitely not going to regret this purchase!
Carrying Capacity: The Phantom 3 has a carrying capacity of 2.6 lbs which is quite a lot for a drone. It can handle carrying larger bait for those who enjoy fishing for bigger fish like tuna.
With that being said, let’s take a closer look at how you can use your Phantom 3 to catch some tuna!
How To Attach Fishing Line To Phantom 3
The most important thing when it comes to drone fishing is if you are able to attach a fishing line to the drone. If you aren’t able to attach a line to the drone then you can’t use it to fish.
Thankfully the Phantom 3, being one of the most popular consumer drones on the market, has many ways to attach a fishing line to it thanks to various companies and fellow drone anglers.
I will go through two drone attachments for the Phantom 3 drone but these attachments will work for the DJI Phantom 4 as well because the design has not changed!
Method 01: Gannet Bait Release (Paid Method)
Gannet makes attachments that can be attached to many drones and are also really great quality. Gannet made sure to pay special attention to their equipment with some really awesome features to make fishing a whole lot easier! These drones have sensors along the bottom which allow for obstacle avoidance and self landing.
Gannet made their drone bait release system that attaches to the drone in a special way that doesn’t interfere with any of these sensors but still being effective.
The Gannet bait release system is really easy to attach to any drone. They are built specifically to be attached to a drone without disturbing the propellers or any of the sensors or cameras that might be on the drone.
DJI Phantom Attachment Steps:
- Remove propellers from the Phantom drone.
- Flip drone over so the landing gear is facing the ceiling or sky.
- Slide attachment in-between the landing gear.
- Make sure the attachment is placed directly in the middle in order to avoid the sensors.
- Clip-in the attachment by clipping the ends onto the drone’s landing gear.
- Flip drone over and reattach the propellers and you are ready to go.
- Attach the fishing line to the Gannet and take off.
Method 02: Downrigger Release Clip (DIY Free Method)
This method is very simple and hardly needs anything other than stuff you probably will have in your fishing gear already. This method can be used with other drones as well but I have only seen it used with the DJI Phantom series.
What you will need:
- Clip
- Downrigger release clip
- Rope
- Another rope or string
How to attach to drone:
- Take off propellers and turn drone upside down so the landing gear is facing the ceiling or the sky.
- When the drone is upside down you will need to tie one of your ropes or the string to either side of the drone’s landing gear so it is going across the drone like a bridge.
- Next, you will need to tie one side of the other rope to the clip.
- When you have done that you can tie the other side of that rope to the downrigger release clip.
- You can then flip the drone around and attach the propellers.
- Attach the clip to the rope or string that is on the drone and you are good to go.
- When ready to fish just connect the clip to the fishing like and fly away.
Drone Fishing Methods With Phantom 3
Reconnaissance
Drones are essentially flying cameras that record and send a live feed to a controller. The Phantom 3 set the standard for drone photography when it was released, and this makes it super helpful when hunting and fishing as the pilot can now have an aerial view of the area and find fish that like to group up in different areas.
Fish like to travel in groups and hide between reefs making it hard to spot them, but if you have the Phantom 3 at your disposal with its 2.7K HD camera, spotting them will be no problem at all!
Drone Casting
Many people find it hard to cast a line more than 50 feet away from where they are standing. Drone Casting is actually the main method that people use when drone fishing. With this method, your reach is only limited by the range of the drone and the length of your line.
This method requires you to attach your fishing line to the drone while hanging bait from that same line, then you can fly your drone out.
When you have reached a spot in the ocean or lake that you want to drop the line, you can then release the line and it will drop the bait in the water and then all you need to do is wait to reel in the catch of the day!
Drone Casting and Pulling
Drone casting and pulling is basically the same thing as drone casting with one small added twist. This involves taking your drone out to sea and lowering the bait while still attached to the drone. When you get a fish caught on the hook all you have to do is pull the drone up and make your way back home!
This method doesn’t even need a fishing rod, all you need is a drone and a line with some bait attached to it. A lot of people are against this because essentially you are getting rid of the waiting period and the effort of reeling in your catch, but instead just dragging the fish to you with the drone.
I will have to admit that even I have trouble thinking about people using this method! What you will need to know about this method is that it will require you to have a larger, more powerful drone, if you want to go for larger fish. The Phantom 3 is a quadcopter so it can handle heavier lifts, but not too heavy!
Even with my limited knowledge of fishing, I tend to remember that fish do come in different sizes as well as fight back. Using the Phantom 3 to try reel in something like a 300lbs Bluefin tuna is definitely something that I wouldn’t recommend trying, as this will most likely end in you fishing your drone out of the water instead!
Even though I wouldn’t recommend casting and pulling with the Phantom 3, it is still possible to fish for smaller fish using the drone, but do this with caution.
