Flying FPV in winter – batteries, equipment and safety

In winter you fly FPV under the same legal rules as in summer, but for shorter periods and more carefully: frost lowers the voltage and usable capacity of LiPo batteries, and snow and moisture harm the electronics. The key rules are warm packs before take-off, shorter flights with a bigger voltage margin, and charging only at room temperature. On top of that come short days, poorer visibility and cold hands, which you need to factor into the plan for every session.

What frost does to a LiPo battery

At low temperatures the chemical reactions in the cells slow down, internal resistance rises and the pack loses voltage under load faster. In practice you see this as bigger voltage drops when you add throttle, earlier warnings in the OSD and a shorter flight¹. A cold pack can also respond with a sudden voltage drop under hard acceleration, which in an extreme case can end in a loss of power in the air.

The Gens Ace and Tattu pack manufacturer states that the optimum operating temperature for lithium batteries is 0–35 °C, and that in winter they should be charged only at room temperature – at least 5 °C, ideally around 20 °C. You do not charge a pack brought in from the frost straight away; you wait until it has reached room temperature². According to the manufacturer, charging and discharging at low temperature over a longer period causes metallic lithium to be deposited on the anode, i.e. a permanent loss of capacity².

For winter, raise the low-voltage warning threshold in the OSD. The alarm will appear earlier, and you will gain time for a calm return before the cold pack suddenly loses voltage.

Warming and storing packs in the field

The goal is simple: the pack should start the flight warm. The same manufacturer advises keeping packs thermally insulated in winter, so that their temperature does not fall below 10 °C and is ideally around 20 °C. According to the manufacturer, a pack that has not reached around 20 °C is not suitable for aggressive manoeuvres². In the field you can achieve this in several ways:

• carry the packs in a thermal bag or an insulated box, not in the car boot;
• keep the pack for your next flight in an inside jacket pocket¹;
• use a heated car as a base between flights;
• if you use chemical hand warmers, do not place them directly against the pack, and check that no pack is getting hot.

After taking the pack out of the bag, connect it and take off straight away, before it has time to cool down. Fly the first dozen or so seconds calmly – working under moderate load warms the cells further. After the flight, put the pack back in the bag, and when you get home leave it in the bag until its temperature has evened out. This limits condensation on cold cells and electronics.

Flying in winter step by step

1. Before you set off, check the forecast: temperature, wind, precipitation and the time of sunset.
2. Charge the packs at home, at room temperature, and take them in a thermal bag.
3. On site, walk the area and assess whether the weather is within the limits stated by the manufacturer of the drone or its components – EASA recommends this kind of pre-flight assessment in its material for the Regulation³.
4. In Poland, check in on DroneTower – notification applies in winter just as in summer⁴.
5. Connect a warm pack and check the resting voltage in the OSD.
6. Fly for shorter than in summer and land with a noticeably bigger voltage margin. According to EASA, there must be enough energy for the planned flight and for unforeseen situations³.
7. Avoid slamming in full throttle on a cold pack, especially at the start of the flight².
8. After landing, put the pack back in the bag, inspect the propellers and clean the snow off the drone.

Preparing the drone for winter

• Check that the motors spin freely and that there is no snow or ice in them.
• Wipe the camera lens. Equipment taken out of a warm car can fog up, so give it a moment to adjust to the temperature.
• Tighten the propeller nuts and check the pack and antenna mountings.
• Stick bright tape on the frame or use coloured propellers – this makes the drone easier to find in snow.
• Take more spare propellers and a microfibre cloth.

Snow, moisture and electronics

Snow itself is not the enemy as long as it stays dry and cold. The problem arises when it melts on warm motors, ESCs or the flight controller. After landing in snow, disconnect the pack immediately, shake off the snow, dry the drone and do not connect power until the electronics are dry. A conformal coating on the circuit boards reduces the risk of a short circuit, but it is no substitute for caution.

Frost or ice can build up on the propellers, upsetting their balance and causing vibration. Check them before every take-off. Plastics become stiffer and more brittle in frost, so propellers crack more easily on contact with the ground, and TPU prints lose some of their flexibility. Take more spare propellers than usual.

Do not fly in snowfall or fog. The camera image loses contrast, moisture gets into the electronics and the observer quickly loses sight of the drone.

A frozen lake or river looks like a perfect landing pad, but ice is not reliable support for either the drone or you. If the drone comes down on ice, do not go out after it – no equipment is worth that risk. Over water, plan the flight so that if something fails the drone falls on the bank.

Visibility, light and orientation over snow

White, uniform snow makes it hard to judge height and distance – in the goggle image the ground and the sky can merge. Fly over terrain with reference points such as trees, fences or tracks in the snow, and keep a bigger height margin above obstacles. Bright snow also overexposes the camera image, especially in sunshine. The winter sun stays low for most of the day, so it is easy to fly straight into its disc and lose the image for a moment. Plan your route so that the sun is behind you.

The winter day is short. If you fly after dark, the drone must have a flashing green light switched on⁵, and the observer will still be much worse at judging its distance from obstacles. It is better to plan the session so that it ends before sunset.

A drone lost in snow is hard to find, and a pack in frost discharges quickly, so a buzzer powered from it will fall silent. A buzzer with its own power supply, bright tape on the frame, the goggle recording and an observer who immediately memorises where the drone came down all help.

The pilot gets cold too

Cold fingers lose feeling and precision, and this translates directly into your control inputs. Thin gloves in which you can feel the sticks work well, with thick mittens put on between flights. A hand warmer in your pocket also helps. Dress in layers and do not forget a hat and warm boots – a pilot in goggles stands in one place for a long time and gets cold faster than on a walk. In winter some pilots switch from a thumbs grip to a pinch grip, because it is easier to stay precise in gloves.

Goggles fog up when warm air from your face meets cold lenses. A fan in the goggles, an anti-fog product and putting the goggles on just before the flight all help. Frost also drains the batteries of your goggles, radio and phone, and without a phone you cannot check in on DroneTower – keep them warm and take a power bank. After the session, do not carry the goggles or radio straight from the frost into a warm interior without a bag – condensation will form on the cold lenses and electronics.

Cold, fatigue and dehydration lower concentration. The rules require the pilot to be fit to carry out the flight safely, and they also count fatigue or illness as a reason not to fly⁵⁶. Take breaks somewhere warm and cut the session short when you start shivering.

The rules in winter – nothing changes

Winter does not suspend any requirements. Operator registration, competency, liability insurance for drones from 250 g, a DroneTower check-in and geographical zones all apply in Poland⁴. The temporary ULC exemption for FPV flights without maintaining VLOS applies until 12 October 2026 – if it is not extended, the obligation to have an observer standing next to you returns in winter⁷⁸. In winter, emergency responses are also more frequent, e.g. on frozen lakes or in the mountains. You do not fly near them without the emergency services' permission⁵. Also remember that compulsory liability insurance does not cover damage from flights made in breach of the rules on drone operations⁹, so a short winter day is no reason to cut corners on preparation.

Key points

• Frost lowers LiPo voltage and capacity – take off with a warm pack, fly for shorter and land with a bigger margin.
• Charge packs only at room temperature, after they have warmed up – the manufacturer specifies at least 5 °C, ideally around 20 °C.
• Protect the electronics from melting snow and condensation, and check the propellers for ice and cracks.
• Height is harder to judge over snow; after dark switch on the flashing green light or finish the session earlier.
• All the rules apply in winter, and the observer becomes mandatory again if the ULC exemption is not extended.