Battery is draining faster than planned

A headwind eats your reserve halfway through an inspection orbit. Decide when to break off.

Decision 1 of 2

Reserve is shrinking

You are 600 m out on an orbit of a cell tower. A 12 kt headwind on the return leg was not in the plan and the pack is dropping about 1% every 8 seconds.

Battery

38%

Distance home

600 m

Wind

12 kt on the nose home

References & glossary

Rules and safety guidance

14 CFR 107.49(a)(1)Preflight must confirm enough power to operate for the intended time, including reserves.
AC 107-2A, Battery ManagementFAA advisory guidance on monitoring energy and planning conservative reserves.

Terms in this step

Reserve: Energy kept back purely to get home and land, normally 20 to 25% of the pack.
Voltage sag: Pack voltage dropping under load, worst in the last 20%, which can trigger auto-land.

What do you do first?