Drone wind limits by class

Most sub-250 g mini drones are rated for about 10.7 m/s (24 mph, 21 kt) of wind, mid-size folding drones such as the DJI Air and Mavic lines for 12 m/s (27 mph, 23 kt), and heavier professional drones for 12–14 m/s. Those numbers are the most the drone can cope with, not the wind to plan a flight around. Altiwind starts flagging wind at 60% of your drone's rating for sustained wind and 80% for estimated gusts.

Typical ratings by class

Makers publish a "max wind speed resistance" on their spec pages. Here is what DJI lists for a spread of current models (checked October 2026):

A few patterns stand out:

• Ratings cluster at two numbers. In this list, the small drones mostly say 10.7 m/s, and the mid-size and enterprise drones say 12 m/s.
• Weight helps, but it is not the whole story. The Avata 2 is heavier than the Mini 4 Pro and carries the same rating, while the Mini 5 Pro is lighter than the Avata 2 and is rated higher.
• Some ratings are for take-off and landing. The Inspire 3 lists separate figures, and DJI's Matrice 4 page says its 12 m/s applies to take-off and landing.
• Freestyle FPV quads rarely publish a figure. Their power lets them punch into strong wind, but battery drain, video link and your own flying set the practical limit.

You can browse the ratings we use for each model in the drone list.

What "Level 5" means

"Level 5" is the Beaufort scale. Force 5, "fresh breeze", covers mean winds of 8.0–10.7 m/s measured 10 m above open ground, so a 10.7 m/s rating sits at the very top of Force 5. A 12 m/s rating falls inside Force 6 (10.8–13.8 m/s). Our Beaufort scale guide has the full table.

A rating is a maximum, not a target

Treat the published number as a ceiling. DJI's own printed guidelines for the Mini 4 Pro list wind above 10.7 m/s among the conditions not to fly in, so the rating doubles as the maker's stop line. Several things eat into it before you get anywhere near it:

• Gusts. Forecasts and airport reports give an average. The strongest few seconds can be far higher, and those are what push the drone around. See gusts vs sustained wind.
• Height. Forecast wind is usually quoted at 10 m. With the textbook power law for open land (exponent 0.14) the wind at 120 m is about 1.4 times the 10 m value; at night or over towns and forest (0.20–0.30) it is about 1.6–2.1 times.
• The trip home. A drone fighting a headwind near its rating has little speed to spare. If it drifts downwind, getting back takes time and battery.
• Battery state. A cold or half-empty battery delivers less power than a warm, full one.
• Unknown test conditions. Consumer spec pages give a single number with no test details. The Inspire 3 page is an exception: it says its figures were measured at sea level with the camera fitted.

Altiwind's defaults

Altiwind compares the forecast at your chosen height (30, 60, 90 or 120 m) with the rating in your drone profile. By default:

• Sustained wind: within your limits up to 60% of the rating, marginal up to 85%, outside your limits above that.
• Estimated gusts: within your limits up to 80%, marginal up to 100%, outside your limits above the rating.

Here is what that means in numbers:

The worst check decides the colour, and each one shows as a reason chip.

Flying near the limit

• Check the wind at the height you plan to fly, not just at ground level.
• Fly the first leg upwind, so the way back is downwind.
• Keep the drone closer than usual and land with more battery in reserve.
• Watch the drone's own wind warnings; they come from what it measures in the air.

Sources

• DJI spec pages for the Mini 4 Pro, Mini 5 Pro, Avata 2, Air 3S, Mavic 4 Pro, Inspire 3, Matrice 4 and Matrice 350 RTK, checked October 2026
• DJI Mini 4 Pro printed guidelines, via the DJI downloads page
• WMO, Guide to Instruments and Methods of Observation (WMO-No. 8), Volume I, Chapter 5, Table 5.1 (Beaufort equivalents at 10 m)