student PLANE CHECKOUT POLICies
While it is true that modern technology has expanded RC airplane capabilities, the fundamental setup principles essential to achieving a good flying airplane have taken a back seat to emphasising advanced programming to solve deficiencies and improve performance. As a result, setting up and dialing-in RC airplanes has become exponentially more complex and subject to error.
When the fundamental principles of wing incidence, control surface setup, C.G., and engine thrust where handed down and commonly understood, a typical inspection and test flight consisted mainly of fine tuning the setup. But, in recent years the process of checking out airplanes brought to the flight school has become much more detailed and time consuming.
The increased time required to set up and adjust the planes brought to the school has made it necessary to begin charging for that service. You are welcome to bring your own plane and have it professionally inspected, test flown, trimmed, and optimized for your skill level for a nominal fee of $50.
NOTICE: The plane checkout involves the essential setup principles featured in Airplane & Radio Setup manual. Dave will be happy to waive part of the checkout fee when pilots bring their planes mostly ready to fly. If it uses an engine, please run at least a couple tanks through the engine before bringing it to the field for flight testing.
Larger Gasoline Powered Airplanes
The flight school has a wide range of airplanes optimized for training at every skill level. This includes large-scale gasoline powered models for those who prefer to train on an airplane that has the smell and feel of the gas airplane they fly at home. However, the significant vibration inherent with larger gasoline engines along with higher loads on the airframes, hinges, servos gears, etc., takes a toll. The amount of maintenance and replacement part costs incurred when flying a gas airplane in the class is therefore higher compared to an electric or mid-size glow engine powered airplane.
If you appreciate the opportunity to fly a larger gas powered plane while attending the flight school, please consider making an additional contribution to go toward the higher operating costs. The fact is, the instructor enjoys flying gas, so the choice is up to each student, and in no way is anyone obligated to do so.
Those who wish to fly their own gasoline powered model during the course are welcome to do so. Their use in the course will be handled on a case-by-case basis due to the logistics of possibly having to relocate to a more remote flying site to accommodate the increased noise when using Pitts style exhausts.
FYI. As a rule, how an airplane handles (and thus the skills required to fly it) is largely a function of the CG location and how fast and how far the control surfaces deflect -- regardless of whether the plane is small, medium, or large scale.
Except for the tendency of lighter models to be more affected by turbulence, the techniques required to fly the maneuvers remain the same regardless of airplane size or type of engine. Once a pilot has graduated to a tapered wing plane like an Extra, Yak, etc., they are all equally capable and any differences that are not setup related are so minor as to be undetectable to all but the most expert flyers. It’s the setup that mostly determines how well an airplane flies, so whether you fly a school plane or your own is not a significant factor.
Except for the tendency of lighter models to be more affected by turbulence, the techniques required to fly the maneuvers remain the same regardless of airplane size or type of engine. Once a pilot has graduated to a tapered wing plane like an Extra, Yak, etc., they are all equally capable and any differences that are not setup related are so minor as to be undetectable to all but the most expert flyers. It’s the setup that mostly determines how well an airplane flies, so whether you fly a school plane or your own is not a significant factor.