Radio Control: Aerobatics
Ron Van Putte
111 Sleepy Oaks Rd. Ft. Walton Beach, FL 32548
Every time major rule changes are made, it takes a while for fliers to learn what has happened. The 1992–1993 rule book contains more significant changes than have occurred in many rules-change cycles.
Of course the biggest change is the major move toward the turnaround style of competition in most of the maneuver schedules. That change, added to all the others, has caused a lot of confusion. I've received many telephone calls and letters requesting clarification of several rules. In addition, some callers have indignantly asked how I could "let them change the rules like that." I'll handle that last matter later in the column, but for now, let me try to clarify a few of the rules.
The most significant changes have occurred in the Sportsman and Advanced classes. Both classes now feature the turnaround style of flying. The Sportsman class will have either two or three turnaround maneuvers, depending on how the Sportsman rules snafu is resolved. Advanced will be all-turnaround. Since neither of these classes included turnaround maneuvers in the past, many fliers will be flying them for the first time.
The Sportsman class fliers will actually have a lot to get used to because of RC Aerobatics rule 14.6, which says, "In all classes, the contestant (or helper with the permission of the judges) must call out the initiation and completion of the takeoff and landing maneuvers and all maneuvering area entries and exits." A pilot flying the Sportsman class maneuvers will have to announce "Entering the box" before performing the Double Stall Turn and will also announce "Exiting the box" after the Cuban Eight. Announcement of entry to the box will be required before the Immelmann Turn, and exit from the box must be announced after Three Inside Loops.
Other Sportsman entry/exit examples (depending on how the rules snafu is resolved) include:
- Announce entry before Straight Inverted Flight and exit after One Reverse Outside Loop.
- Announce entry/exit before/after Three Horizontal Rolls.
That's going to take some getting used to.
Advanced pilots will have different problems. The good news is that they will only have to announce entry to and exit from the box once each, but the bad news is that they'll get no relief from box restrictions until just before landing. Many funky-looking maneuvers will be performed as pilots try to keep their airplanes in the box while executing all the maneuvers. The situation is similar to that which occurred when FAI fliers first had to fly turnaround maneuvers. The big difference is that the FAI fliers back then presumably were better pilots than those in Advanced are today. It stands to reason that Advanced fliers will have more trouble handling the situation than the FAI fliers did.
Sportsman class fliers will have to find out how (and whether) the Sportsman rules snafu has been resolved. AMA President Don Lowe has directed a revote by the RC Aerobatics Contest Board. The board should have voted by March 15 on either the maneuver schedule that is currently listed in the rule book or the one in the proposal I submitted. If the results of the vote are available in time, they will be included in the "Focus on Competition" section of this issue of Model Aviation.
I notice that the maneuver description for Straight Inverted Flight still says that the model should fly "straight and level inverted" for a minimum of four (4) seconds. The half roll in and half roll out will each eat up about one second. The entry and exit lines will consume at least another second. The rule book requirement will therefore make the maneuver seven to eight seconds long. That will make it difficult to keep the maneuver in the box. We need to ease up on the inverted flight time requirement, especially if my proposal for the Sportsman rules is approved, since the Stall Turn turnaround follows Straight Inverted Flight in my proposal.
I received a letter from John Miller (Westford, Massachusetts), an old friend who was stationed with me at Eglin AFB here in Florida during the 1970s. He saw the caption on the picture of the Side Pocket in the March issue of Model Aviation and took exception to it. The caption reads that the "Side Pocket is a nice-looking design by Jack Finn...." Actually, the Side Pocket is a design by John Miller that was published in the October '83 issue of Radio Control Modeler and was available as plan #898.
The mistake was mine, as Jack Finn had written to me saying, "Just thought you might like a picture of my latest power ship. It is a Side Pocket from the October '83..."
RCM: I got a little careless with my caption writing.
Let me tackle the indignant letters and telephone calls I've received on the subject of the dramatic rules changes included in the 1992–1993 rule book. The consensus of these letters was, "How could you let them make those terrible changes to the rules?!" It appears that some people think I can influence rules just because I write this column. It is true that I have a forum in which to express my views on Pattern issues, but I have no more voice in rules changes than the average Pattern flier. If I like or dislike a rule change proposal, you can be certain that the District 5 Radio Control Aerobatics Contest Board member hears about it, but that's the extent of my influence.
It is absolutely amazing to me that the new rules came as a complete surprise to so many of the letter writers. I wonder where they were when the proposals were printed in Model Aviation and when the results of the initial and final votes were reported. Many asked how to have the rules changed back to the way they were. These people obviously didn't look in the front of the rule book under Rules Change Procedures (on page 2) of the 1992–1993 rule book.
In case you haven't figured it out, I'm disgusted with the righteous indignation expressed by uninformed people regarding the new rules. We all had a chance to make our views known to our Contest Board members. Contest Board members virtually beg for comments on rules change proposals. Some board members don't receive any comments, pro or con. We all have a responsibility to inform ourselves about rules change proposals and to make our views known to our district board member. The only alternative is to silently accept what others choose to do. If you didn't vote, I don't want to hear about it.
Since that's now off my chest, let's get on with the new rules change proposal cycle for the 1994–1995 rules. The 1992–1993 rule book outlines the procedure for submitting proposed rule changes. It isn't a complicated process. You ask AMA for the appropriate form, fill it out, have it signed by the correct number and category of AMA members, and submit it before September 1. The deadline is firm, so don't delay submitting your proposal until the last minute.
It's important to consider all the implications of any proposed change. For example, if you submit a proposed change to a maneuver schedule, and the proposal contains a maneuver not currently described in the rule book, you should also submit a proposal to include a description of the new maneuver. That's exactly what I had to do when I suggested adding a Split S as a turnaround maneuver in the Sportsman maneuver schedule. It's really not difficult to do if you just think about what will have to be in the rule book after your proposal has been accepted.
So if you want to change everything back to the old style of flying, submit a proposed rule change. Similarly, if you think the new Advanced maneuver schedule is too easy, think up some ways to improve it, and submit the proposed change(s). By the way, I'm thinking of suggesting that the Square Loop be changed to a Square Loop with 1/2 Rolls in the Advanced maneuver schedule.
If we all do our part, the sport can only improve.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
