Safety Comes First
Gary A. Shaw
At the flying field
It's fun to go to the flying field to see what's whipping through the air, or what's static between fuel refills. Although if I had to pick something I enjoy most about a day of flying, checking out aircraft setups comes close to the top of my list.
Most people arrive, unload, fly, chat a little, load everything back up, and head home—not me. Lately I find myself seeking out newcomers to the hobby and offering them a helping hand, unless it's obviously not wanted. Yes, there are those who don't want help unless they ask for it, and I try to respect that.
On a recent trip to the field, I met a nice young man and his father who asked if I'd take up a new Piper Cub they'd built over the summer. Since they were new to the hobby and it was the airplane's maiden flight, we conducted a thorough preflight and discovered a few things that needed attention before committing the model to the air. More glue was needed to hold the windshield in place, and Loctite was required on all metal-to-metal surfaces (bolts, nuts, screws, etc.)—simple things to take care of if you want to ensure structural survivability in the future. Then out came the buddy box and up we went for a check of trim and power.
It's funny how I'd forgotten what a poor choice a Cub is for a trainer. With more than just a slight breeze, the aircraft ballooned when it pointed into the wind, and it weather-vaned badly while trying to fly a crosswind pattern. Downwind seemed even worse as small changes in elevator resulted in big changes in the model's actions.
Although I have significant flying experience, I couldn't tell if the wind was controlling the model or if my student was controlling it. After landing the model, because my nerves were shot, it was decided that there would be less-windy days in the future, and it would be better if my students and I waited. Although it was nerve-racking (bouncing all over the sky), I'm still not sure who learned more from the experience—me or the student.
Do a good preflight on any aircraft to ensure airworthiness, and fly within your skill level.
Novice helicopter pilot
Although it was windy on that particular day, the ground-level turbulence didn't bother a novice helicopter pilot intent on improving his hovering skills. Once the model was in the air, it became apparent that the pilot had bitten off more than he could chew. Up, down, backward, sideways—the tail swung around, and then splat... the model was finally still.
After the pilot and I picked up helicopter pieces for a few minutes, I learned that not only had he never flown a helicopter before, he'd never flown anything before! That's not a good thing unless you're wealthy and/or have plenty of time to put the helicopters back together again, and again, and again.
Safely master forward flight in fixed-wing aircraft, then move "up" to choppers if the interest is still there. For those trying to master the art of flying helicopters, I thought you might enjoy an article sent to me recently via e-mail. I don't know the author's name, but the article contains some good advice.
How to learn to fly RC helicopters
- Learn slowly and get good at one step before starting the next. It's hard to hover when others around you are flying around and having a great time; impatience leads to trying things you're not ready for and will likely end in a crash.
- Expect to crash, but aim for fewer crashes by taking your time. Be prepared mentally and don't let crashes discourage you.
- Simulators are useful tools for learning stick movements and reactions, but they are not a substitute for real flying. If you use a simulator, set it up to match the helicopter you will be flying—beginners may not know how to do that well.
- Find a local pilot who flies well, someone you trust and whose style you like. Ask that person to help you and stick with them—don't keep changing mentors or setups. Consistency is important for learning and for a reliable helicopter setup.
- Patience is a virtue: get comfortable with one thing before moving on to the next.
The author compares learning to bowling: the first flight is warmup, the second is usually the best, and the third can be confusing as your mind overthinks. To avoid that, fly only a few flights when you start or take time between flights so you don't confuse yourself.
Learning sequence (step-by-step):
- Learn yaw (tail rotor) control
- With the helicopter light on its feet, center it and learn to control the tail rotor.
- Try to keep the tail behind the helicopter.
- When comfortable, add a little power and lift the helicopter about 3 to 6 inches for a few seconds. Gradually increase hover duration.
- Hover at 90° left and right
- After mastering a basic hover, practice hovering 90° left and right of yourself.
- Lift into a hover, slowly rotate a bit left, then right; repeat until comfortable on both sides.
- This prepares you for approaches, which often come in at a 90° angle to you.
- Practice in light wind
- Once comfortable hovering, practice when the breeze is light to learn wind effects.
- Be careful not to get behind the controls—anticipate and correct early.
- Learn sideswipes and basic translation
- Move the helicopter a foot or two to the right, then left. Start small and build confidence.
- "Walk the dog"—move with the helicopter as it translates.
- Practice tail-toward-you circles slowly in both directions (one direction may be easier due to rotor direction).
- Begin forward flight
- Hover about 30° left or right of yourself, then do a sideswipe out about 3 to 5 feet; stop and rotate to the other side and repeat.
- Gradually increase the distance and altitude as you become comfortable. Forward flight will evolve from these exercises.
- Practice approaches
- When you can fly about 10–15 feet high and 15 feet left and right, practice approaches.
- Fly past yourself slowly, reduce power to descend to about head level, then add power to level off and hover.
- Do this both directions until comfortable; this helps prepare for autorotations.
- Progress gradually
- Increase altitude and distance step by step. Don't shortchange learning to hover—everything will evolve around solid hover skills.
That's all for this month. Keep the batteries charged!
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
