Safety Comes First!

SAFETY COMES FIRST!

Just where does safety really start? We believe that safety is a state of mind, and we must take every possible action to help ourselves think safe. This month we present a comprehensive, safety-based set of RC field rules for your consideration.

• John Preston

Procedures will fall into four basic categories that will govern who flies, how they fly, what they fly, and when they fly. The following list of rules was put together from the many different club rules that we’ve seen. Not all may be necessary for your club, but after we discuss the reasons for their inclusion you may want to consider them for your own protection.

Ground Rules

1. Flying is restricted to club members and their guests, provided that the latter have current FCC licenses and AMA memberships.
2. Cars must be parked in the designated areas only.
3. Flight boxes and models being prepared for flight shall be restricted to the pit area.
4. On arrival at the field all transmitters shall be placed in the impound area with the antenna collapsed.
5. No transmitter shall be removed from the impound unless the appropriate frequency pin (clip) is attached to the antenna.
6. All transmitter antennas must display a frequency flag color-coded to the frequency in use.
7. Possession of the frequency pin shall be limited to 12 minutes (some clubs say 15 minutes) if others are waiting.
8. When engines are run up to full throttle in the pits, keep bystanders out of the propeller arc.
9. Extended running of engines for break-in purposes in the pits is not allowed.
10. Do not aim prop wash at other modelers or their models.
11. Spectators are welcome but must remain in the designated area.

Model Requirements

1. All models must comply with AMA safety requirements (rounded spinners or prop nuts, no metal props, no knife-edge wings, etc.).
2. All new models (or models repaired after major damage) shall be inspected for structural integrity by the club safety officer before flight.
3. Any radio newly installed in a model or having been in a model during a crash shall be range-checked before flight.
4. All internal combustion engines over (usually between .051 and .10) cu. in. displacement shall be equipped with a muffler.
5. No nylon propellers (unless reinforced by glass fibers) are permitted on engines over (usually .40) cu. in. displacement.

Flight Rules

1. Taxiing a model through the pit area is prohibited.
2. Takeoffs and landings must be made only on the active runway in a direction into the wind (sometimes indicated by an arrow).
3. Hand launching is permitted only from the designated area. Positively NO hand launching from the pits.
4. If a model must be carried out onto the runway for a takeoff, this intention must be previously announced to any other pilots. Members pursuing this practice must promptly clear the runway when the model is released.
5. Pilots must stand only in the marked "pilots' box." Only pilots, instructors, and spotters are permitted to stand in the pilots' box.
6. No persons shall stand on the edge of the runway.
7. All takeoff and landing attempts shall be previously announced to other fliers.
8. A landing aircraft has the right of way over an aircraft taking off.
9. A "dead stick" aircraft has the right of way over all others.
10. When an engine goes dead in flight, shout "Deadstick" loudly several times to warn others of the impending landing.
11. In any case of model malfunction in the air (radio or mechanical) promptly announce the problem to the other fliers in a loud voice.
12. Any person wishing to retrieve a model from the runway shall previously announce this intention to other fliers.
13. No engine restarts shall be made on the runway.
14. There shall be no flying over the pits, spectator area, parking lot (or any area where people are permitted to congregate). Note: At some fields this rule may state, "All flying must take place in front of the line formed by the rear edge of the runway extended to infinity in both directions."
15. There shall be no flying over (insert special areas, such as adjacent houses, ball fields, roads, etc.).
16. Low fly-pasts are not permitted closer to the pilots' box than (50 ft., the center of the runway, the far edge of the runway, etc.).
17. No models shall be flown above an altitude of 400 ft.
18. No more than (usually 4 to 6) models are permitted in the air at once.
19. There shall be no flying before — a.m. or after — p.m.
20. There shall be no flying during runway mowing operations.
21. Fliers shall not consume alcoholic beverages or drugs at the flying field.

Other Rules (not necessarily related to safety)

1. Anything you bring to the flying field shall be removed when you depart.
2. Pets shall be confined to the spectator area.
3. Members must display a club identification pennant (or badge) on their transmitter antenna (or jacket).
4. No person shall attempt to fly a model without being accompanied by an instructor unless they have reached the minimum flight proficiency level.

The following two rules have not commonly appeared in club field safety rules, but we consider them significant to accident-free operation:

1. Gasoline-fueled models shall be confined to the No Smoking area while in the pits.
2. No person shall attempt to start an engine or fly a model while alone at the flying field.

So there you have it — quite a formidable list and perhaps too long for a minimum degree of safety at the average club flying site. However, we have no doubt there are clubs with other rules in existence that we may have missed. If your club is one of these, drop us a line if you think we have missed something important.

If your club is large, say over 100 members, you might want to consider the establishment of a Safety Committee to draft a set of field rules and see that the members adhere to them. For whoever takes on this task the following discussion may be of some help.

The Ground Rules have a dual purpose. First, they should contain clear instructions on where the non-flying members and spectators will be located; second, they should include clear directions to newcomers on practices that might compromise the safety of others. Some means of frequency control is a vital part of this section. The idea of keeping all non-flying persons within a certain pre-designated area is to avoid flying over people. No field should permit flying over a crowd of people no matter how small this crowd might be. Being struck by an out-of-control model is, fortunately, a rare occurrence, but should it occur it is likely to lead to the most serious injury or even death. If your field is currently arranged so that you cannot avoid flying over people, we strongly suggest you consider an alternate layout.

The Model Requirements section of the rules is obviously intended to minimize an accident due to mechanical failure or due to an inherently dangerous form of model construction (knife-edge wings, pointed spinners, etc.). The determination that a new model is structurally sound and airworthy may be a difficult task, but some obvious things to look for are: wing attachment, model CG location, engine installation, radio installation, pushrod attachments, control surface hinges, control surface "slop," and warps in wing and tail. In a future column we hope to discuss RC model requirements that have a bearing on safety. If anyone has something to offer on this subject, let's hear from you.

Flight Rules are likely to account for the largest section of any club's field rules document. All clubs seem to have a hot-shot member who appears to regard rules as only of interest to beginners. While the hot-shot's flying prowess may be sufficient to get him out of many a tight situation that might confound a new pilot, the hot-shot is likely to be using the same radio as anybody else. Any radio is going to have a hard time controlling a model if it suddenly picks up signals from a second transmitter on the same frequency. If we always fly in a manner that assumes that at any time our model may lose its commanding radio signals we can avert a lot of the risk of accident resulting from collision between a model and a person.

We have seen several clubs' rules that restrict the maximum model altitude to 400 feet. Let us remind you that this is encouraged by the Model Aircraft Operating Standards first published by the FAA in July 1972. We wonder how many people would recognize where their model has reached this altitude? Not too long ago one of our fellow club members conducted an experiment at the club field with a kite equipped with a calibrated string and an inclinometer. We were surprised to see how low 400 feet really is. Perhaps if you live in the Midwest an altitude restriction is not a vital safety rule, but always be alert for low-flying full-scale aircraft. Be especially alert if you operate near an airport.

There are many Other Rules that, for the most part, are included to ensure courtesy to one's fellow modeler. Some of these do have a bearing on safety. For example, name tags on one's clothing are nice in a big club to identify a new face. However, their absence may be an indication that the fellow standing next to you on the flight line is not a member and may be a raw beginner about to imperil the safety of you or one of your friends. Badges, or some means to indicate flight proficiency, appear to be a feature in the operation of many clubs' flying fields. A program to instruct beginners and encourage others to seek higher levels of flying skill may be a positive step in upgrading safety.

Finally, let's take a look at the issue of flying alone. After reading about the many propeller-related injuries that are reported in newsletters in addition to personal correspondence, we have reached the conclusion that flying alone may be a risk that is not worth taking. Many injuries which may require the assistance of others could occur during the pursuit of our hobby, but none are more graphic than the one involving the severed artery that was reported in last month's column. Consider the fate of such a modeler if this had happened when no help was at hand.

When we started this column we had not received a letter, addressed to AMA HQ, from William Kozma of Mansfield, OH. We think Mr. Kozma's club and all other RC clubs should act on his recommendation.

"Sirs, after reading the Jan. '80 issue of Model Aviation, I could have written the article on prop safety. On October 14, 1979, I went flying by myself and no one was at the field when I got there. I started the engine on idle and since it was cold, I had to adjust the engine. I got behind the plane and was getting the engine to run right on the transmitter and I reached through the front to hit the transmitter to lower the idle. In doing so I ran my left hand through the prop, cutting off three fingers. If I knew exactly how I did it, I wouldn't have done it in the first place. It was a combination of that black nylon-filled prop (not being able to see the arc; they should have been painted white or yellow) and the nose of the plane moving to the left toward the transmitter, making it in line with the prop. Since then I have recommended to our club that no one fly alone (emphasis added) because what it took for me to get to the hospital emergency room is another story in itself."

By the time this issue reaches your mailbox, the active flying season for those of us in the more northern states will be upon us. We ask that all club officers take a look at their field rules and compare them to our list. Now is the time to make changes, not after the accident occurs.

Have another safe month.

John Preston 7012 Elvira Court, Falls Church, VA 22042.

Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.