July Flying Reports

Flying Over the Fourth of July Weekend

Sunday through Tuesday, July 2, 3, 4, 2000: What a wonderful four day flying vacation! I managed to get to the field three of the four days during the Fourth of July holiday. We had a great time flying, and I saw several club members at the field! During my three days of flying, I ran into Norm and Cody Hayes flying their 33% Extra 300. That airplane is beautiful, and they are both very good pilots! Keith Jones came out with his 33% Budweiser Cap. It seemed like a big bird fly-in when I also met up with Joe Adams and his 1.20 powered Sukhoi. I think there is a conspiracy afoot to get me to start flying larger aircraft. Norm and Joe did their part by letting me fly their big birds!

In addition to al the big bird flyers at the field, I also met up with many of the sport flyers. Larry Wall made it out to the field for the first time in months! His yellow and black Four Star 40 tracks beautifully. Jeff Whippo was out with his latest plane: the Sportster. She pretty fast, but I think my Somethin' Extra is faster, at least that's the way it seemed when we raced a few laps. But as fast as I think my plane is, the Kaos pattern ship that Jay Jennings brought out is definitely faster. But flying isn't always about fast, Mike Arthur has a beautiful biplane that looks and sounds great at any speed; I think it is a Weeks' Special.

We had several flyers at the field with their trainers. My student, Kieth Cox, is coming along fine. I think he'll be soloed before the summer is over. I know that our new member, Nathan, got some stick time in, but I didn't get a chance to watch him fly. Ray Foley brought out a new flyer, unfortunately I forgot his name, but I remember his airplane. He was flying a transparent red Sig Kadet Senior with black trim. Ray on the other hand, flew his 40-sized Cap.

Sunday, 9 July, 2000: It was another one of those ominous mornings. Looking out my window, I saw a solid sheet of gray clouds and the wind blowing in gusts and fits. It seemed that today would not be a flying day. But when I opened my email, I saw the message from Bruce Utne. He told me he would be at the field with a couple new airplanes! Well I couldn't stay home if Bruce was going to go out to the field.

I managed to get ready and out to the field by 10 AM. I unlocked the gate and drove in. Not long after I arrived, a gentleman from the Isle of Wight flying club showed up looking for the combat contest scheduled for the 9th. Apparently the webpage he was looking at for a calendar hadn't changed the date to the 23rd. We had three people show up looking for the combat contest! While I was setting up my Somethin' Extra, Bruce Utne pulled up and started unpacking his planes.

Flying Firsts
Bruce brought three planes to the field: an Ace Simple Series Mustang, a House of Balsa Chipmunk, and an Easy Sport 40 ARF. The Mustang is his usual mount, and I'd often been impressed with how quick the Norvel .061 powered plane flew. Although Bruce's Chipmunk had made several trips to the field since he finished it in February, he had never been able to fly her. Initially he had problems getting the AP Hornet engine to run consistently, but even after he dialed the engine in, the small Chipmunk wouldn't roll across the grass runway at the field long enough to get airborne. Well, we fixed that problem today! I hand-launched the Chipmunk for her first flight! That's right, the Chipmunk has flown! And she flew quite admirably, too! Unfortunately, Bruce lost one of the main gear on landing and she cartwheeled, breaking the horizontal stabilizer in the process. I'm sure Bruce will have her back at the field in no time. In between flying his Mustang and his Chipmunk, Bruce broke in his new engine on the Easy Sport 40 and got her ready to fly. He asked me to take her out for her first flight and see how she did. I was rather impressed! I hadn't expected the Easy Sport to be as responsive as she was, but she was crisp and quick. She has enough stability to track straight without any control inputs, but her roll and pitch rates are very impressive. After I spun her around the field a few times to set the trim, I handed her over to Bruce. I think he was really pleased with his selection! He lit up as he performed rolls and loops around the field. Although Bruce's landing approach was smooth, the wind played tricks on him, and he bounced a few times on touch-down. The perplexing thing is that his nose wheel strut broke! I've seen plenty of bash the plane on the ground type landings, and this wasn't hard enough to break the wire strut. Something was definitely wrong with the strut wire.

Lost Plane
While we enjoyed our day of flying, other pilots weren't so happy. Nathan, a recent addition to the club, and his helper spent their day tramping through the tall grass looking for Nathan's Thunder Tiger Trainer. Apparently, they lost the plane on Saturday. My understanding is that they were on a very long final when they lost power out near the tree line left of the field. Between the headwind and their limited altitude, they couldn't make it back to the field, and had to put down in the grass. They made no less than three trips out to find the plane, but came back empty handed each time. I hope they find the plane.

Whippo and Lupton Return
Jeff and Alan Whippo came out to the field. Alan had been away on vacation for a while, and hadn't had a chance to fly. He and his dad put in several good flights while they were out at the field. Jeff really seems to like his new plane: the Sportster. Alan started out a little apprehensively, but soon settled into his flying and was doing great. I haven't seen Joe Lupton at the field for quite some time either. But he was there today with his Hots and his digital camera. Hopefully we'll see more of Joe over the summer.

Combat Practice
The Battle Over Hampton is approaching rapidly, and some pilots are starting to practice with their 1/12 scale fighters. Jay Jennings, the event director for the contest, brought out his MVVS .21 powered Dauntless and put her through her paces. The Dauntless is a relatively large combat plane, but with the MVVS in the nose she's as fast as any combat plane I've ever seen, I'm glad Jay won't be flying in the contest!

Playing Hooky

Friday, 14 July, 2000: Bruce Utne emailed me about his mid-week flying. Here's what he had to say!

Hi,

Played hooky yesterday afternoon, took the 3 planes to the field and had a ball. Best thing was I didn't break anything. Mike Atkinson came out too, with 2 planes. Later on Mark showed up to cut the grass on the runway. It was a good afternoon for me.

Bruce

Sunday, 16 July, 2000: Although the weatherman gave us the typical weekend forecast, rain, we went to the field anyway. And just as we had hoped, the rain never came! More than a dozen pilots braved the weather report to get in a day of fun and acrobatics. The big trick of the day was fighting the wind.

Our field of flyers ranged from the novice to the expert, and the aircraft were just as varied.\ We had a guest flyer from Ft. Eustis, John Long and his Stik. Bruce Utne came out with his Easy Sport 40 and his variety of 1/2 A flyers. Mike Arthur and Charlie Barnhart (both junior and senior) came flying with their Easy Sport 40 and their Hangar 9 Advance Trainer. John Philbrick came out with his Advance 40, but had problems with the mixture on his 4-stroke power plant. He ended up flying his small bi-plane instead. Owen Perkinson put his modified SIG Somethin' Extra through its paces. And Keith Cox was at the field practicing his slow flight with his Airvista, while Jay Jennings brought his venerable Stik and his Extra 300. The real showstopper was, however, Richard Cooper and his Stream Hobbies Acro 180.

Richard's Acro 180, powered by a 180, performed wonderfully. The plane used to be a kit offered by Stream hobbies, but they no longer produce kits. You could tell that Richard was very comfortable with the plane, and that he was good behind the sticks. Although large, the Acro 180 performed like a fun-fly machine! Light wing loading and plentiful power coupled with good-sized control surfaces kept it maneuverable in any situation. Richard said that the 88-inch plane weighs about 15 pounds!

In addition to all the pilots and flying, Keith Rawlison came out to visit with his beautiful daughter. We haven't seen very much of Keith lately, but hopefully he'll be back into the hobby full force before summer ends!

News Flash - The lost plane is found! Dave and Nathan finally found Nathan's Thunder Tiger Trainer. But keep your eyes open when you go into the field looking for your downed plane, there's still plenty of stuff out there! I lost a Casio watch, Jay lost a Hitec servo, Carl lost a muffler, Alan Whippo lost landing gear, and the list goes on. Maybe we should hold a scavenger hunt?

BATTLE In The PARK

Sunday, July 23, 2000 - It seems that foreboding skies follow combatants wherever they go, adding a serious tone to the event and the flying. The first ever Newport News Park RC Flying Club scale combat compettion was no exception. Six pilots registered for combat under the darkening horizon. After the weigh-in, the contestants learned that they would all fly in every round - six planes in the air at a time. Although the pilots knew the rules, the contest director, Jay Jennings, went over the field layout, safety violations, points system, and round structure. Finally, we were ready for combat. It was well after 11 when the first round kicked off.

Although this was our first 2610 combat event, we drew a sizeable crowd from the local area. And the wonderful food available to the pilots and guests kept everyone happy. The RCCA national points scorekeeper and veteran combat pilot, Chris "Gator" Shepherd took first place. Earl Nester's lage fleet of planes brought him the second place trophy, and Pete Rundel's third place finish will give him some fuel for his next article in RC Report.

For more pictures, and to read the rest of the story go to Combat | NNPark 2000

Thursday & Friday, 27 & 28 July, 2000: Well, I found out last Sunday that I would be in the Inter-club Fun Fly on Saturday. So I tried to get ready by flying on Thursday and Friday, but mother nature had different ideas. I went out both days and managed a flight each day just before the skies opened and poured on us.

The Inter-Club Fun Fly 2000 Contest #2

Saturday, 29 July, 2000: The second installation of the 2000 Inter-Club Fun Fly was held at the Isle of Wight Radio Control club flying field! I had never been to their field before. It is bordered by trees on two sides and a farm field on the opposite side of the runway from the the pits. To the left of the field is a ditch and an old tractor, but there is still plenty of room for approaches.

The weatherman gave Saturday a mixed blessing - I had my fingers crossed. Jay Jennings told me to meet him, Norm Hayes, and Kieth Jones a Stream Hobbies by twelve so we could head out to the field. I decided to take my two oldest boys with me, and I wound up ten minutes late. We headed to the Isle of Wight flying field as soon as I got to the hobby shop.

Events

The Inter-Club Council selected ten possible events for this year's club competition. Each club can select whichever three events they'd like to run for their turn at hosting the fun fly. The Isle of Wight club chose Climb and Glide, Loops, and Timed Flight

Climb and Glide: Pilots are allowed to climb as long as they want. Then they must glide back to the runway. The judges time the climb and use that time to divide the timed length of the glide to determine a climb/ glide ratio. The pilot with the best ratio wins!

Loops: How many loops can you perform in a set time?

Timed Flight: Can you estimate a two minute flight, without a timer, and while the judges talk to you?

Points Standings - I received my information about the points totals for the contest from the NNPRCC Program Director, Mike Munday. Here's what he sent me.

CHOICES: Sometimes it's interesting to look at the choices competitors make. Take a look at the list below to get an idea of the radios and engines used by the contestants.

Sunday, 30 July, 2000: We had another wonderful Sunday full of flying! The usual Sunday fliers brought out their planes and put them through their paces. Jay Jennings brought out his Ultrasport and his Stik. Mike Atkinson practiced slow flying with Apprentice. I'm glad to see Mike making it out to the field regularly. Mike Arthurs was there with Charlie Barnhart Sr. Mike flew his Great Planes Extra 300, while Charlie put his Easy Sport 40 through flight after flight. Charlie is a very consistent flier, and his landings are well executed. Bruce Utne also came out with his Easy Sport 40. Bruce is getting his plane trimmed out nicely. He's become increasingly more comfortable with the plane, and his smiles show the payoff for all the time he's spent. In addition to the Easy Sport, Bruce finally flew his House of Balsa Chipmunk!

After I hand launched the Chipmunk, Bruce flew her around for a trim flight. She looked nice and stable. Once Bruce trimmed the controls and switched to low rates, he did some nice loops and rolls. Unfortunately, he lost the landing gear on our grass field. Although his cartwheel landing only cracked the stabilizer, it effectively ended the Chipmunk's flying day.

I got to meet one of our newest fliers, Charlie Murphy. Charlie brought his Sig 4 Star 40, and a Sig Kadet Jr. While Charlie may only be a high school senior, he's as capable a flier as most of the pilots at the field. He flipped and looped his 4 Star like a veteran.

August Flying Reports

Tuesday with a Trainer

Tuesday, August 15, 2000 - I rarely make it to the field during the week, but I managed to sneak out today. When I arrived at the field, I found Nathan James and Jay Jennings flying Nathan's Thunder Tiger Trainer. Nathan is having a great time, and is almost ready to solo. We all had a great time before the sun set!

Inter Club Fun Fly #3

Saturday, August 19, 2000 - The third Inter Club Fun Fly was hosted by the Hampton Roads R/C Club. The weather was wonderful. Clouds loomed nearby, but we still had sunny skies overhead. The light breeze across the field didn't seem to bother any of the fliers, and the field was in great shape.

Shortly after arriving, we found out that the events for the day would include loops, bomb drop, and precision landing. The variety of aircraft, pilots, and techniques made for a very interesting contest! Although I've never tried the bomb drop before, I thought it was great fun. Unfortunately, my technique wasn't very good, and I didn't score very well. But who knows what a little practice will do for me?

Here are the contest entries, scores, and standings. Enjoy!

Events

The Inter-Club Council selected ten possible events for this year's club competition. Each club can select whichever three events they'd like to run for their turn at hosting the fun fly. The Hampton Roads R/C club chose the Bomb Drop, Loops, and Precision Landing

Bomb Drop: Pilots attach a 10 penny nail to their wing and then place a large nut with a 12 inch streamer on the nail. The judges marked out two targets using chalk, and pilots had to drop their "bomb" as near to the center of the target as they could.

Loops: How many loops can you perform in a set time?

Precision Landing: Climb to any altitude you like, chop the throttle, and land on the spot! Using the throttle at any time earns you a big goose egg!

Current Standings

After three of the four scheduled contests, the clubs are planning their final strategies for the last contest. Here are the current team points. I've taken this info from Jay Jenning's posting of the contest.

September Flying Report

The Whippos Have A New Baby!

Sunday, September 10, 2000 - "I think I should buy her a plane now just so I'm comfortable with it when she's ready to learn..." said new dad Jeff Whippo. It's great to see a father looking out for his child's future.

Samantha Jeanne Whippo entered the world at 7 lbs. 5.5 ounces on September 10, 2000 @ 0103 after only about five hours of labor by mom.

Founder's Day Success!

Airplanes Everywhere!

Great Food and Volunteers

Intro Pilot

Back on the flight line, the Newport News Vice-Mayor, Charles Allen, spent time viewing the models and talking with club members. After seeing how much fun everyone was having, he decided to get in on the action himself. Our club president, and Intro Pilot, Larry Rash took the Vice-Mayor up using Larry's PT-40 trainer. It looked like Mr. Allen had a great time zipping around the field with Larry. In fact, Jay Jennings reports that Mr. Allen said that he was pleased with the whole operation.

"Over all I had a great time." Jay Jennings

Flying Demonstrations

Throughout the day, pilots put on acrobatic displays. I'm always impressed when Mark Niccoletta flies. His beautiful Cap 231 does incredible knife-edge loops and rolling circles. Mark's four point rolls and Cuban eights are just as great. Keith Jones also put on a show with his 1/3 scale Lanier Laser Miss Budweiser. The flying talent in the club is just wonderful.

Final

Watch Your Fingers!

I got to the field later than usual -- I had been working all Saturday night to finish the radio installation in my Pica Focke Wulf 190.

I was surprised to see Jay Jennings, Lester Knight, Mike Munday, Charlie Barnhart senior and junior, Mike and Christopher LaWall, and Mike Atkinson at the field. As the day went on, we were joined by new dad, Jeff Whippo, Mike Arthurs, and Larry Wall.

Lost In the Swamp

Training with Rudder and Elevator

Mika and Christopher's plane, a Duraplane 40, uses only rudder, elevator and throttle. We had some great fun flying the Duraplane, but we had a hard time keeping the engine running at first. It turns out that the problem was a loose backplate. Although it took Mike a while to remove the muffler and engine to tighten the backplate, it fixed the problem. I think Mike and Christopher are having a great time learning to fly1

Flying Fine

Aside from the trainers at the field, Charlie Barnhart Sr was having a great time flying great looking Sig Four Star 120. At least I think it was a 120, it could be a 60. But it is definately larger than the Four Star 40. Mike Atkinson also managed to get his Piper Cub flying with the assitance of Jeff Whippo. It wasn't long ago that we didn't think he'd ever get his problems ironed out!

The Germans Still Bite!

I have to say that I wouldn't have half the airplanes, or the fun, that I have if it weren't for the kindness and hard work of my friends and fellow flyers. One of my best friends, and a truly hard working model airplane crew chief is Larry Wall. Not only did Larry build my FW 190A, but he also spent his entire Sunday at the field finishing the radio installation and balancing! Larry really wanted to see that plane fly. Well, it took Larry all day to finish the plane, and then we had engine problems, but we finally did get to fly her. She was really fast, but touchy at low speed. After she went dead stick on the first flight, we did some more work with the engine. And then it happened. While we were running in the engine, I moved my hand too close to the prop, and BAM!1 I got four cuts on my right hand index finger just behind the nail. My son, Alex, ran to our van and got our first aid kit, while fellow pilot and firefighter, Mike LaWall, helped me apply pressure to the cut. Luckily, they turned out to be rather minor. It appears I got off with a warning.

Well, we put one more flight on the Focke Wulf before we called it a day. I had a great time, and learned a few lessons. Believe me, I'll pay more attention to my prop in the future!

Inter Club Fun Fly #4

Saturday, September 30, 2000 - You couldn't ask for a better day for flying. The light winds held most of the day and we even experienced stil periods during the contest. The pilots in the contest flew a wide variety of planes. I entered with my trusty Avistar, Eddie Isreal brought out hisSig Somethin' Extra, someone flew a Thunder Tiger Fun Extra Profile, and one contestant even entered a Perfect Trainer 40. But the most unusual entry was a flying disk! It performed rather well, especially during slow flight. John Backes rounded out the great day of flying by providing hot dogs and soda. Overall we had a great time.

Slow Flight - Make one up wind pass along the runway, as slow as you can. Flagmen at each end of the runway let the timer know when you've crossed the end of the field.

Spot Landing - Although it sounds simple, killing the throttle and gliding to a spot is a fairly difficult task. The judges measure from the tip of your spinner to determine your distance.

Holding Pattern - As the name implies, this event is a matter of flying around the field until the judge yells land. They start the timer from the time the judge yells land, and they stop it when your gear touches. Shortest time wins.

Club Abbreviation Legend

NNPRC - Newport News Park Radio Control Club. The NNPRC club is located in the Newport News Park System. The flying field features a 700 x 100 foot grass runway. Find out more about the club at their website: http://members.aol.com/nnrcclub/

CVA - Colonial Virginia Aeromodelers. CVA has a very nice grass field next to a soybean crop. The runway is 600 x 50+ and they have a very nice taxiway and large pit area. Find out more at http://www.homestead.com/cvarc

HRRC - Hampton Roads Radio Control. Another fine grass field, but with a twist! The HRRC club has a fiberglass runway down the middle of the grass field -- very interesting. I'll have to check for a webpage.

IOW - Isle of Wight. The Isle of Wight field is located next to a corn field and a borrow pit. The grass runway is a good size, the pavillion is nice, and the people are great. Learn more at http://www.vabch.com/aerobldr/index.htm

The Final Score - After four fun and challenging contests, the final point standings of the Inter-Club Fun Fly are listed below.