1.  What do I need to do to join the club?
First, you must be a member of the Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA) and or MAAC (Canadian). All members of an AMA-chartered club like EVA are required to also be members of the AMA and or MAAC. More information about the AMA can be found HERE.

Once you have your AMA membership, you can join the club. You can get a copy of the membership application HERE, at the field, or from the Club Treasurer.  A current EVA member must sponsor applicants.  Note that there are several methods you can use to join. You can mail your application and fees to East Valley Aviators, Inc., 14045 S. 40th Street, Phoenix, Arizona 85044.  You can also attend a club meeting and join there. Be sure to have your AMA card with you if you sign up in person, or include a photocopy if joining by mail.

2.  What is the AMA and why do I need to join that, too?
The AMA is the national organization in the U.S. that supports aeromodeling activities. Part of its activities include working with US Government agencies, including the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), to make sure that our hobby is protected and not adversely affected by any rule changes or other legislation. The AMA was the entity that worked with the FCC to obtain exclusive use of the 72 and 75MHz R/C radio frequencies (channels) we now enjoy. At the club level, the AMA provides flying-site insurance to the landowners of flying sites. Part of your membership in the AMA includes a subscription to "Model Aviation", a nice magazine that covers all aspects of aeromodeling. For more information about the AMA and to obtain a copy of the membership application, visit the AMA's website at www.modelaircraft.org.

3.  Where and when are the club meetings?
The East Valley Aviators general membership meets six times each year on the first Wednesday of the month. Meetings are held in the months of January, February, March, May, October and December.  An issue of the Exhaust Systems newsletter will be published the week before each of the meetings. We are still looking for a permanent meeting place.  Until that time the meeting location will be published in the Exhaust Systems.

During the months of May and June, meetings have been traditionally held at the flying field.

4.  What are the dues used for?
As in any organization of this type, dues are used to cover expenses that the club may incur over the year. Those expenses include, but are not limited to:

• Rent.
• AMA Charter.
• General facilities upkeep.
• Operating expenses (printing/postage for the newsletter, website hosting, club meetings, etc.)

5.  How (high/far/fast) can they fly?
The radios we use have an effective range of around to a mile. Therefore, “technically” you should be able to fly up to that far away. However, in actual practice this is not the case. You can control the aircraft only as long as you can visually see it and determine its orientation (or in other words, tell what it is doing). The farther away it gets, the smaller it appears. Thus, at the point it you can no longer clearly see it, you are no longer in control of it…even if it’s still in range of the transmitter. Obviously, the larger the model, the farther away it can be before you lose sight of it. In general practice, flights are typically less than 400 feet up and less than 300 feet away.

The top speed of a jet or high-performance racing plane can be as much as 200MPH (that’s ACTUAL miles per hour…NOT “to scale” MPH). The average “sport” plane probably averages in the 90MPH range, while a typical “trainer” plane may fly around 50MPH.

6.  How hard are they to fly? (Alternatively…. How hard is it to learn?)
As with any new skill, all it usually takes is practice. You should be prepared to dedicate a fair amount of time in order to learn this new skill, depending on how quickly you can pick it up. Younger students seem to progress much faster than adults...possibly because of the influence of video games. In any event, a fast learner might take as little as 4-5 weeks, while for others it could take as long as 4-5 months. Use of a PC-based flight simulator can greatly enhance the speed at which you learn, and can be a great help overcoming of the common problems encountered by new students. It's also a good way to keep your skills current when the weather isn't being cooperative...

The hardest thing for most newcomers to get used to is "control reversal". The airplane ALWAYS responds the same way to a control input, however to the observer on the ground this does not appear to be the case. Specifically, if the airplane is flying away from you when a left aileron command is given, the airplane will start a roll to its left...and is rolling to your left from your viewpoint as well. If the airplane is flying towards you when that left aileron command is given, the airplane again will start a roll to ITS left...but from your viewpoint appears to be rolling to YOUR RIGHT. The usual reaction is to apply MORE left aileron, thinking this will return the airplane to level flight...however, this results in the airplane rolling even further towards what you think is the right. This exercise continues with the usual result being that the airplane rolls completely inverted...with a crash following shortly thereafter.

The next hardest thing is maintaining "orientation", or being able to determine what the airplane is actually doing in the air. In order to control the plane correctly, you must be able to clearly see what attitude the plane is in at the moment. This sounds like a trivial thing, but becomes more and more difficult the farther away the airplane is from you. Most people lose orientation during a turn, either by accidentally getting the plane upside down or by turning too much. It's not that uncommon to hear a student ask "is the plane upside down?" or "which way is it going?"
once orientation is lost.

Another common occurrence can be referred to as "information overload". This typically happens towards the end of a flight when the stress of having to deal with several things at once catches up with you. When this happens, your concentration fades and you start making simple mistakes. At that point, it's time to land and take a break.

Once you have some flight instruction under your belt, these problems will typically diminish and eventually disappear.

7.  How do I get flight instruction?
Flight instruction is not limited to new pilots but also includes pilots that may want to transition to a different type or class of aircraft.  This includes veteran pilots that haven't been on the sticks for awhile and would like a refresher.

NOTICE:
All NON-AMA trainees MUST train with an authorized "AMA Intro Pilot" for insurance purposes.  The "AMA Intro Pilot Program" can ONLY be used once per trainee, for 30 calendar days maximum.  After that, the trainee must acquire AMA membership to continue to train.

If you would like to find out more information regarding our training program, please contact our Flight Training Coordinator, John Fail.

8.  What is a good first airplane?

As much as you may want to start with a model of a P-51 or some other favorite Warbird, Scale or aerobatic airplane…this is NOT the way you want to start. After all...when you start teaching someone to drive a car, you don't begin with a hot-rod out at the local racetrack...you start with something a bit more, um... sedate. The same concept applies here—you do not want something that will be so fast and responsive that the instructor has to constantly take control and save it, because you won't get any real "stick time" and will quickly get frustrated.

In our experience, the best and most effective training experience is obtained when you start with a stable, predictable and relatively slow airplane. Typically referred to as "trainer planes" (for obvious reasons), these aircraft have the wings mounted above the "cabin" (referred to as a 'high-wing' configuration, similar to a Cessna), have a fair amount of "dihedral" (the "vee" shape of the wing), and have the wheels are arranged in a tricycle format (two main wheels with the third placed at the front). (This as opposed to a "tail-dragger", where the third wheel is a small one at the back of the plane.) A plane with tricycle-style landing gear is much easier for the novice to steer (taxi). The high-wing configuration means that the airplane's overall center of gravity (CG) is below the center of lift. This creates a sort of "pendulum" effect, whereby the airplane will have a tendency to return to straight-and-level flight by itself. The greater the amount of dihedral, the more this tendency is increased. The net effect of this is that if you get in trouble, you can release the sticks and the plane will try to correct itself. This tendency is even more pronounced for a "flat-bottom" trainer.

To explain...the wings of some trainer planes have what is referred to as a "flat-bottom" wing, while on other trainers the wings are "semi-symmetrical". A "flat-bottom" wing means exactly that...from the leading edge to the trailing edge, the wing has a curve on the top and is completely flat on the underside. A "semi-symmetrical" wing is curved on both the top AND the bottom...with the curve on top being slightly more pronounced than the one on the bottom. Flat-bottom trainers are highly stable compared to ones with semi-symmetrical wings...however, semi-symmetrical wings handle windy conditions a bit better. When the time comes, a semi-sym trainer can be used for introductory aerobatics whereas a flat-bottom one would make this very difficult. Given that in Texas the winds are blowing more often than not, we suggest getting a trainer with a semi-symmetrical wing.

The vast majority are of trainers available are of the ARF (Almost Ready to Fly) variety, although there are a few that are offered in kit form. The ARF typically comes already built and covered, requiring only that the wing halves be joined and the tail feathers (stabilizer/elevator and vertical fin/rudder) be attached to the fuselage. Some even come as a complete package, with the engine and radio already installed. The kit versions require that the owner start with the bare wood parts (they come already cut out for you), assemble them like a jigsaw puzzle and cover the resulting airframe with plastic heat-shrink covering. Starting from a kit gives you a very good understanding of how the airplane is constructed (and, should the need arise, how to go about repairing it). However, most beginners today start with an ARF.

Trainer planes come in two general sizes: "40-size" and "60-size". The "40" and "60" refer to the size of the engine utilized...a 40-size trainer uses an engine between .40 and .50 CID (one-half cubic inch displacement or less), while the 60-size uses an engine .60CID and larger. The 60-size plane is larger than the 40-size, and can be a bit easier to see...but also uses more fuel to operate. Of the two, the 40-size trainer is the one most commonly seen.

There are literally dozens of planes out there that make a good trainer. One of our instructors put out a "suggestion sheet" which recommended a couple of specific airplanes. However...as long as the plane fits the general description given here, you should have no problems learning to fly with it.

There is also a discussion of this and similar topics in our Training manual. We suggest that you also have a look there for more information.

9.  What radio should I buy (brand...number of channels...AM, FM, PCM, etc.)?

For the most part, which brand you should get is a purely subjective question. It's a lot like asking which brand of soft drink is the best...everyone has their own opinion and there are really no wrong answers. There are several popular brands available...in alphabetical order, the four most commonly seen are: Airtronics, Futaba, Hitec and JR. For a beginner that has not yet purchased a radio, the best advice would be to first visit some of the local clubs (especially the one you are thinking about joining), see which brand the majority of the members are using and select that brand. That way you will have no trouble getting assistance with the radio. All of the brands listed above are well known and very reliable.

Whatever brand you choose, make sure the transmitter is "buddy box" capable, also sometimes referred to as having "trainer capability". What this means is that the transmitter can be physically connected to another similar transmitter via a "trainer cord". The instructor holds the main transmitter, and has primary control of the plane. Once it is in the air, the instructor can electronically transfer control to the "student" transmitter. If the student gets in trouble, the instructor can instantly regain control and save the airplane. Many clubs have buddy boxes for some brands of radio...verify that the transmitter you are buying is compatible with the club's buddy boxes.

For your first trainer plane, the minimum requirement is 4 "channels", which equates to the number of discrete functions you can control. In the case of a trainer, those controls are the ailerons (roll), elevator (pitch), rudder (yaw) and throttle (engine speed). Advanced airplanes can have additional functions (e.g., flaps, retractable landing gear, etc.), and therefore require a radio with more channels. However, your first trainer and usually your second "advanced" trainer will only need a 4-channel radio.

Years ago, all radios used AM (amplitude modulation) as their broadcast method. AM is still in use today, mainly in radios for cars and boats, but also in some lower-cost airplane radios. However, the overwhelming majority of modern radios use FM (frequency modulation). Your control inputs are converted to electronic form and are imbedded in the radio signal. In the case of AM, the control inputs cause the radio's signal strength to be modulated while the actual frequency remains constant. For FM, the signal strength remains constant and the frequency is what is modulated. Under the covers, PCM and PPM radios BOTH broadcast over an FM signal. PCM (pulse-code modulation) radios convert your control inputs to digital form before they are broadcast, whereas in PPM (pulse-position modulation...a fancy term for plain old FM), the inputs are broadcast in analog form.

All three types work well. PCM is advertised as being the most resistant to interference, followed by PPM (FM), then by AM. In terms of cost, the most expensive is PCM, then PPM (FM) and finally AM. Standard FM (PPM) is all you really need to start.

10.  How much does it cost to get started?
The initial cost can vary depending on what path you take. Several years ago, a beginning modeler had to buy everything separately (meaning the airplane kit, engine and radio). Then you had to assemble the airplane (which also required buying glue, covering, wheels, fuel tank, etc.), and finally install the radio and engine. This required investing a lot of time up front…and only THEN could you start learning to fly.

Most newcomers today get started by purchasing a “trainer package”. This includes an ARF (almost ready to fly) airplane, the engine and radio, and typically costs $400 or less. One of the more “high-end” packages includes an upgraded engine, a flight simulator for your computer and has onboard sensors that automatically return the airplane to straight and level flight. This package is at the upper end of the cost range, where packages with fewer “bells and whistles” cost a bit less.

It is still possible to start with a kit and proceed from there. If money is an issue, (say for a young person using an allowance), this can be an affordable way to get started, because the expenditure is spread out over a longer period rather than all at once up front. If you want to go this way, purchase the airplane kit first and start assembling it. You would then buy the other items (engine, radio) at the point that they are required in the assembly process, typically around the time the airframe is about 75% completed. The one thing to remember is that this method DOES require a significant investment of your time. If you factor into the equation the value of the time you have spent, the final cost will end up being just about the same, if not more, than if you had bought a “package deal”. (On the other hand, the modeler gains valuable experience while building the airplane, which can come in handy in the event of a crash.)

Finally, you should expect to spend some money on fuel and ground-support equipment. One of our instructors put together a list of items he feels you need to have for your first training session. Specifically, those items included: a “glow plug igniter” to heat the engine’s glow plug while it’s being started, an electric starter to spin the propeller (keeps your fingers out of harm’s way), a fuel pump to fill and drain the airplane’s tank, a 12-volt battery to run the electric starter and fuel pump, a charger for the battery, and a flight box to carry all of that stuff in.

Adding the ground-support equipment into the mix puts the final cost at around $500. One thing to remember is that the biggest part of this cost is in the radio, engine and field equipment, NOT the airplane itself. Once you have successfully learned to fly, you can use the radio (and possibly the engine) from your trainer in your second plane.

11.  Can I buy used equipment to save money?
Used equipment CAN be a good way to get started. However, as with any other second-hand purchase you need to be sure that what you are getting is actually worth what you are paying. If you are thinking of purchasing a used radio (engine, airplane or anything else, for that matter), you should make ABSOLUTELY sure that the equipment is in good shape and reasonably priced based on its condition. Have an experienced person look it over for you if you are uncertain.

12.  Should I go with gas power or electric?
Most people start with gas. (Actually, the term "gas" is a bit misleading...while many of the larger, more advanced airplanes have engines that DO use gasoline; the engines on typical trainer planes actually use an alcohol-based fuel. However, hobbyists still tend to refer to these as being "gas-powered", with electric-power enthusiasts occasionally using the term "wet power".) With a gas plane, when you run out of fuel all you need to do is refill the tank, restart the engine and keep on flying. With an electric plane, you must recharge the battery when it runs down. To maximize flying time, most electric fliers have several battery packs on hand and recharge one while flying with the other. Initial start-up costs for electric are typically higher, since in addition to multiple battery packs you will need a have a "field-charger" for the batteries. It will typically connect to your car battery unless the flying field has AC power available. While gas planes can be somewhat noisy and messy (due to oil and other residue from the engine), electric planes are quiet and create no mess. Electric power has improved significantly and in many cases the performance is comparable to gas power. However, most trainer planes being sold are gas-powered.

13.  Helicopters look interesting. Are they hard to fly, and can I start out with one?
Helicopters can definitely be a lot of fun. However, compared to an airplane they are quite a bit more difficult to learn to fly. They are also significantly more expensive. The normal trainer plane just requires a very basic (meaning cheap) radio, while a helicopter requires a highly sophisticated one. The difference in the cost of the radio alone can be up to several hundred dollars. You need more "stuff" to maintain the helicopter as well. This is not to say that getting into R/C with a helicopter cannot be done...many fliers started with a helicopter and have never flown a fixed-wing airplane at all. One thing to remember is that helicopters may be somewhat uncommon in a typical R/C club, so getting help with one (and you WILL need assistance) can be difficult. Some EVA members fly helicopters, however the club does not provide helicopter training. Check with a local hobby shop that specializes in helicopters to get some more in-depth information.

14.  What about gliders/sailplanes (…park fliers, Zagis or something similar)?
Many people have gotten into radio control using gliders or sailplanes. One thing to remember is that unless the airplane has an electric motor in the nose to get it up in the air, you will need some sort of launching mechanism as well as a lot of room. An advantage here is that they make no noise. Local glider-specific clubs can provide more information and assistance if you want to get started this way.

Park fliers, Zagis and other similar aircraft are sometimes advertised as being suitable for beginners.  Zagi-type planes are rather durable and difficult to damage, but can be a handful for a beginner. One thing to note is that most of these aircraft are advertised as being suitable for flying in schoolyards, parks and even your back yard. This is true, but before you pick a spot you should MAKE CERTAIN that there are no established R/C flying fields within 3 miles of the location. Your transmitter has a range of over a mile, so if there is another R/C field close by, you can interfere with operations there (and they with you).

15.  I don’t live in this area. Can I fly at your field while I am in town?
Guests are welcome to use the facilities when accompanied by an EVA member.  Please review the guest rules, as well as the general field rules. You MUST be a current member of the AMA, so be sure you have your AMA card with you. 

16.  What sort of identification do I need on my aircraft?
Item number 5 of the AMA Safety Code says: “I will not fly my model unless it is identified with my name and address or AMA number, on or in the model. Note: This does not apply to models flown indoors.” This means that at a minimum you need to put your AMA number somewhere on the aircraft. Modelers have been known to use their AMA number to simulate the “N-number” found on full-scale aircraft. The AMA sells a self-adhesive ID sticker that you can use inside an airplane.

17.  I still have questions. Who should I contact about --whatever--?

If this FAQ does not address your question, please contact one of EVA's Club Officers.