Hi, I am a novice flyer who has access to a few ball parks and playing fields in the area. My first plane was an E-Flyte Sportsman Glasair, which has a large wingspan and is not suited for flying in the local parks.
I did join MAAC and attended a few flights at the local MAAC designated flying area. This is a 3/4 hour trip to an old airfield. The local flyers are mainly gas flyers who are flying fairly large planes which can handle the light wind gusts that are typical for this area.
There is no problem with flying at the site, wait your turn and one of the members spots for you.
I then purchased a HH Champ 3 channel flyer which allows me to fly in the local parks. I usually fly in the mornings when the winds are typically very light. I can fly for as long as I have charged batteries which is usually about half an hour.
When HH released their newest 4 channel flyer, the Super Cub S which is just a few inches larger wingspan than the Champ I immediately bought one.
What a difference flying four channels, the plane has the 3 modes, beginner, intermediate, and experienced, It is a blast to fly.
Flying in beginner mode to ensure great take offs and switching to the intermedate mode for quicker control reactions is great. I have not had to use the Panic button at all.
I would advise anyone interested in this plane to invest in a better radio than the small radio that comes with it. The stated range for this plane is 300 feet and it does not take long at all to reach that distance. As this is a Spectrum receiver I have bound it to my DX6i which gives me twice the range of the small RTF radio that comes with the plane, buy the PNP version and use a full range radio.
I have acquired several larger flyers which I will need to fly at the designated MAAC site as they are too large for flying at the local parks. I will fly these planes as I gain experience, but for now I do not miss driving for 3/4 hour and waiting in line for my turn to fly.
As mentioned very seldom have I finished flying early due to other people using the parks and playfields. The School yards are also great to fly from on the weekends, hardly ever anyone around except during the summer during baseball and soccer season and that is when I fly early in the morning and have hardly been in any of the playing fields at the same time as any of the leagues practices or games.
For now the HH Sports Cub S is all I want or need to fly. IT is a full 4 channel plane, the only complaint I could possibly make on this plane is the placement of the battery, do not place it far foward, for me the the plane did not handle well, moved the battery back as far as the slot would allow and now it flyers perfectly. This is the perfect size for flying the local fields and parks.
A plane that is getting my interest and will wait for reviews is the new FMS 980 mm wingspan planes, These planes may just fit size wise for continuing flying the local parks and not having to spend the time traveling the 3/4 hour to the local designated flying field.
I should note that I usually fly with a fellow local flyer and we take turns spotting for each other and of course adhear to the MAAC rules and practices.