1only

I heard it was harder to fly a plane with the wings under the fuselage. Why is that? Should a beginner get a plane that has the wings on top? I flown a real plane before with the wings under the fuselage, and it wasnt that hard. I feel that if i could fly a real plane, and have rc expirience with cars & trucks, then surely i could just get a plane with the wings under the fuselage. What do yall think?

TexasAirBoss

My Feedback: (22)

Actually, I have several friends that are airline pilots. They have 25 and 30 thousand hours of flight time logged. And some had a great deal of difficulty learning to fly models. Sometimes thier experience flying real planes just didn't seem to translate to flying the models . Sometimes it did.

And the RC cars may give you a little experience with opperating a vehicle from the third person perspective, but mess up just once with a plane and it is gone, as in toothpicks.

High wing trainers give you the most stable and "forgiving" configuration for training. A good airplane and an experienced instructor will give you the best chance of success and a more enjoyable experience.

Once you are in this hobby, you will likely fly hundreds of planes throughout your lifetime. There is no rush to fly a low wing plane. You will have plenty of time for that later.

Scar

My Feedback: (3)

Where are you going with this? If you're dead set on going out to your farm, throwing something in the air, and learning to fly it by yourself, we might make certain types of helpful response here. If you're interested in learning in a different fashion, we might be able to help you find someone in your area who has one of those high wing planes and a "buddy box" transmitter system, to let you try it with an instructor backup.

You'll get lots of responses advising you to try something like the latter, but it would help if you would spell out what you want to do for the learning process. And that learning process is never trivial, even if you have had full-scale experience and RC cars.

Good luck,
Dave Olson

sportyxls

hello

the two previous post are correct in you dont really say what you are wanting but if you have no rc plane experience and are looking for the least amount of stress and better chance of successfully entering the hobby i would advise getting some help with at least flying on a buddy system if not also with building your first model the building part might be a little more important it you are building your first plane out of a kit. also some time on a simulator also can help quite a bit on learning how to takeoff, fly, and land. The last of that statement probably the most important being takeoffs are always optional but landings they are manditory. Also the answer to your first qustion is yes any of your top wing style trainer planes that are properly settup (control throws, and ballance) are your most stable and easiest to learn on. No matter what you decide to do I wish you happy flying and good luck!!

Campy

My Feedback: (1)

Cyclic Hardover

My Feedback: (3)

I think your R/C days are already over, thats what I think. To dignify this with an answer. I flew the most sophisticated military helicopters in the world for 20 years. This does not mean I can fly an RC Helicopter. If I don't then I mights as well flush $1500 down the toilet. You have to train on it just like anything else. Do you know of any people who have a drivers license with Tickets, arrests, DWIs etc. Guess there driving skills aren't that great are they.

Go get yourself a nice litle Corsair .40 size warbird plane and give it a spin, see how it goes. I have seen many full scale rated pilots come and go. They feel they know everything and avoid the training. They come out with an ego and go home a few minutes later with a wreckage and never come back because they feel embarrased for the idiots they were.

So its your choice. Come on out and show how great you are because you sat in an airplane or learn to do it right.

tIANci

I heard from my pal that they once had a 737/747 Captain who started RC, he said no problems, he can fly a huge plane so what is RC? You all know how the story ends ... he splashed 3 planes and then humbled himself. Another buddy told me of a newbie who was a Top Gun pilot ... same old story.

In real planes they start with a sim and then something like a high wing plane or a proper low wing trainer. Even then they had a lot of time on a sim that cost millions to run, not something like $199.55 etc.

There are some who have the aptitude and skills to learn with a low wing but generally most will not be able to handle it. There was a new flyer at our field today, after his first try he said the RCM trainer was so sensitive ... for us who are experienced flying a trainer is boring like nuts.

tIANci

Snoop ... I envy you!!! What did you fly? Was it fun?

Ed_Moorman

My Feedback: (1)

I have taught RC flying for several years and during my USAF career, I was a T-37 pilot training instructor for a 4-year tour. Believe me, an RC plane is harder to fly. It is really more akin to flying instruments or the simulator. Your view of the model changes as the plane flies, complicating your perception of the plane's attitude. You only know ground speed and have no knowledge of indicated airspeed, which is what the plane flies on, other than a mental combination of the ground wind with your gress of the plane's speed. You have no stall warning other than a sluggishness in the plane's response to your control input. This is not to mention the problem of flying towards yourself.

As a full scale pilot, you at least know that an RC plane turns with ailerons and elevator (other than a 2 or 3-channel) and not with rudder like a boat. Your RC car experience will give you a leg up on flying towards yourself.

Many years ago, most trainers were 3-channel, using rudder and roll-due-to-yaw for turns. They had a lot of dihedral and would recover if you released the controls. A modern trainer is much more powerful and responsive so most have lost the safety factor of hands-off recovery. For this reason, you need an instructor. The first flight on a new plane is a test flight and even though ARFs have made testing easier by giving us usually straight and true airplanes, the plane can still be out of trim and a hand full for a novice to initially fly.

Funny that someone should mention getting a Corsair. many years ago back in the late 1970's as I recall, we had 3 F-15 jocks build identical Corsairs with retracts and Super Tigre Blueheads. (That'll tell you how long ago it was). They were hot pilots and going to fly on their own. I wasn't at the field, but a good friend of mine offered to test fly for them. No way. The first took off and immediately bashed. The second asked for and got a test flight. Herb trimmed the plane and gave it to him, where upon he managed to hang on to the transmitter all the way to the ground. The 3rd pilot said he would take our advice. He bought a Senior Falcon, learned to fly and enjoyed his Corsair.

Go somewhere and get yourself an instructor. It won't take you long. If you really, really want a low wing plane, try a Sky Raider Mach II or a 4-Star 40.

volkan

Hi
It depends on what plane you get, A high-wing trainer is easier to fly
than a cap232.

I have had both a Kyosho Trainer, and a Blackhorse Super air.
And all I can say is that the super air (a LOW wing plane) with low rates
flys better than my trainer! high rates and I have a aerobatic beast!
But then again, my trainer was 3rd hand, and very VERY old.

See this link for photos of my super air.
http://www.rc-expertise.com/html/ind...ate=thumbnails

P-40LUVR

Im a full scale pilot and im here to tell you it took some time to get the hang of flying an RC model![sm=lol.gif]
I found that you have to "program" you're brain to be "outside" the airplane which made it hard for me.
You can't feel the airplane like you can in the cockpit.
As far as a low wing plane being any easier or more difficult to fly depends...when the winds are strong I find the low wing aircraft to be much more stable on landings.(Taxi...ect.)
I find that you will scrape the wingtips a lot more with a low wing..but wing tip protectors help there.
Heck..all I fly now are low wing Warbirds,540's,232 Caps,202's,Skyraiders...ect.
With all that said..I have found that it is no more difficult to fly a low wing opposed to a high wing airplane,maybe easier on the landings when flying a low wing because you get into the ground effect a little sooner.

dicknadine

No matter how many hours you may have in full size aircraft-- the main difference is -- your not in the model plane. example-- in a full size plane a left rudder turns it left as you always looking forward-- the model is different in flying away from you-- right is right-- coming towards right is left and left is right--etc-etc. it takes practice with a high slow plane-- then go whole way with the low wing. dick

hookedonrc

You haven't posted again, but your profile says you are from Oklahoma. If you are in the Tulsa/Broken Arrow area, I invite you to come out to our field for a visit. You can get a close look at the different types of aircraft that we fly and get some idea of what it takes to fly. We have a lot of great club members that would be willing to answer any questions you might have. Just a thought...or there are other clubs in the Tulsa area you can visit.

http://www.americanturfflyers.com

1only

Thanx alot everyone. you all have been a big help. I know i was unclear with my question but you guys exceeded what i expected has help. And Hooke i live in OKC but i'll try to look you guys up up there to see yall in action.

CHIPINWV

Yes, It is harder because low wing models mostly are high performance ones. I also fly full scale and have found this experience not very helpful in flying models other than the basics of flight. If I want to go up.........I pull back..........If I want to go down.........I pull the rest of the way back. Good luck,


Chipinwv