JakeInHartsel

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Some years ago (about 15) I was flying a Cessna 140 just SE of Denver. I was at 700 feet AGL, when I passed about 25 feet above an RC Plane. Scared the wee out of me. It was going the opposit dirrection from me and was probably hidden by the nose of the plane. At first I thought it was a real plane and was scared because it had gotten so close to with out me having seen it. Then I realized it was too small. I turned back and saw an RC airport (East of Aurora on Quincy). BTW I am not complaining it was a one in a billion chance and the RC pilot probably didn't see me either untill I was there.

JakeInHartsel

BigSkyRCFlyer

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JakeInHartsel , sounds like a heart stopper! LOL [X(]

We fly at the local airport here, safe distance from the FBO, and flight line. The airport grounds are located on an Old B-17 Base from the 40's, so there is a lot of old taxi/run ways to use. We always yield and give right away to Full Scale, but at times with a lot of traffic we have to fly in or around their path to land, but we try to keep it in close. Most of the RC people here are also Full Scale Pilots, so we watch out for each other. No Close Calls Yet......Knock on Wood. We all try to be safe and have fun.

ballgunner

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I can say that I never put a scratch on a full scale airplane while I was pilot in command. The same is not true when flying with someone else. WWII did have special risks so I don't count that. I've been in aicraft when the pilot taxied into lamposts and other inanimate objects including other aircraft. One roll over on a landing that should have been aborted. Still more or less in one piece. Worst accidents seem to be getting my fingers in an RC prop.

Cactus.

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there seam to be some pilots here that after all these years with loads of people standing in a field and with moving things all over the sky have no idea that we're here. our field in in a bit of a gap between too headlands, and it's beyond me why they don't just straightline between the two.
the banner tower is one day gonna end up a target, we dont need his "swim between the flags" warning

Our visiting Microlight has seen Magnums climb above him but not close, he knows he only has to wait a couple of mins before he can land with those yellow ones up.

tho some hang gliders didn't wait the other week when the just decided to take off coming straight at the patch while 3 of us were hanging and flying over and and a couple above that, no beeping of horns like normal to ask us to land.

BasinBum

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You should check out the Sepulvada Basin thread in this forum. We have an ongoing problem with full scale and there is a discussion involving it about page #11 or 12. A recent highlight is one guy supposedly flying at a helicopter repeatedly. Rumor has it the FAA is looking to talk to him but we havn't seen him recently.

The Van Nuys Airport Police stop by on occasion especially when someone gets up high and hits the smoke with fullscale in the area. We have a lot of turbines and some giant scale but we can't host an IMAC event because of the ceiling restrictions.

Last summer I saw a single engine plane try to land on our runway. Once he saw the people standing on the flightline he veered off into the brush. Some damage to the front of his plane.

You guys really ought to visit us sometime, never a dull moment.

rusgmil

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This picture was taken at an airshow at Valparasio, Indiana about 8-9 years ago. The local RC club (Sundowners) was giving a flight demo. They were told to land the RC planes because an F-15 was inbound for a low level pass (400 kts). Everyone landed except this guy with his 1/4 scale Cap. He just kept flying in circles! It was close. Needless to say that Air Force pilot was p---ed off. And of course the club was never invited back.

DBCherry

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rusgmil,
If the story was as simple and his actions were as blatant as your post made them seem, I sure hope your club reprimanded that clown somehow. I would have recommended, and am guessing he would have been kicked out of our club. [sm=punching.gif]
Dennis-

Goinstraightup

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A few years back a C180 buzzed our field at 50 feet AGL. I had a student on the box and had no idea the C180 was going to do that. Fortunately, I was off to the side. I found out later that the pilot used to fly out of our RC field when it was a little airport - only a couple of planes used it. Really scared the tar out of me. It's funny how fast it happens. I saw him flying around pretty far away, then all of a sudden he's at the end of our field at 50 feet. Happens very fast.

Jeff

BigSkyRCFlyer

My Feedback: (36)

Boy, that was really stupid on that guy's part. That really gives RC people a bad name! Would not have been good for that cap to get sucked into the air-intake, or hit the 15. Did the guy get kicked or action taken? Hope so.

Cactus.

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what a T**T! Fullsize planes cme in at the Woodsprings show, i'd imagine if one guy refuesd to land his transmitter wiuld either be taken and it landed for him, or he fored down in some other fassion. but then again, that wouldn't happen.
if he had some reason he couldn't land then fly very very low until you hit the floor lol
i can't image anyone would put his flying and plane above someone IN a plane, any plane, if the worst had happened at least that guy could get out.
how can this guy have friends, jackass

ballgunner

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Most of the RC fields I have visited that have well defined runways have painted a large X on each end of the runway. I believe this is required for runways that are no longer active or are closed for whatever reason. FAA requirement. There are Parasailers that use one of our runways without asking. Someday one will be hit or scuttled in midair. So far no problems but you can imagine some sharks (attorneys) chuckling and rubbing their hands with glee If this is ever brought to their attention.

Grampaw

Flying an aircraft ain't always a picnic, as Jake pointed out in his post about an R/C airplane narrowly missing them, which is almost the same as one afternoon about 10 miles from home in a 180 when a large circling buzzard flew just under our nose section! I never saw him either until we counted his tail feathers as he went under us! It was a quiet ride the rest of the way home. Then there were two friends of mine, the first an Ultralight pilot who took off from his strip heading to a friend's place. Passing over some trees he turned left and noticed two or three guys pointing guns up at him! He made a hard left turn, skimmed the tree tops and got out of there fast. Were they going to shoot? Who knows? The other friend, an Ag pilot landed to reload and noticed a hole in the sun panel of his canopy. He noticed another hole in the floor! Checking the plane's belly they found another hole, directly in line with the one in the floor and the one in the canopy panel. It was made by a rifle bullet that entered the plane underneath and went on up through the floor between his legs and out the overhead panel! This guy was a decorated high time former WWII Air Force combat pilot. He was neverless fairly well shook up. And someone said flying is safe.....

ballgunner

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While I was still on the crash crew at a large airport the Goodyear blimp set up its mast next door. We got to know the crew and ground handlers quite well. This was West Coast and they took the blimp back to akron for the winter every year. One day in passing the pilot mentioned that they had to patch numerous holes every year. He said they were easy to find. They just climbed up in the balonet and looked for places that the light shined through. I'm not in favor of gun control just control of the dimwits that mishandle them. Firing at aircraft is a Federal Offense if you can just catch the meatheads that do it.

BigSkyRCFlyer

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I can't believe people, shooting at an aircraft!! That is really stupid! I think anyone caught doing that should serve some time, no questions asked. I mean what excuse would you have? " One of the first rules you learn with a gun is never point and fire in the air! Growing up in Montana and being around guns my whole life, there is just no excuse, Period!

JakeInHartsel

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It is the same mentalitity that people have when they drive down the road shooting at signs. They have no way of knowing if some one is in the trees on the other side of the sign. I used to have a Mooney Mite that I bought from a broker, so I never met the prior owner, but it had a bullet hole up through the floorboards. I often wondered how it got there.

H. Wayne S

My Feedback: (18)

Full scales, heck we chase them out of our airspace. (yea, right)
Were in the landing pattern of our local airport, and eventhough were a good 2 miles from it, we have full scales over us a lot, some at less than 200 feet. .... When one is spotted coming toward us, we try to sound the verbal alarm and go LOW or land. I have seen some of our members chase and catch large birds, the damage to the bird and plane was nothing compaired to the shower of parts from a full scale and a 40%er. During our "Fun Fly" we even had full scale piolots get mad at the air controller for not warning them of traffic in the area.

bipeaddict

We had two military choppers come over our field at 500 feet or less last Saturday. There were six RC aircraft in the air. I tried to wave them off but they just ignored me. Do ya think the pilot might be a little irrated if someone put an RC aircraft through the windscreen of their blackhawk?

Cactus.

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i think he would be if it got through seeing as it's rated to withstand that kind of impact force.
i don't think they would have paid much attention to some guy waving at them.
some helis here tho do change course slightly just to go around the edge of our field as they fly over.

trailingedge

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We have C130's flying around here kinda often. A few weeks ago one passed while I was flying and I think they got a kick out of watching the plane as they turned and circled the field for the rest of my flight. After I landed, they continued on their way. Yes they were at a safe distance the whole time of course.

Luke 3D returns

I have just missed a buzzard too on a landing approach going into RAF Benson, we just flew right past it whilst it was themalling.
One of the things that shows you how fast you are going!

Unstable

we have some full scale guys overfly us ever once and a while... once a bipe flew over and gave us a wing wave... and another time a blimb altered course and went around our air space.

Cactus.

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found a couple of pics of our visitors
first a plane that circled our field one afternoon.
second a film crew for the Thunderbirds film were using the cliffs and raod at the end of our field. we were asked if we could not fly those two weekdays because of the heli and we got £100 for our troubles

vinnie

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Okay guys I've been following this thread for a while now and feel compelled to add a word of caution.
One of the quickest way to lose your flying site is to have a Full-Scaler file a complaint that a model somehow interfered with his flight or caused some "distraction." You do NOT want the FAA on your back. Trust me. []