Underaged Pilot

My Feedback: (1)

Hey all,

I was just thinking of some good moments flying

My best memory of flying is when I was flying my trainer on a fun, relaxing flight. I was doing some low passes and my good friend Rob said your a little to far out. and I said no I'm close enough, you see, we have power lines just about 200 feet away from our runway. anyways a few seconds later as I was flying past that tower the plane dissapears behind it. Then I am scared as this has never happened before. Then I turn right for my final for some reason instead of pulling up and somehow pass in between the wires with pure luck. good times

Grampaw

I just Logged on and saw your post on "Best Memories." My mind immediately went back a few years back when I "flew with the birds!" I was out at our strip late one afternoon flying a high wing 05 Electric powered Astro Flight model I can't remember the name of. I was just about at the end of a 360 degree turn about a 100 feet over the runway when my daughter, sitting on top of my Pickup yelled out "Dad, don't hit the birds!" Coming out of that turn I was heading up behind a loose flock of Egrets. (Down here we call them "Cowbirds," as they frequent pastures to follow cows and horses grabbing bugs they stir up out of the grass while grazing.) They also love tractors. If I was cutting hay, a bunch would gather, orbit the tractor and land just ahead of me to walk around grabbing bugs. They had no fear of the machine and it's noise, and I enjoyed watching them circle me really tight while making some of the most graceful landings I have ever seen. I felt like a moving Pylon!

Every afternoon about 5 PM they fly back to their roosting area. These birds gathered in a small swamp about a quarter mile from my farm and our strip so they'd cross our strip each day. They were crossing over as my plane came in behind them. When I saw them I dropped the plane's nose and went under and pulled away to the left. The Cowbirds scattered but quickly reformed, and one Gray bird dropped back and turned to follow my plane. My plane was a dull silver color like he was, so he must have though my plane was another grey male, looking his females over so he had to check it out. I held the model in a slow turn and he stayed off my right wingtip looking sideways to his left checking my plane out. As we came around to the original point where we all met up, he must have decided my plane was no threat, and he rolled to the right, pumping his wings in a climb to catch up with the "girls." My Electric plane made little noise, so he must have figured it was another Cowbird. As I watched them disappear in the distance I was thinking "That was the best flight I ever had. And I had a witness, my daughter. She wasn't interested in the old man's hobby, but she thought that was the "coolest thing she ever saw!" Me too.

Live Wire

Flying in a snow storm and lost it, all I could do was hear the sound then it stopped [] That foamy back when I was messing around I went through a barbed wire fence and came out looking like pop corn
O yes I was not the only one flying that day What fun
Dec. 1976

FLYBOY

My Feedback: (11)

I once flew in fog. We were all at the field, and there was a little hole over the runway. Took off and flew and looped in and out the fog. It was clear as a bell in the hole but the plane disapeared fast in the loop. I did one stall turn in it but that scared me a bit. My friends thought I was nuts. Mostly did tight turns over the runway. It rocked. 20 minutes later it was clear as a bell.

TakingFlight96

This really wasn't a memory about flying but, the day I knew I wanted to fly RC airplanes. It was July, 21st I think. My mom was working and my dad was stuck home with me and my sister. My dad belonged to the club at the time, and thought we'd might enjoy going to the club fun fly. So, we got there, their were friends and family of the pilots in lawn chairs watching. I sat down at a table under the shelter and watched as plane after plane started up, took off, and landed. Their was burgers, hot dogs, and soda. I got up to get a burger and sat back down somewhere else. I didn't know any people in the club except for my dad and a friend of his. Already, I had ideas in my head. Well, what happened not to soon after would make you think I would get the ideas out of my head, my dad crashed. Let's just say he didn't grab his frequency pin and took off. Apparently, their was someone else was on the same frequency and was waiting to fly. So, the guy turned on his radio and down the plane went. We got the pieces picked up and headed for home. On the way home the ideas really started coming to me. So, thats what got me here today. A Hobbico Nexstar trainer, a great club to belong to, countless hours on the simulator, training in the spring to look forward to, and a great dad to help and support me in the wonderful, addictive hobby that is RC flying.


-- TakingFlight96

SDCrashmaster

TakingFlight96,
I enjoyed your story. And it is great to read about a kid who appreciates his dad for the time he spends with you.
Good luck in your RC endeavors.
SDC

TakingFlight96

SDCrashmaster,

It's very hard not to appreciate all he's done for me. He's helped me with my Hobbico Nexstar ARF putting it together, he's helped me improve on the simulator, and countless other things. And another thing is all the bonding we do together. We go up to Oshkosh, WI for "good ole' days" at the EAA museum every year (which has plenty antique and historical planes, I've always loved warbirds from the beginning of my intrest in RC planes), we are planning to buy a Spacewalker kit, for my 3rd plane as a father - daughter project & work on it together, we watch DVD's (Warbirds over the Rockies, Top Gun, etc.) together. And due to my mom and my sister not knowing anything about airplanes me and my dad kinda speak the same language and I can go to him with questions or whatever. I'm glad you enjoyed it.


-- TakingFlight96

Underaged Pilot

My Feedback: (1)

I wish my dad had an intrest in RC, would help me get past the hard times when I'm stuck, skill wise and money wise

weathervane

My best memorie of the past year was seeing my Four Star Forty take flight. I built the kit and made it an electric. A friend had the honor of giving it the maiden flight. It was so cool to see it jump off the ground.

-Andrew

AJF--2

My Feedback: (119)

I have yet to beat the thrill of first learning to fly. I would pack up early Saturday morning and spend the whole day at the field just talking, "learning how to fly" and then try to get home before dark so you can get the grill going before the wife gets mad. And if you were going home without thinking about expoxy or CA and covering, it was a great day. Kind of hard to explain how you can get bigger thrills with a PT40, OS 40 and Conquest AM 4 channel, than you can a 35% gasser with a computer radio (that I still don't fully understand how to program), but it is true.