Matt Kirsch
Posts: 7039
Joined: 7/5/2002
From: Rochester, NY, USA
Status: offline
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Kalvin,
You have to remember that clubs are run by VOLUNTEERS. They have lives outside of flying, and want to do some flying themselves. They're not obligated to keep the website up to date. Also remember that most of these guys were born before computers, and to them, email is a secondary means of communication. Heck, for some of 'em, TELEPHONES are a secondary means of communication  The only reliable way to get their attention is to meet them in person.
Don't discount the club until you've met the people. Remember, these people are VOLUNTEERING their time to help you out. They are not obligated to help you in any way, so you have to work with them on their terms. They may not have free time when you have free time. They may have other more important obligations to attend to. They may already have more students than they can handle.
That said, if you don't like the club, don't join. Nobody's forcing you.
Now, as far as their "requirement" of a .40-size glow trainer goes, there are a few practical reasons for that:
1. The club instructors are intimately familiar with the standard .40-size glow trainer. It's been around for years, and is a well-proven means of learning basic-to-intermediate flying. They know where it should balance. They know how it should be rigged. They know how the engine works, and many of them can tune it in their sleep.
Long story short, you have the best chance of success using the equipment the instructor is most familiar with. In all the time I've been training students, I have not seen one airplane lost on the first flight. The engine may quit because it's still new and needs to be broken in more, but the plane is ALWAYS stable and controllable right from the get-go, because we know how to set these planes up.
2. Most club instructors are not familiar with electric airplanes. Sure, they can tell if the plane is airworthy, check the balance, etc.. Sure, they probably have the skills to fly it, too. The problem arises with the power system. Gee, the plane doesn't seem to have enough power to fly... Most instructors wouldn't have the foggiest idea what to do about it. If it was a glow engine, they could tweak the needle valves to get the engine running properly. Here, they're left scratching their heads, and the student goes home disappointed and clueless, with an unflyable plane.
An instructor is only as good as his knowledge. If he's as clueless about your airplane as you are, what's the point?
3. There are no good electric trainers. It's a proven fact that many pilots who have "mastered" their GWS Tiger Moths and Slow Sticks lack the skills necessary to fly anything more advanced. Go to http://www.ezonemag.com and look up all the trouble with the GWS Zero and P-51. The plane's design is not the issue in most cases, the pilot skill is. I personally know people who only fly slow fliers. The one time one of these guys got ahold of a glow trainer, he flew it knife-edge through the pits, almost re-kitting ME, because he couldn't handle it.
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