RE: RE: Simple training quaifications
After reading all of these posts, I'm with post #44. I also agree with DON'T BE STUPID or DON'T DO SOMETHING STUPID. I would say that 95% of all clubs consist of people age 18 and older. Although 18 is still young, it is still old enough to know what's safe and what isn't. But, when a person is new to the hobby, and they've never flown, or attempted to fly a R/C plane, they NEED TO BE TOLD the do's and dont's regardless of age. Some people simply don't have the common sense to know what's safe and what isn't. So, tell them whether you think they already know it or not. There's nothing wrong with having an actual checklist. My club has been talking about getting one for the past two or three years, but we have yet to make one. Needless to say, we still successfully train folks without a checklist, and we train them to be safe. I'm not saying that these people we train don't crash airplanes, but when they do, 99% of the time it's out of harms way and it's because of dumb thumbs. It happens to the best of us!
Just a few thing to tell a newbie:
1)If you don't know for sure, ASK.
2)If it doesn't sound or look safe, it probably isn't, so don't do it.
3)Until you've soloed successfully under the supervison of an instructor, don't attempt to fly the plane alone, you could kill somone or yourself.
4)Once you've learned to fly, always treat the plane and other club members, and their planes,with respect.
5)If you see someone being unsafe, tell a club officer.
6)The most important thing to remember is SAFETY. Planes are replaceable. People and their limbs aren't!
Teaching people to fly doesn't require a checklist, it only requires a few verbal commands by the instructor, and the witness of two officers during the final solos.
Just my two cents,
John