I JUST WANT TO KNOW HOW I CAN GET STARTED. THIS SEEMS REALLY INTERESTING SO I WOULD NEED ALOT OF HELP GETTING INTO THIS! SO, IF ANYONE CAN HELP PLEASE REPLY I'M INTERESTED IN A GAS BEGINNER PLANE!

Hi, welcome to RCU. Great place with a lot of good info.

First thing? Find a local club. You can go to the AMA's website and their "Club Locater" page, and find a couple of clubs within driving distance.

Go to the club and check out what's going on. You'll want an instructor to help you learn how to fly; it's much more difficult than it looks, and almost every club has instructors.

Quite often the club will also have a trainer type airplane and will be willing to take you up for a flight to give you an idea of what it's like before you go buy something.

A full "glow" powered (not actually "gas")airplane, with engine, radio equipment and all the stuff necessary to get it flying, is going to set you back between $400 and $500 if you buy all new stuff. Just thought you should be prepared for that.

Now, that local club may be able to set you up with decent used equipment for much less money, so it's worth checking out.

Anyway, good luck and welcome.
Dennis-

You might consider getting a simulator for your computer. FMS is a free download. The only link I know of is off the GWS site at www.gws.com.tw but I'm sure there is a direct link somewhere else. I believe you can use a gamepad. It's not exactly like flying, but you'll get a feel for it.

Find a club in your area and hang out for a while. They may have a club trainer that they may be willing to let try it out with someone of experience next to you.

Lastly, consider how much money you're willing to spend. How much to get the basics is one thing, but how much you'll need to support your habit is another! Once you've done that, start looking at used equipment, ARF's, kits, and the other equipment you'll need that fits your budget.

Ask a lot of questions!

ama? what is the link to the site?

There is a beginner's guide on my web page. Take a look at it and it will answer a lot of your questions and many questions that you do not know to ask.

http://www.modelaircraft.org/

Indeed spend some time with a local club. Most have a trainer program. Get involved as a "student" for a cpl or 3 Buddy Box intro flights. That will tell you if this is really for you. Sorta a try it before you buy it thing. If your still up for it, join AMA and the local club of your choice. Get acquainted with an instructor pilot in your club and ask him to help you get better. Most are glad to help. At this time you can start investing. Plane: SIG Mfg Kadet 40 LT, Kit not ARF. Reason? There comes a time in every pilots career, when physics catches up to us. Its easier to repair a plane if you know how you put it together. Then theres a Radio. There are quite a few extras floating around my clubs members, you may find a good deal within your club, or here in the market. Around the time you finish building your plane, you should be almost ready to solo. In our club, when you can demonstrate proper startup(safe), take off, pattern, stall recovery, and landing; your considered soloed. That would be a great time to bring your finished plane out and have an instructor give it the once over and help set it up for flight. You may even have them maiden fly it, although at this point, you could probably take the sticks after its trimmed out in the air. After that its up to you,,,,,,,,either way,,,,,,its a blast,,,,,enjoy, and welcome! oh, and dont be afraid to ask anything,,,,,,

Where in AR are you from? I fly in Bella Vista.

i live in helena, ar!