I'm new to combat and was curious if anyone has ever been hit in the head or seen anyone hit in the head by a combat plane. I know the rules say you must where a hardhat. Is a combat flightline really any more dangerous than any other flightline? I know that midairs occur often, but how often do planes come down on the pilot stations?

Marty

Without a long explination, I can tell you that the combat pilot's stations and flightline at a combat meet are far far safer than on a Sunday afternoon sport flying day. Yes incidences do happen, but butt pucker occurences on Sport flying afternoons outnumber them 10 to 1. Comabt is the most exciting and intense form of R/C flying that exists, but it is also the most safety consious group of pilots, and the RCCA has gone to great lengths to assure that it is the safest form of R/C flying that exists. The combat arena layout, engagment set back and hardhats are part of that

Thanks Tatoo, but thats kinda why I'm asking the question. If the flightline is safer than your average sunday afternoon sport flying, why bother with them. How are they adding to the safety of the sport? Has it reduced the number of head wounds recieved during combat? Was there an incident or incidents that initiated this rule?

I'm all for doing what we can for safety but it seems all too often we focus on the things that seem obvious and really don't do anything. I see the same thing every month when I sit in on my companies safety committee meetings.

I know this rule isn't going to go away. It's just one of those things I don't see much sense for and had to ask "WHY?".

Thanks again,
Marty

Truthfully, I don't know when hard hats were introduced into the national combat rules. I have never heard of an incident which mandated it. I started doing national combat meets (after years of club meets) and joined the RCCA in 1999, and the hart hats were already part of the rules. I personally think it is a carryover from Pylon. I don't mind the rule at all, and the helmets have become something to have fun with, as many have painted logos, personal touches etc...and we have also used them to tape our matrix print-outs to...it's a perfect place! Some guys even go to a army surplus store and get real authintic lids

I guess you could put this issue into the same catagory as to why I have a .38 in my night stand. I would rather have it and never need it....than ever need it and not have it.

I've wondered the same thing about both combat and pylon. Espeically since the helmets seen most often don't offer much in the way of protection from the sides. Also, if you move quickly to dodge incoming aircraft, I'd think it would fall off.

Still, I wear my helmet, and don't see a reason not to wear it. Who knows, maybe some day it might just make a difference.

Oh, and as for how safe combat is compared to the average Sunday at the field, I've been thinking about maybe taking my helmet with me when sport flying.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

D (with the short answer )

I remember when helmets became manditory in pylon racing, nobody could believe it. This little plastic helmet is going to deflect the blow of a 160 mph racer.... don't think so. But we also had fun with it, painting them up and stickering them. We'll know it's gone too far when we have to put on parachutes

Dan

Sure the plastic hard hat will help, but a plane can do one heck of a lot of damage to a guy (one of my friends was killed recently). The best protection is simply sober caution and having folks ready to scream if anything is wrong.

Think of the hard hat as a reminder of that sober caution whenever you put it on and I think it will have served it's purpose.