With the rainy season decidedly upon us, it would seem logical that our attention should be turned away from flying. But for some hardcore R/C pilots the rainy weather is just not a deterrent. Decked out in warm clothing and a good pair of rubber boots these pilots have been slogging on to the field and launching everything from GWS Tiger Moths to 3+ meter electric sailplanes. Like addicts with a serious jonesin’, these pilots have just got to get their fix and a little water on the field is not going to stop them.
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If this sounds like you, I have good news. There is another way to satisfy that need to fly without having to dawn a rubber poncho and waders. Recently, I visited Rancho Milpitas Middle School where Mr. Alan Harwood has invited members of the Bay Area MicroFlyers to join him in flying inside the school’s gym. The Bay Area MicroFlyers carry an AMA Charter and look to Kasra Naghshineh for their leadership.
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Fixed wing and rotorcraft pilots, it seemed, shared this indoor arena, equally. With frequency control in effect and time slots allotted for flying planes and helicopters at different times, the flying was relaxed and courteous. Besides flying, there was a lot of socializing and information exchange taking place. Indoor flying is relatively new and the technology that makes it all possible is very exciting.
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Dynamics Unlimited, a US company, would appear to be at the forefront of this technology. Their RFFS-100 micro receiver is a 72mhz FM receiver, a 1.5 amp ESC, with two amplified magnetic actuator driver outputs on a single board that weighs about 2 grams. These tiny components allow for radio controlled airplanes that fit in the palm of your hand and actually fly! Equipped with this hardware, free flight models can be converted to radio control and flown indoors. There is also an emerging ARF market designed specifically around this new indoor technology. Mark Kummerow’s Widget, which borrows heavily from the Wingo design, is an ARF that only weighs .8 ounces empty. While the Widget is large enough to allow for standard micro gear it seems that it would be well suited for the RFFS-100 system.
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There were, of course, planes and helicopters that flew with standard micro gear. Mini-IFO’s and T3D’s were seen flying well within the confines of the gym. The helicopters hovering and flying about were mostly of the Piccolo and Hornet variety. I did see someone with a Hobby Lobby Rare Bear, but it did not attempt flight due to some unknown technical difficulties.
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For more information about the Bay Area MicroFlyers and indoor flying you can contact Kasra Naghshineh on the Bay Area R/C Community Forums. Kasra is the moderator of the Indoor Flying Forum.
More information on the products mentioned in this article can be found using the following links:
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