District X — Arizona, California, Guam, Hawaii, Nevada, Utah
Contact
- Lawrence Tougas, Vice President
- Email: [email protected]
- Address: 1827 Santa Monica St., Fairfield, CA 94533
- Tel.: (707) 480-2053
- Website: www.ama10.org
We have some great advantages living here in District X. For the most part, we enjoy year-round flying weather. The AMA Expo is in our own backyard, and I think we have some of the best modeling and modelers in the nation.
One of our advantages comes with a serious challenge. Our good weather typically leaves us with a long stretch (late spring to early fall) without rain. Consequently, the areas surrounding our flying sites can become dry and present a high fire danger. This, along with the proliferation of LiPo-powered models, can be problematic. Whether through human error or equipment failure, crashes occur, and when a LiPo-powered model crashes, the battery may ignite.
I have witnessed what can happen. An accomplished pilot with top-of-the-line equipment lost control of his model and the post-crash fire started and spread so quickly it was sobering. The fire went from a spot to a 50-foot circle in about a minute. Long before we could reach the crash site, the fire had grown to the point that we called 911.
Luckily in this case only dried grass was burned, but two weeks later another fire caused nearly $800,000 in property damage. Currently here in California there is a fine club fighting to regain access to its site, which was closed because of a fire. We need to step up to address this issue.
What lessons can be taken away from these events? Assess the models flying at your field to make sure they are following the best modeling practices and adhering to the AMA Safety Code.
To reduce the amount of fuel a fire could consume:
- Clear brush and grass around the field.
- Cut fire breaks or consider a controlled burn where appropriate.
- Invest in commercial, high-capacity fire extinguishers and have a means of delivering them to the site of a crash.
- Conduct fire drills to practice your response.
- Post the local fire agency’s number at your field and provide a clear, accurate description of where you are located if in a rural area.
- Consider limiting flying during the highest fire-risk times (red-flag days).
We all work hard to enjoy our sport. Let’s work just as hard to keep others from limiting our access to flying sites.
The following summary and photos were provided by Bob Estrella of the Gilman Springs RC Flyers.
Event: Sparks Over Gilman Springs (All-Electric)
- Host: Gilman Springs RC Flyers
- Location: Field in Moreno Valley, California
- Date: June 9, 2012
The weather was perfect and there was a great turnout of pilots, airplanes, and spectators. There were 22 pilots and 58 models participating from:
- Gilman Springs RC Flyers — 11 pilots
- Coachella Valley RC Club — 6 pilots
- Riverside RC Club — 3 pilots
- Hemet Model Masters — 2 pilots
Additional photos can be found on our District X website at www.ama10.org. I’d love to include your event in our column and/or website, so please send me pictures and a write-up and you could find it here before you know it.
Until next month, may you have nothing but happy landings.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
