Focus on Competition
Technically Speaking ...
Greg Hahn Technical Director [email protected]
Traveling across the country or internationally with your models is not nearly as time-consuming or trying on the nerves as traveling with kids, pets, or extended families. But models can pose their own set of problems and often leave you scratching your head wondering why and what for.
I know we all get tired of hearing this, but since 9/11 and the creation of the Homeland Security Administration, anything that contains circuit boards, wires, antennas, and switches and doesn’t look like a laptop or cell phone is going to get the security folks wound up. I know it sounds crazy, but it’s the price we pay to be protected.
The best way to combat this situation is to be as up-front as you can and ship as much as possible well ahead of time. The following items can be crated and shipped either by air or ground before your arrival:
- Airplanes
- Helicopters
- Radios
- Support equipment
- Spare parts
That way, all the security checks are done behind the scenes and not while you’re waiting in a long line at the airport. Under most circumstances, your model stuff will be there waiting for you when you arrive so you can get right to playtime.
If you fly with gas or glow engines, you’ll need to consider fuel. Fuel is not easily or cheaply shipped in this country, or any other for that matter, so to eliminate those headaches you should consider buying fuel where you fly and either use it all or leave it there.
As an example, this past year most of the helicopter World Champs contestants used fuel supplied by U.S. manufacturers instead of shipping their own fuel from home. We did have a couple of teams that tried to ship fuel from home and, as you can imagine, the timing was off, and so was the price.
If you fly using electric power, the batteries can be just as big of a problem as liquid fuel, if not more. Under normal conditions, Li-Poly batteries are not allowed to be unattended in the cargo hold of aircraft, cargo or passenger. Only under special circumstances and by specially licensed handlers can these batteries be shipped by air or sea as unattended cargo.
If you plan to travel with your Li-Poly batteries, they must essentially become your pet and stay with you at all times. In other words, you can carry the batteries on the airplane with you but they cannot be in checked baggage.
As I said earlier, be as up-front and open as possible. You’ll need to pull the batteries out of your briefcase and let the security folks look them over when going through the line; you’ll get through much quicker. Trust me, a Li-Poly battery under X-ray looks like a problem!
Returning from Japan, I once tried to get a new O.S. .46 glow engine through customs in Detroit. I was tired, wanted to get home, and forgot to take it out of my briefcase, and under X-ray an O.S. .46 can sure look like a gun! It made for quite an interesting afternoon, trying to show you couldn’t get a bullet to fire out of a .46 glow engine.
Travel safely and have fun. MA
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
