A Free Flight theme this month
During the last few years, I have had the opportunity to interview several people behind many of the companies that support our hobby as part of the “About Us” feature. I interviewed Fai Chan from Airborne Models for this issue and a comment he made, as have others who design model aircraft, stuck with me. That comment is that although we are lucky to be working in a hobby we love, it also comes with a degree of pressure to be successful.
In the case of a model aircraft designer, that means creating a model that can be mass produced, will fly well, and most importantly, sell well. In my position, I have that same level of pressure when putting together an issue of Model Aviation. It is my goal each month to have Model Aviation satisfy the needs and interests of the majority of the membership.
We have received much positive feedback from our readers on the redesign, the addition of the “I Am the AMA” feature, and on our float-fly–themed May issue.
This month's theme: Free Flight
This month I am bringing you another issue with focused content: Free Flight. I pondered this idea for a little while, because the largest interest of our readership is RC. Would the readers appreciate an issue dedicated to our roots and beginnings in flight?
I found my answer this year at the AMA Expo at the Ontario Convention Center in Ontario, California, in a ballroom dedicated to Free Flight.
At the AMA Expo
Model Aviation’s “Safety Comes First” columnist, Dave Gee, and several others spent the weekend demonstrating their models and helping kids of all ages learn to trim and fly their own aircraft. AMA’s Ambassador, Hoot Gibson, even got in on the action, flying a rubber-band-powered Space Shuttle.
The ballroom was a flurry of activity during the weekend, with people wanting to get in on all the fun of building and flying their own creations. They found the balance that Free Flight modeling provides: aerodynamics, science, and in some cases art, for those who chose to color their models.
Why Free Flight matters
Even if you don’t participate in Free Flight, there’s something to be learned from those who do. The skills to build and trim a model airplane that can fly free of any control from the ground can benefit other aspects of aeromodeling.
Tell us what you want
If you enjoy issues of Model Aviation based around a common theme, such as past issues on:
- World War I
- helicopters
- floatplanes
let me know what interests you would like us to cover.
That’s all for this month. I hope you have a great summer filled with flying!
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
