File: 01malinchak.ht1.doc
[Headline: Winding down from NEAT]
As I write this month’s column, I am still winding down from the great time that my wife, Cindy, and I had at the 15th annual Northeast Electric Aircraft Technology (NEAT) Fair. Event director Tom Hunt and his crew do a wonderful job each year of organizing and running this large, all-electric RC event.
The gathering is held at the beautiful Peaceful Valley Campsite facility, near Downsville, New York. The flying field is huge and features separate areas for larger airplanes, helicopters, and park flyers. It is also surrounded by an amazing mountain landscape!
My friends and I get up early and fly outdoors most of the day, then we move to our indoor event, which is held at the Downsville Central school gymnasium. It is a 10-minute drive from the campground.
Indoor Night at NEAT
Cindy and I again were the event directors for the Indoor Night that took place September 12-13, 2014. Thanks to great support from the Downsville Central School, we had two days of flying—Friday from 6 to 10 p.m. and Saturday from 2 to 10 p.m. Friday is usually more of a fun, laid-back practice day during which everyone tests and fine-tunes his or her models.
Most of Saturday is fun, open flying, but we have a one-hour demonstration for those interested in flying their latest creations for the public.
We had some beautiful models flying this year and flight performances by some of the top micro-aircraft modelers.
Adam Woodworth always brings some impressive models, and this year was no exception. His Virgin Galactic WhiteKnightTwo was beautifully built and featured a droppable RC SpaceShipTwo. Adam flew the White Knight Two and his father, Lee Woodworth, piloted the SpaceShipTwo after it was released in flight!
Adam then flew his vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) Vapor. He used two receivers in the model—one for the quad system he installed for vertical flight and another for forward flight—all bound to the same transmitter. The model took off, hovered, flew around the gym then returned to a hover right in front of him!
Adam also had some new Cartoon Scale models with him. His Cartoon Scale F-117 looked and flew great and could even perform basic acrobatic maneuvers. I was impressed by his Cartoon Scale Blue Angels F-4 model. It featured four Cartoon Scale Blue Angel F-4s connected in a diamond formation. Adam also had two other F-4s that were flown separately to complete the configuration!
Jin Choe, who is an accomplished micro RC builder and designer, flew several models from his company’s growing line of beautiful micro RC scale kits. The Jing Models are all great-flying airplanes. His new 1/35-scale Horten VII flying wing was neat! He also had a 12-inch wingspan pre-World War I Burgess-Dunne flying wing biplane that flew slowly and gracefully. See Jin’s website in “Sources” for more information on his kits.
Paul Stamison flew a model of a Pterodactyl that featured a colorful paint scheme.
Mike Cross, who is a master at building and flying micro RC jets, brought several new profile jets to the event. His P-80 Shooting Star had good performance and flew beautifully in the small gym. Seeing his F9F Panthers fly was a highlight for me. The aircraft use 30mm EDFs with coreless brushed motors. He even flew one with retracts!
Pete Foss flew several models from the beautiful Stevens AeroModel line of micro RC laser-cut kits. His 1911 Caudron racer flew well and looked great!
He also brought the Stevens AeroModel SweetDream, which is a rendition of the 103-legal [Federal Aircraft Regulations, Part 103] Dream Classic ultralight. He built the aircraft as part the company’s Micro Builder Program. Members who join receive a new kit to build every quarter at a discounted rate. See the Stevens AeroModel website for more information.
Awards
Bob Selman Designs (BSD) sponsored two awards: the Best Micro Aircraft and the Best Cartoon Scale. Pilots voted on the Best Micro Aircraft award and chose Adam and his VTOL Vapor. He also captured the Best Cartoon Scale award with his Cartoon Scale Blue Angels F-4s. Congratulations, Adam. Keep inspiring us with your designs!
NEAT Fair Video
If you would like to see some of the indoor NEAT Fair event action, SKS Video Productions filmed many of the highlights. Scott Stauffer does an amazing job of filming the NEAT Fair and our indoor event. You can see videos of all of the models that I mentioned in this column, plus many more, by visiting the SKS Video Productions website, listed in “Sources.”
Thank You
Cindy and I would like to thank everyone who helped make Indoor Night at the 2014 NEAT Fair a great success! We would also like to thank all of our wonderful event sponsors:
• The Downsville Central School for doing a wonderful job of helping set up for the event by providing tables, chairs, and a microphone.
• Bob Selman and Gary Jones for creating some beautiful awards.
• The Bergen County Silent Fliers for helping with our event insurance coverage.
The 2015 NEAT Fair will be held September 18-20.[dingbat]
SOURCES:
NEAT Fair
www.neatfair.org
Jing Models
[email protected]
www.jingmodels.com
Stevens AeroModel
(719) 387-4187
www.stevensaero.com
BSD Micro RC, LLC
(417) 358-9521
www.bsdmicrorc.com
SKS Video Productions
(800) 988-6488
www.sksvideo.com
