Radio Control Scale Aerobatics - 2009/08

THROUGH THE YEARS, I have been asked
many questions that pertain to competition
Aerobatics. I have written about many Aresti
maneuvers in this column, the most recent
being the spin, but I have yet to discuss another
aspect of competition that is extremely
important.
This month, I will cover how to improve
your flying at the competitive level by
examining the proper airframe, the needed
flight skills, and the flight coach’s
responsibilities. Those are the three main
criteria for improving your flight skills in the
Aerobatics arena.
Without further hesitation, let’s begin!
The Proper Airframe: Finding the right
model to cater to your needs as a pilot takes a
great amount of time. It is difficult to find the
perfect airframe, because each airplane might
have a tendency that the pilot does desire.
However, some “undesired” tendencies can be
avoided.
Let’s say we have a giant-scale aerobatic
aircraft and we can’t get it to roll in an axial
manner. Having a model with this
characteristic is a major setback for the
aspiring competition Aerobatics pilot, and the
problem must be fixed.
If you have used aileron differential, make
sure that the aileron had the same amount of up
travel as it did down travel before differential
wcomposite “top-hinged” wing, it will be
necessary to have less up travel than down
travel; in a “center-hinged” model, it will be
necessary to have more up travel than down
travel) until the airplane rolls axially—or as
axially as possible.
If you are still experiencing difficulty, look
at the servos you are using on the aileron
surfaces. Do you have enough torque?
Is your wing built up, sheeted with foam,
or composite? If your aileron is built up, you
must mount the aileron servos so that one is
fairly close to the root
of the aileron
(inboard) and another
is mounted fairly
outboard (toward the
wingtip). If both
servos (when using
two) are mounted
inboard, the aileron
surface might flex,
which causes
different aileron
deflections when
control input is given.
On a foamsheeted
or composite
wing, the aileronservo
location is not
as critical. On a
composite airframe,
you can mount bothas added. Then use differential (for a
aileron servos fairly inboard and experience no
blowback, since the aileron itself is extremely
rigid.
I have discussed only how to make your
model roll axially as an example. To get rid of
any other undesired tendency, the pilot must
spend time with the airframe and make other
required changes (e.g., adjusting dual-rate
values and exponential settings, adding right
thrust, etc.). With time and patience, most
undesired tendencies can be eliminated or, at
the bare minimum, minimized.
Flight Skills and More: When getting into
advanced Aerobatics, you will need to practice
until each maneuver becomes instinctive. This
might be a difficult concept for some to grasp,
but it is vital.
Each of the five International Miniature
Aerobatic Club (IMAC) classes (Basic,
Sportsman, Intermediate, Advanced, and
Unlimited) builds on the previous class. Basic
is the lowest and Unlimited is the highest.
If you haven’t competed in an IMAC
event, start with Basic. Then, with time and
familiarity (and hopefully many contest
achievements), you can progress to the next
level.
In addition to familiarity with each
maneuver, you must become accustomed to
your aircraft and how it reacts to given control
inputs as well as weather conditions.
Before you go to your first contest, look at
the grading criteria for the maneuvers that are
required in each class. If you are new to the
Aerobatics arena, visit the IMAC Web site and
download the RC Scale Aerobatics
Competition Regulations for 2009-2010.
There, you will find a wealth of knowledge
pertaining to topics ranging from model and
sound requirements to maneuver downgrades
and criteria. Familiarize yourself with this document; it is crucial to
understand for your success.
To help you, once you get to the official IMAC Web site, under
“Quick Links” you will find three tabs entitled, “Knowns,” “Rules,”
and “For CDs.” Click on the “Rules” tab and click on “AMA
Rulebook.” Enjoy!
A Must-Have—A Flight Coach: Regarding the third topic, as Geza
Szurovy and Mike Goulian wrote in their book, Advanced Aerobatics,
“A coach is a person who evaluates your competition flying skills and
is able to tell you exactly what to do to improve it and
correct your mistakes.” This is true for RC competition,
as it is for the full-scale competition arena.
In Aerobatics contests, it is common to see a “caller”
with each pilot. The caller reminds the pilot of the next
maneuver that he or she is to perform for the judges. It is
often difficult to remember the maneuvers a pilot must
perform, because they are different and complex in
various IMAC sequences.
To do well in competition, it is best to have a caller
with which you are familiar; everyone calls maneuvers
at a different pace. My father is my caller at all major
competitions, since I am familiar with his calling style.
In addition, I have my sequences written in a manner
in which I would like to hear them. After all, every point
counts in competition.
Please keep in mind that all models fly differently. As a
result, the pilot must spend time to make each airplane
fly as he or she prefers. In some cases, it may be
necessary to change equipment or servo locations to
improve a given airframe’s overall flight characteristics.
I informed you about improving RC pilot flight
performance by expanding your knowledge via the
official IMAC Web site, and I let you know about the
benefits of having a flight coach.
Always remember to enjoy this sport. It can be time-consuming,
but it is a great hobby, and the relationships that are formed because of
it are priceless.
Until next time, fly hard! MA
Sources:
IMAC
www.mini-iac.com
Advanced Aerobatics:
Amazon.com
www.amazon.com