Before the drone: Model airplanes take flight at upcoming airshow
Since before drones flew through the sky, filming footage for videos, helping companies to work faster and fascinating users with their ability to take flight, aviation geeks have been building small-scale airplanes.
But not all are as tiny as drones — these planes are about the size of Shaq.
And this month, 20-30 of these model airplanes are scheduled to take flight with the Radio Control Club of Detroit at Wetzel State Park in Macomb County for the annual Big Bird – Giant Scale Fly-In show.
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While hobbyists, such as Jim Lundberg, can plunk thousands of dollars and countless hours into this sport, most said it's worth it.
“After 40-plus years in banking and check approval management, I had the urge to work with my hands when I retired in 2007,” said Lundberg. “Building and flying model airplanes gives me this needed outlet.”
Model plane hobbyists begin construction of their crafts from a variety of levels of completion. Some order planes “ready to fly,” “almost ready to fly”—which require additions of a motor, propellers, radio receiver, batteries, etc—or build their own from scratch, sometimes even designing their own plans as well.
“It is lots of fun using radio control to fly an aircraft high up in the sky challenged by the shifting wind currents, and performing aerobatic maneuvers such as barrel rolls and flying loops to name a few,” said Lundberg. “RC flying gives me the sense of freedom in guiding my aircraft in the sky as if I am in the aircraft.”
The fly-in show is scheduled for 10 a.m. Saturday at Wetzel State Park in New Haven, with a pilot’s meeting at 9:45 a.m. All spectators are welcome and food will be available.
The Radio Control Club of Detroit meets the first and third Thursday of every month at 7:30-8:30 at the Harrison Township Tucker Senior Center. To learn more about the RCCD and the Big Bird – Giant Scale Fly-In, visit their website at http://www.rccd.org/index.htm.
Madelyn Dibley can be reached at mdibley@freepress.com.