Ultimate RC

Model Airplane News, Mar 2003 by Sharp, Debra

Where do world-class aerobatic pilots go to see who's the best? Las Vegas! At the 18th Tournament of Champions, 21 pilots from around the globe met to compete and hoped to take home a portion of the $186,000 purse. This year, West Coast assodate editor John Reid was on hand to capture the action on film; check out his tournament coverage on page 28 to see who was awarded the $50,000 first-place prize!

A NEW BREED OF BATTERY

Looking for the latest in battery technology? Check out Bob Aberle's report on the development, use and attributes of lithium-- polymer cells. This new breed of battery offers higher voltage in a smaller, lighter package than Ni-Cd or NiMH cells of comparable capacity. If you want to increase the flight times and performance of your small electric model, this is one article you won't want to miss! If you'd like more information on using lithium-polymer cells and flying small RC airplanes, check out the Click Trip of articles from our sister publication RC MicroFlight.

IN THE WORKSHOP

Besides adding the finishing touch to aluminum landing gear, wheel pants also decrease drag and help to increase your model's performance. It's easy to add removable pants that don't come loose in flight; see Rick Bell's step-by-step how-to article on page 76.

Functional, realistic control surfaces are a must-have for scale competition. In his "Scale Techniques" column this month, Dick van Mourik discusses scale construction techniques for building functional ailerons, flaps and slats.

Also in this issue, scale expert Vance Mosher presents a beautiful CAD-designed, .25-size Fairey Firefly. Because the full-size British WW II fighter-bomber also served in the Korean War, there are several attractive, unique paint schemes from which to choose; this unusual subject is sure to turn heads at any flying field or scale meet. Warbird enthusiasts will also appreciate Budd Davisson's tribute to the world's only fully restored, flightworthy Fairey Firefly.

HITEC FIELD GRANTS

Thanks to the generosity of Hitec USA, 10 U.S. RC clubs-including seven airplane clubs!-have won $1,000 Field and Track Improvement awards. We join Hitec USA marketing director Glen Merritt in congratulating the following RC airplane clubs: the Alexandria R/C Flyers of Miltona, MN; the Coachella Valley R/C Club of Bermuda Dunes, CA; the Boerne Area Model Society of Boerne, TX; the Southern Tier Aero Radio Society of New Jersey; the Oswego Valley Modelaires Inc. of Hannibal, NY; the Ithaca Radio Control Society of Ithaca, NY; and the Wyoming Modelers Park Association of Riverton, WY. Glen writes, "We would like to thank all the members of all the great clubs and organizations out there who work hard at providing a place for modelers to fly, float and drive."