Buzzy Planes Ahoy

...bobbing in the breeze

It was raining heavily this morning as I left, however I packed my two buzzy planes, the Radjet and Rarebear, along with a spare battery for each. Not knowing the weather, I wasn't liking my chances of getting any flying done that afternoon, but I having left home empty handed before, I've regretted it when the weather clears into a gorgeous afternoon.

Having a bootfull of planes was also a bonus as I ended up being very bored this afternoon, eventually abandoning my post and heading for the car park. The rain had cleared, but the sky was still overcast and a strong breeze was blowing from the southeast.

In this weather I take my buzzies - smaller wings mean they are less affected by turbulent conditions, and having constant high-speed prop-wash means that the effect of unsettled conditions is factored out.

First up was the Rarebear, giving it it's first test run since its aileron repair, which worked out pretty well with the balsa lining up nice and straight with the aileron. I also taped up both ailerons to avoid future issues.

The Rarebear launches very steep, with the motor, prop and high-performance batteries combining to give it flight characteristics that defy gravity. It also possesses remarkable agility, with a jaw-dropping roll rate as it carves perfect curves through the sky, in a quite remarkable manner.

Next I sent up the Radjet, still launching beautifully which is an absolute blessing, skimming low across the paddock, it's wings being constantly jostled by the breeze. I flew the Radjet until it's battery was depleted, bringing it round into the strong southeaster and easing it down for an almost vertical descent to landing.

By this time the breeze had cleared the sky into a fresh blue expanse, with just a few clouds dotted around, the sparkling white cumulus on the southern horizon looking like snow covered peaks out of the corner of the eye as I watched the planes streak across the sky.

With the field still clear of Friday footballers, I loaded the Radjet and Rarebear with fresh batteries and sent them up for another rounds of high-speed, full-throttle fun...

Serenity at High Altitude

...an extraordinary flight


I had a completely serene flying experience this morning.

The weather was heavily overcast with a multitude of textures and colours of heavy rain clouds covering the sky. It was almost completely still with just the slightest suggestion of a breeze on the ground with a feel of the moisture in the air.

I threw the Walrus up and did a bit of aerobatics to warm up the servos and them did a run over the kangaroo ground to see how they were doing. Having completed these missions I was wondering what was next, so set the Walrus with a hint of up-elevator with moderate throttle and let it go.

With the cool morning air the Walrus climbed quickly and steadily until it was just a snippet of a plane high in the air, communing with the clouds.

A wing of Sacred Ibis flew over in a perfect V-formation heading north, their pale colouring contrasting with the dark clouds above them.

I took this restful opportunity to take the first ever photo of the Walrus flying as up till now I haven't wanted to take the risk...