Colorado Rotorheads Newsletter

Posted: 03 Feb 2003

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Volume 1 - Introduction to R/C Helicopters

by Steve Bygren

This is the first in a series of articles about R/C helicopters to be written by a rotating (sorry for the pun) group of members from the Colorado Rotor-Heads.  You’ve probably seen us from time to time at your club meetings and the flying field.  We are often the guys hovering around in a distant corner of the field, or perhaps joining the airplane guys in the pattern.  If you haven’t already been inclined to introduce yourself to a helicopter pilot, I hope this series of articles will pique your curiosity.

 If you look at the number of radio controlled airplane pilots in Colorado, I suspect the number easily exceeds a thousand.  Helicopter pilots, on the other hand, are fairly scarce.  Along the Front Range, there may be a hundred or so, with perhaps half that number being “active” in the hobby.  The result of this low count is that most clubs only have a few active helicopter pilots.  When you take into account our busy lives, with work, family, and our many other obligations, knowledgeable helicopter-pilots can be scarce indeed.  With this in mind, the Colorado Rotor-Heads will be offering a series of articles for your club newsletter with the intent of sharing our knowledge and experience with you.  Hopefully, you will find them interesting, and perhaps a bit more personal that the magazine articles written for mass consumption.  Our membership includes people ranging from novice pilots just learning the basics of building and hovering, to nationally recognized contest pilots, experts in scale construction, and the popular “3D” style of flying.  With this range of interest and experience, we hope that you’ll find this series of articles worthwhile. 

Some of the articles you can look forward to in future installments may include the following:

Selection of your first helicopter

Construction techniques – tricks and tips for the beginner

Learning to fly – basic hovering and flight training

The next big step – forward flight

Survival skills – autorotation and the inevitable rebuilding