ON THE SAFE SIDE
The Lighter Side of Safety
by Don Nix,
Insider Safety Column Editor
My last column about self-appointed, rude, and
dangerous hotdogs in RC drew more mail than any
previous one. With one exception, all the letters
were not only in agreement, but most gave examples
of similar incidents at their own fields and how
they had dealt with it.
The lone dissenter was not only indignant (“Nobody
is going to tell me what I can and can’t do”), but
at the end of his e-mail stated he could tell I was
probably pro gun control and a few other unspeakable
sins, none of which were true or had anything to do
with flying model airplanes. Oh, well.
As I was debating subject matter for this issue, it
occurred to me that funny things related to safety
do happen from time to time. They are only funny
when no person is injured or no property is damaged.
The following incidents took place years ago at a
very popular RC flying field in Southern California.
Late one Saturday afternoon, one of our most regular
and experienced pilots was flying an Ugly Stik and
began yelling, “I don’t have it! I don’t have it! No
control!” then watched open-mouthed as “his” model
gracefully climbed into the pattern, turned
downwind, turned again and passed in front of
everyone, continuing on around again, seemingly on
its own. This field was a very busy one with 12
pilot stations, and most had models in the air at
the moment.
Gradually he realized what had happened. This
particular fellow liked to fly low and in the weeds
(literally), but was always careful to do so well
past the far side of the runway, at least a hundred
feet from the flightline. As he made one of his low
and slow passes into the afternoon sun, an almost
identical Stik was taking off at the far end of the
pit area and starting to climb into the pattern. At
that time of day, at that particular point and
general altitude, models tended to become
silhouettes briefly.
Ah, you can see it coming. Just as our friend was
approximately abreast of the model taking off, his
eyes picked up the other Stik as his own. In the
meantime (as we discovered an hour or so later), his
model had continued unhampered and uncontrolled
straight ahead, crashing into a golf course several
hundred yards to the west. I might mention the
golfers were not amused.
On another occasion, one of my friends who did a lot
of training of newbies was helping a beginner with
his brand new trainer, checking everything, starting
the engine, tuning it, and explaining what he was
doing at every step. After getting the engine tuned
and idling properly, he told the proud owner that he
wanted to check the engine at full power with the
nose up to be sure it wasn’t too lean. The owner,
eager to please, held the airplane vertical while
the engine test was made, and was still holding it
in that position when the instructor reduced the
power to idle.
Yes, the fellow was a beginner, but he had been at
the park for a couple of hours, and certainly must
have seen what others were doing all around him. No
doubt nerves pickled his brain at that moment,
because when the instructor nodded at him, assuming
the fellow would put it down at the edge of the
runway, the poor guy simply tossed it straight up
into the air, nose pointed skyward, engine at idle.
Incredibly, the stunned instructor, having more
skill and presence of mind than most of us, punched
the throttle full forward, managed to get the thing
wallowing into the air and flew it out into the
pattern. Another fine example of what happens when
we assume something.
After getting into this subject, I realized I have
some more funny ones that ended up safely, but
they’ll have to wait until next issue. In the
meantime, if you care to add to the list, or suggest
another safety subject, I’m always available:
flyerdon1@yahoo.com. Q
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