How to Do Electric RC Aircraft Aerobatics
Once you're comfortable taking off, flying, and landing your radio-controlled aircraft, it only seems natural to try more advanced maneuvers and aerial acrobatics. Many pilots consider your ability to successfully execute tricks as a true test of your skills; therefore, learning how to perform aerobatics will not only improve your navigation skills, but it could also make you a legend in your neighborhood airspace.
Instructions
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Airplane
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1
Fly the plane at level altitude, then press up on the elevator to drop the nose down slightly. Let the plane drop a few feet in altitude and gain speed, then pull back on the elevator to send the aircraft into a vertical loop. Let the airplane complete a full 360-degree rotation before leveling out the elevator and continuing in a straight path.
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2
Fly the airplane at full throttle, then pull back on the joystick to point the aircraft straight up. Rise to about an altitude of 100 feet, then decrease the throttle and move the rudder joystick all the way to the left to enter into a knife-edge spin. Watch the aircraft spin and fall, then release the rudder joystick, increase the throttle and fly out of the stunt into normal flight.
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3
Fly the airplane in a level altitude, then pull back on the elevator to lift into a vertical ascension. Steadily decrease the throttle until the plane no longer increases altitude, but rather hangs there much like a helicopter. Maintain that throttle strength to continue hovering, then turn the rudder joystick in either direction as you increase to full throttle to escape the hover.
Helicopter
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4
Raise the throttle joystick to lift the aircraft off the ground. Steadily decrease the throttle strength until the helicopter no longer rises, but simply hangs stationary in a hover position. Use the throttle to maintain the hover, then either increase or decrease the throttle to continue flying normally.
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5
Climb to a high altitude, then position the helicopter into a knife-edge orientation meaning it starts to fall with the rotor tip pointing down. Apply either forward or back aileron to start the spiraling motion, then move the aileron in the opposite direction to recover into a steady flight. This is known as a death spiral.
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6
Press either forward or backward on the elevator while simultaneously decreasing the pitch in a smooth fashion. Move the stick to mid-position as the aircraft comes to the vertical position, then add negative pitch to continue flipping the helicopter into an inverted hover. Move the pitch stick back though mid position, then gradually add pitch to steadily complete the flipping rotation, returning the aircraft to regular flight.
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References
- Photo Credit Matt Cardy/Getty Images News/Getty Images
