RC Airplane enthusiasts gather at HSC Airport

On September 16-17, remote control airplane pilots and enthusiasts from throughout the region gathered at the Hot Springs County Airport to fly their model planes. Twenty-one pilots came from Riverton, Billings, and elsewhere to participate. The weather was pleasant, and many pilots commented it wasn't too hot. The planes used either combustion engine propellers or jet engines. 

Contest directors, Art Mulkey and Dennis Rollins, both from Billings, described the event as their "butterfly event," instead of it being a competitive contest. Mulkey said, "We just all gather and enjoy the day flying, and hopefully we will have some great weather. The facility we have here is pretty awesome. We don't very often get the chance to fly off a full-scale airport."

Mulkey discussed the planes flown and said, "Everybody that comes fly has two or three or four airplanes. There are airplanes of all kinds and sizes." Mulkey talked about a turbine jet and said, "It sounds like a jet and runs everything basically the same as the jet airliners that you fly in or a fighter. As far as speed, they'll hit between 150 and 200 miles an hour." 

Mulkey then moved to another type of plane and said, "We've got prop-driven airplanes of all sizes and sorts. I have a biplane, for example, that has a 157 CC motor on it and it has an eight-foot wingspan... There are some smaller airplanes out here. And there are all kinds of different construction techniques." Some planes are all fiberglass and others are made from balsa wood. The engines can run on gasoline or nitro methane or aviation fuel.

For those who are interested in starting off in this hobby, Mulkey said, "The easiest way to do it is we have a trainer plane called an apprentice. And that airplane comes with a transmitter, batteries, everything. It's about $400, so it's pretty reasonable compared to what it used to be. I've been in the sport, and so I started flying in 1968." However, some of the more advanced planes cost around $4,000 and even as high as $16,000.

Regarding the learning curve for new pilots, Mulkey said, "That depends on the individual. We've got a system called a "buddy box" system where you've got a master transmitter and then you have what they call a slave. You could probably take the plane up there and we can have you up in the air and doing basic maneuvers in 10 minutes. You just have to learn the basics or the purposes of the control surfaces on the airplane. Like the elevator, the rudder, the ailerons, and the throttle."

Mulkey went into more detail about understanding the buddy box system and said, "It's to train your system. The person who's doing the instructing or the trainer can take control of the airplane at a moment's notice in a split second, and keep it from crashing. Then the other way to do the training is to use a flight simulator, which I have here today. It emulates what happens out there in real life when you're flying."

Mulkey's big reason for flying RC airplanes is about "freedom." He added, "It's a feeling of satisfaction to be able to go and build something or put something together and put it up in the air and then have a successful flight with it, too. And any of us that's been in the sport very long have had flights that weren't quite so successful. But when it is, it's exhilarating."

Regarding passing on the sport of RC airplanes to the younger generation, Mulkey said, "The younger kids are the key to keeping this sport alive. As an example, the Billings Club so far has a number of youth that are getting involved. We have six or eight members in Billings right now that are 18 years old or younger, which is the lifeblood of anything, you know, if you don't bring it. It's just like a trade and without the young people coming in and taking over, the trade doesn't go anywhere, and the same thing with the sport."

Regarding some of the types of competition flying, Mulkey said, "You have ones that are called "pylon races" where they race around pylons and it's a timed event with laps just like a race car. Then you have "scale" where the airplanes are actually judged on how close they come to resemble the scale airplane that it's modeled after, both in flight characteristics and in appearances. And then you've got what they call "pattern flying", which is not very common anymore. But you have a routine that you go with, kind of like an ice skater with their routine. And so they're judged on how well that routine is performed. You tell the judges ahead of time, I'm going to do this, then I'll go up in the air and do a figure eight in the air and loops or whatever the case is. And so the judges judge that based on that. So there are awards for that. And then there is the latest, and the hottest, event called "3D flying". It's where you take an airplane and you make it do maneuvers in the air that an aircraft shouldn't be able to do. Such as hovering the airplane nose up in a vertical position and it just stays there."

Mulkey and Rollins love the gathering of fellow enthusiasts and pilots. Mulkey said, "It's a great sport, and the camaraderie that we have among each other is just awesome. It's like any other group. We share a lot of meals together and do a lot of visiting and sharing ideas. If somebody has a need for a part, somebody else's got it and then they can get back in the air. So that's a good idea."

The RC model airplane sport isn't restricted to men but also attracts women as well. Mulkey added, "We have some ladies that get involved with it as well, and then our wives are usually involved in it too because they're here with us and they do their thing."

Part of the reason for the RC airplane event is to rekindle interest in the sport in Thermopolis according to contest director Dennis Rollins. He said that some of the previous club's members passed away, but, "We'd like to get their club going again." At this time, Thermopolis has only one RC airplane member, Jerry Umbdenstock. Last year they held their first event in July but it was too hot so they moved this year's to September when it's cooler and they plan on getting into a routine to hold it every year. Rollins hopes these events gain more awareness of the sport. 

Rollins said that these kinds of events bring people from all over, such as Casper, Cheyenne, Utah, and some even as far as Las Vegas and Washington. The hobbyists include all classes of people. Rollins said, "Everything from doctors to lawyers to bikers, you name it. And they come from every walk of life and they're here to have fun, period." Rollins glows about being good friends for a long time with the pilots and their friends and family. 

Rollins added, "A lot of people travel from across the world."

Rollins and Mulkey also provide a flight simulator computer system in one of their trailers. Mulkey has a large 4K screen connected to a laptop. The new pilot holds onto a transmitter control box that has several joysticks on it. It operates the same way a real-life control does. It takes some time and by using tiny adjustments, the user can easily get the RC plane to take off and fly around a virtual airport. This method allows the pilot to learn what adjustments make the plane perform and, of course, if the plane crashes, there is no real damage and the pilot starts over learning from their mistakes. The process takes patience and good observation along with skill. Overall, the experience is informative and exciting.

The event took over two days and a good number of pilots showed up. After the event, Rollins said that they had "a really good meet. The weather cooperated and hopefully, we'll be back next year."