Balsa Park Flyer Radio Control Aircraft
Balsa backyard aircraft add variety to foam RTF fleets
An early park flyer
The phrase “Park Flyer” is a relatively new term added to the lexicon of radio control flight. Park flyers imply a model airplane small enough to fly in the restricted airspace associated with a local recreation area. The very first free flight balsa model airplanes were park flyers in the sense they were flown from a local playground. Organized club fields did not exist in those early days. Today, park flyer generally means a radio control model airplane that can be safely flown in a smaller and more restricted area than provided by a typical RC club flying field.
Several technical achievements needed to occur to allow for practical foam and balsa park flyers. Park flyers are by definition smaller RC aircraft. Micro lightweight RC gear needed to be developed for this new breed of model airplane. The loud noise of gas engines are the number one cause for loss of model airplane flight privileges, so silent electric power is a requirement. The issue of radio interference essentially stopped even the discussion of RC flight outside of the frequency control regime mandated by clubs everywhere using 72 MHz radios.
Dawn of RC park flyers
All of these requirements to permit RC park flyers have been met. Not only are the electronic speed controls, servos, receivers and batteries extraordinary in their small size, but all these items are completely affordable. Tiny electric motors are available to power any RC park flyer. 2.4 GHz radio technology is adopted by modelers everywhere, with radio glitches a phenomenon of the past. The spread spectrum techniques employed by these advanced radios have eliminated the need for frequency deconfliction.
High wing balsa park RC model plane
Park flyers must be lightweight to take advantage of the small RC equipment and electric motors. Manufacturers discovered a vibrant market for these ready to fly models with low cost a prime driver. Foam is the construction material of choice when mass producing an affordable micro RC plane. It is no surprise to see the majority of park flyers using foam as their main production material.
Balsa park flyers are a viable and exciting addition to the large fleets of foam back yard aircraft. Due to manufacturing issues, there are few ready to fly balsa park flyer aircraft. Balsa remains an incredibly useful model airplane building material. The opportunity is available for modelers everywhere to create and build their own original micro RC flyers using balsa wood.
Pietenpol Air Camper three channel balsa RC park flyer
Finch free plan
A good example of what can be done with balsa and making a park flyer is the Finch. The Finch uses the ParkZone electronics found in their popular foam P-51 Mustang RTF airplane. The Mustang is a great park flyer airplane and the motor provides plenty of thrust. The free plans for the Finch can be downloaded here. The Finch builds in a weekend, and is a good first project for a plan built micro balsa park flyer aircraft and initial test flights.
I have constructed numerous model airplane kits since I first started in the hobby back in 1972. The standard for years was the balsa airplane kits produced by Guillow’s. Model builders everywhere have a special place in their hearts for Guillow’s kits. Today, many Guillow’s kits are successfully converted to radio control flight.
Balsa RC model of the Jodel low wing plane
Technology has caught up with balsa plane kit design in ways unimagined just a few years ago. The use of computer aided design techniques combined with precise laser cutting procedures has revolutionized balsa park flyer kit production.
Stevens Aeromodel is a leader in top quality laser cut balsa model airplanes. I have constructed two of their kits, the LiddleRod and the Pietenpol Air Camper. Both are incredibly well designed and produced with a precision and attention to detail unlike any other kit I have seen to date.
Easy to build foam RC park flyer
The Air Camper in particular stands out. Each wood part, whether balsa or plywood, is laser cut so that the pieces just about fall out of their sheets. The numerical identifier of each piece is individually laser etched. The CAD plans are clear and well drafted. The construction techniques are so innovative that an illustrated construction manual, with each and every step photo illustrated, guides the modeler through the entire building process.
CAD and laser cut balsa kits
The utility of CAD design combined with laser cutting allows the Air Camper parts to be first assembled without glue to ensure all the parts fit correctly. Once the pieces are assembled and carefully aligned CA glue bonds everything in place. Following this procedure there is no concern over inadvertently gluing a wrong part in place. The Air Camper kit is a three dimensional puzzle with all the parts fitting into just the correct place.
Park flyer RC flying models are a welcome addition to the world of model aviation. The variety of these affordable micro models will only increase over time. Foam is the preferred building material for ready to fly models. Balsa park flyers are an ideal addition to this exciting segment of RC flight, whether built from plans or a quality laser cut kit.