Electric RC airplanes
- the easy way to get flying fast!
Without doubt, electric rc airplanes give you the easiest, quickest and cheapest way of getting started in powered radio control flying, and the relatively lower price tags and wide availability of these planes make them a big attraction to the hobby.
In recent years, RTF ('Ready To Fly') electric rc planes such as the 3 channel HobbyZone Super Cub LP, shown below left, have become very popular airplanes for beginners, either from scratch or as a natural progression up from simpler one channel rc planes. Incidentally, the Super Cub LP follows on from the hugely successful original HobbyZone Super Cub, shown below right.
HobbyZone is a big name in RTF electric airplanes designed for the beginner. The planes are excellent value and have brought countless people into the radio control flying hobby; the original Super Cub is their biggest seller to date.
The HobbyZone Super Cub LP, above left, is set to be as
popular as the original HobbyZone Super Cub, above right
One feature of certain HobbyZone rc airplanes, including the Super Cub, is the Anti-Crash Technology™ (ACT); an electronic gadget mounted in the airplane reads the model's attitude relative to the horizon, and communicates with the receiver accordingly. If the airplane appears to be out of control, the ACT takes over and gets the plane out of trouble and back on course, returning it to straight and level flight.
The ACT can, of course, be switched off at any time for when your rc flying abilities improve, and you feel like trying some basic rc aerobatic maneuvers!
The HobbyZone Super Cub, and similar design electric rc airplanes, make perfect trainers because of their inherent stability in the air; the real-life Cub was of course the most popular trainer of its time, so what better rc trainer to learn on?!
See the Super Cub LP electric rc airplane in more detail.
Examples of popular electric RC airplanes
While the HobbyZone Super Cub is an excellent choice for anyone looking to start flying powered rc planes, the variety of models available is vast, and growing all the time. It's easy to become overwhelmed with the choice available, but shown below are a few recommendable examples of currently popular Ready To Fly electric rc airplanes...
| The successful Firebird Freedom, also from HobbyZone, is a very different style of airplane with a distinct pod-and-boom design. The Firebird range is an extremely popular one for beginners to the hobby; they are easy to fly and great to learn on. |  |
| This attractive Super Decathlon makes a great 3 channel aerobatic trainer, its brushless motor and Li-Po power giving it excellent performance, yet the high wing design giving it the stability needed by beginner pilots. |  |
| This Ambassador, from Megatech, follows on from the successful Freedom Flyer but features a powerful outrunner brushless motor and Li-Po battery pack, and 4th channel ailerons are standard. A great 4 channel trainer and suitable as an all-round electric rc 'sport' flyer. |  |
| This E-flite Apprentice takes electric rc trainers into a new age. A great value larger wingspan 4 channel RTF airplane, with the latest 2.4GHz rc technology. This plane is proving itself to be a very popular choice with beginner rc pilots looking to get serious from day one. |  |
| This scale P-51 Mustang is a low-wing faster electric airplane, and a very popular scale subject. A great plane for when you've got a few hours under your belt, these ParkZone warbirds are excellent RTF models. Not particularly suitable as a first plane though, because of their speed and lower stability than a high wing trainer. |  |
Check out the above electric rc airplanes and more, if you're browsing to buy.
The 6 electric rc airplanes shown on this page are a good mix of examples to show together because of their differences; the Super Cub being a great flying scale trainer, the Super Decathlon and Ambassador both being great all-round 'sport' flyers capable of aerobatics, with the latter being a good aileron trainer. The Firebird Freedom is a completely different shape and style of airplane, while the Apprentice is a larger trainer that closely represents a gas plane in terms of looks and size, and finally the P-51 Mustang being an excellent 2nd or 3rd model, when you've got a few hours experience.
Of course, the electric planes featured on this page are just several out of hundreds that are available these days, but are excellent examples of trusted Ready To Fly planes that are bringing more and more people into the radio control flying hobby.
And as we progress through the technological revolution that has already changed the face of electric rc, electric planes just keep getting better and better. Brushless inrunner and outrunner motors, powerful Electronic Speed Controls (ESCs) and lithium polymer (Li-Po) flight battery packs are now commonplace, and the latest 2.4GHz spread spectrum radio control technology is being offered with more and more RTF models.
All this is fantastic news for the hobby and ensures a strong place for electric rc airplanes on the flying field in the future.
Points to remember when choosing electric RC planes
With so many electric rc airplanes available nowadays, choosing a suitable model does need some consideration. Fortunately, the process of selecting the right plane can be kept simple so long as you keep a few basic guidelines in mind. Many RTF electric rc airplanes are designed for the beginner, but here are a few of those thoughts that you should remember when choosing and buying:
- Planes that are of a high wing design always make the best airplanes to learn on because of their stability in the air.
- An RTF (Ready To Fly) airplane is far better if you have no modeling experience, it's the best way of getting airborne with the least amount of frustration.
- Size matters! A plane with a wingspan of between 30 and 50 inches is the optimum size for learning. Much smaller and you'll have trouble seeing what it's doing, much bigger and even the slightest breeze becomes a big problem.
- Check out availability of spare parts before you buy - you will need them at some time or another!
- Choose an airplane that is durable and easily repairable; for example, foam planes are tougher and easier to repair than balsa wood ones.
- Electric airplanes with brushless motor and li-po battery pack will give you longer flight times and much more power than brushed motor planes.
Learning to fly an electric rc airplane is a fun and exhilarating experience, but you do need to simplify the game as much as possible in your early days. Keeping the above points in mind should help you do that, and once you've got a few hours flying under your hat and built up some confidence, then you can consider moving onto larger and faster planes.
Flying rc airplanes in general is a great (and addictive!) hobby, and making a sensible choice of plane when starting out will make a big difference to your enjoyment and success in the hobby!
The electric rc planes on this page can all be seen in more detail here.
Related pages
Electric trainers - a few examples of popular electric trainers.
HobbyZone rc airplanes - great beginner electric planes.
ParkZone rc airplanes - examples from the 'Charge-and-Fly' series.
Beginner rc airplanes - a few popular 'get started' type planes.
RTF rc airplanes - the easiest way to get flying.
Flying model airplanes - tips for flying a 1 or 2 channel Park Flyer style electric model.
RC flight simulators - the safest way of learning to fly rc planes.
Ground school - basic lessons to get you understanding rc flying.
The popularity factor - more reasons why electric rc airplanes are so popular.
Gas vs electric rc flying - some fundamental points to chew over.
