Indoor RC airplanes
Building and flying indoor rc airplanes has become an increasingly popular sector of the hobby of radio control flying, particularly in the last few years as rc components have become smaller and lighter.
There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to indoor rc flying, the determining factor is the size of space that you have available, and the size of your airplane.
School gymnasiums, public sports halls and empty aircraft hangers all make excellent venues, and because of the increased popularity of indoor flying such use of these places might not be as uncommon as you think! Indeed, there are plenty of clubs that hold indoor rc flying meetings on a weekly basis - you just need to ask around.
RC airplanes for flying indoors
Indoor rc airplanes can be purchased RTF and ARF nowadays, whereas a few years ago modelers had to construct their own either from scratch or by modifying free-flight indoor kits.
The ParkZone Ember and Vapor, shown below, are excellent choices for indoor flyers. Both RTF with 2.4GHz radio systems for interference-free flying, the small size, ultra light weight and slow flying characteristics make them very suitable indoor rc airplanes indeed.
An excellent example of a scale rc airplane very suitable for indoor flying is ParkZone's Ultra Micro J-3 Cub, shown below. This 18 inch wingspan plane will surely be a popular choice for indoor flying enthusiasts and is very comfortable flying round a school gymnasium or similar venue. Its stable high wing design make it an easy plane to fly, quite suitable for the novice.
RC airplanes like this J3 Cub are lightweight and small - perfect for indoor flying
And for anyone looking for a more advanced indoor rc airplane, the Sukhoi Su-26m is a good choice, being a mid-wing 4 channel fully aerobatic airplane. The Sukhoi, despite having only a 15 inch wingspan, can take up a surprisingly large amount of airspace, relative to its size, so a bigger indoor venue is preferable.
If you're in to more advanced 3D flying and even the Sukhoi doesn't fulfil your needs, then surely the E-flite Ultra Micro 4-Site will get your attention! Slightly larger at 18 inch wingspan, this profile-based biplane is fully 3D capable and can be flown in the smallest of indoor venues.
Of course, rc airplanes like these that are great for indoor flying can also be flown outdoors, but are much more affected by the wind; even a gentle breeze may be too much for the plane to handle so ideally they should be flown on calm days only.
Flying indoor rc airplanes is not only great fun but it's also a good solution to those winter-time blues, when the weather is against you every weekend and you can't fly outdoors. If you have a large indoor space in your area, ask around and you might be able to try some indoor flying for yourself!
Above, Jersey Coast Sport Fliers flying some indoor rc airplanes
See the indoor rc airplanes shown above in more detail.
Related pages
Micro rc airplanes - When mini planes get smaller!
Mini rc airplanes - An overview of mini rc planes.
Micro rc helicopters - See some popular micro size helis.
Infrared micro helicopters - Learn how IR helicopters work.
RC blimps - Read about rc blimps for indoor flying.
E-flite 4-Site - 4 channel micro 3D flyer.
ParkZone Sukhoi SU-26m - fully aerobatic 4 channel mini rc plane.
ParkZone Ultra Micro P-51 - fully proportional 4 channel micro warbird.
ParkZone Ultra Micro J-3 Cub - 3 channel micro scale trainer.
ParkZone Ember - See the Ember in more detail.
ParkZone Vapor - See the Vapor in more detail.
