PTS Mustang By Hanger 9

by Sidney
(Soto Cano Air Base, Honduras, C.A.)

Us coming in to a small airstrip in Costa Rica/Panama border

I have always liked airplanes and helicopters as a kid. I was kinda born into aviation, my mom was a Vietnam vet and an F-105 crew chief.
When I was born I was around aircraft. I loved to fly, but wanted to learn how they flew. The first time I saw a model plane that could actually fly, I went crazy. So, naturally I had to have one but my parents felt I was to young and they veiwed them as grown-up toys.
When I graduated high school I followed in my moms foot steps and started working with A&P licenced mechanics on small planes. Worked for Alaska Airlines for a while. I joined the army for something new. Rotory wing aircraft(aka the CH-47d Chinook helicopter built by Boeing.) I haven't looked back at fixed wing since. Now I'm a CH-47d Flight Engineer, but I felt a urge to try out r/c planes.
After buying a trainer off a friend in 2002, I never really had a chance to get into it. The wars had started and I was never state side. I couldn't take the plane overseas so, I sold it to a guy in Tennesse. Well, I got into mini r/c helicopters and liked them because I could take them overseas in my tough box, and I could fly them inside our hangers when aircraft weren't in them. Since then, I have found myself in Central America. I will be here for a couple of years. One pilot in my company had a couple of planes, so naturally I wanted to check them out.
This is where the flame came back. He took me with him and a couple other soldiers that flew, to an r/c airfield in the mountains of Tegucigualpa, Honduras. It's an hour drive from my location, between us and the capital of Honduras, Tegucigualpa. I had a blast and got to thinking. So I got online and started to look around. I found the Hanger 9 built P-51 Mustang PTS. I did research and read reveiws, I found it too good. I was skeptical!

After three months of deciding, I finally forked the cash and back ordered the RTF kit from Hobby Zone. I got it in the mail about a week ago. Even after being ship over seas to Central America the plane was in excellent condition, considering.
It is very humid down here. The only thing I found wrong was some wrinkles in the already Ultra Cote coated fuslage, tail section and wings( nothing a heat gun can't take care of). Everything needed was in the tightly packed box. All components where wrapped in plastic and the mian sections (fuselage, two wing halves, tail wing) were seperated by styro foam.
I read the manual and watched the included assembly video. The video was really cool, it gave an idea of exactly what had to be done by watching a experince r/cer. The plane is a cinch to assembe and in fact, I had to wait on the batteries to charge, even after I was done assembling everthing (wish I started charging batts first!).

The kit came with a manual for the Evolution engine( very informative). The kit came with a 6 channel SX600 JR Transmitter & Receiver. All servos, were pre installed and wire to the receiver. All I had to do was plug the aileron servos into easily excessible connector plugs. The radio is very nice and has a load of functions I never thought a trainer would have. But then again this isn't a normal trainer. I haven't taken it to the airfeild yet, no fuel. I need to go to Tegucigualpa to get the fuel. But I can't wait to learn to fly this beautiful aircraft. After all, it is a completely different approach to getting into R/C airplanes.

My goal is to get good enough with the Mustang PTS to become a confident sports pilot. I'm a big fan of WWII warbirds and want to start collecting a flying scale r/c versions of them. My ultimate goal is to built the Hanger 9 P-51 Mustang 150. Thanks for reading, good luck flying.