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Dan Avila has been flying this BVM F-100 (above left) for about 15 years now and its finish remains as impeccable as it was when new. The model was almost lost when a very old servo connection began acting up. Dan recognized something was wrong, landed, tested and replaced all the servos (with newer


and controls it with a Spectrum DX18 radio. More information about the Me 262 and his other offerings is available directly from Joe Saitta via e-mail, b17gjoe@juno.com, by phone at 727-398-4417 or by snail mail at 10672 94th Place North, Seminole, FL 33772. The third plane that made me go “Wow!” was Brian O’Meara’s large Skymaster F9F Cougar. While I have seen a Skymaster Cougar in the air before and been very im- pressed with it, Brian takes scale to a high- er level, featuring a canopy he can open in flight, both body and wing flaps, as well as the speed brake. When a full dirty pass is made with all of the above hanging out cre- ating lots of drag, it needs much more pow- er and noise. This is a truly impressive air- plane, and big. At 98 inches long with a


and stronger digitals), wiring harnesses, air lines and fuel lines and has had many subsequent problem-free flights over the last several years. Dan’s F-80 (above right) is covered with (now long-gone) Presto film. This airplane has to be 10 years old, and still looks and flies as nicely as when it was new.


65-inch wingspan, this 36-pound airplane is easy to see in the sky!


I would be remiss if I did not mention Dan Avila’s beautiful birds. He knows how to build, how to cover, how to set up and trim and how to maintain his airframes. But most importantly, he knows how to listen and observe for irregularities as a sign that things aren’t correct and get them back on the deck and troubleshoot them. He is also very willing to help anyone who asks to get their plane set up correctly. Not only that, but he brings them to fly, and fly he does. He logged many flights each day on all of the planes in his squadron.


Last month, I mentioned the aborted maiden of Kevin Cox’s Boeing X-32B scratch-build due to sagging batteries. Well,


timing is everything in that yesterday he managed to get a maiden on his now totally primered and water-slide decaled beauty. Dan Eaton captured some good video with Kevin’s camera and Kevin managed to cap- ture several photos from the feed in order to post them on his RCGroups thread as well as the entire video one page later found on- line at: http://tinyurl.com/okcvyw4. You will notice the steep angle of climb out as a re- sult of a slight tail heavy situation, which made for a fun few minutes, until he man- aged to semi-trim it out, but the airplane is intact and will be ready to go when the next weather opportunity presents itself.


So,


here’s a big “Congratulations, Kevin!” That’s it for this time around, so until next time: fly safe, and trust in thrust!


Kevin Cox’s scratch-built X-32B (above left), now with an even coat of primer and decals, awaits its maiden flight. Sporting 1300 square inches of wing area, this 67-inch long labor of love has occupied Kevin’s thoughts and work space for 2½ years. Snipped from the video shot by Dan Eaton just after takeoff, the X-32


(above right) shows that she has really good power out of the 120mm fan and that she is tail-heavy. Kevin managed to get things under control and bring her back for a nice landing so that she can fly again at the very next good weather opportunity.


Mississippi Afterburner


EDF Jet Jam Texas Jets Virginia Jets


OC-Turbo Fest Idaho Jet Rally


FLYING MODELS April 24–26


May 8–11 May 15–17 June 6–8


June 20–22 June 20–22


Upcoming Events John Bell Williams Airport


Raymond, MS (suburb of Jackson) Muncie, IN at AMA HQ Mt. Pleasant, TX


Twin County Airport, Hillsville, VA Titusville Airport; Titusville, PA TVA field in Parma, ID


www.mississippijets.com www.mtpleasantrc.com


CD: Bill Jarrett, 276-237-0607 jacknbets@aol.com


www.flytva.blogspot.com 39


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