| R/C Sailplanes |
The Johnson family has had an affinity with flight since the early 1920's when a young JACK FRYE came to California to
find his dream, and ended up becoming TWA's (Trans World Airlines) first President in 1939. My Dad used to tell us
stories about Jack and his close relationship with Howard Hughes and later Donald Douglas working out the then new
and revolutionary DC-3 aircraft. Jack was the test pilot on the first generation DC-1. Second cousin Emily Nevada Smith
later became Jacks spouse until an unfortunate auto accident took his life while driving to work one sunny morning on
the way to developing a new transport plane. I guess air flight is kind of in our blood as I did a tour in the US Navy Plane
Captaining the A-6 Intruder jet aircraft. I have always had a core interest in flying the skies since a young boy when my
cousin Don took my new Christmas present, a gas powered warbird control line flyer right into the ground on its second
lap! I vividly remember that horrible demolition of such a cool little plane i knew would open up my young world, but it
never happened until later in life. 1990 became that year in which I decided to finally experience radio controlled flight
but this time without an engine. The day my radio controlled life changed was on a clear morning in the summer of 1990
in West Covina, Calif.
Ok, a short story and I'll wrap this up. Way back when I was a rookie high starting a 2 meter Gentle Lady at the local
High School football field, this guy shows up with a magnificent looking 3 meter super-sleek model. Now everybody there
is a member of the local flying club except me, and they use what they call "Winch Pull" devices to launch the models up
into the sky around 500ft before they release and soar the skies. This guys name by the way was Daryl Perkins, whom I
found out was one of the four currently active pilots on the US Soaring team in the F3B class. Daryl steps up and
launches his plane way beyond any other pilot up to this point and at the end of his pull he whips the model nose down
about 50ft then suddenly redirects it straight up towards the sun and gains another 100ft in altitude. We're talking 6 to
700 ft elevation now! I'm completely moved to the point that plane and pilot have my undivided attention.
I watched the plane go almost out of sight and down-field about three quarters of a mile and I can't figure out how he
can see it. He ends up thermaling for a good thirty minutes and then suddenly someone says "keep your eyes on the
plane and clear the field, he's coming through". The rookie that I was, I'm not sure what to do so I kind of brace myself
and finally find a slight glimmer in the sky off in the distance. The next thing, Daryl is pointing the plane down at about a
70deg incline and picking up speed, rapidly! I wonder when he's going to pull up and level off, but he keeps coming in
as the bystander said. Boy oh boy, he's not letting up, and then all of a sudden we could hear a horrible cutting sound
resonate the field. That plane is doing I would say at least 150 mph, maybe 180 as he finally levels off just above the
tree tops and continues across the field at a blistering speed. Then about 100 yards down field he pulls the craft up and
the thing just keeps on climbing as he does a couple rolls and then he's out of sight again. WOW, what happened? Can
you believe what we just witnessed?
Daryl then casually brings the plane in and lands it perfectly on a baseball cap and picks it up. Mind you, this is all
performed without an engine. This scene made a permanent impression on me so much so that I vowed one day I would
be able to do that kind of flying and that brand of SPEED!
Below is a collection of RC Sailplanes I have assembled and flown since 1990. Stick planes, Foam core
planes and Composite structure planes. The 90's were some grand years in Sailplanedom!
find his dream, and ended up becoming TWA's (Trans World Airlines) first President in 1939. My Dad used to tell us
stories about Jack and his close relationship with Howard Hughes and later Donald Douglas working out the then new
and revolutionary DC-3 aircraft. Jack was the test pilot on the first generation DC-1. Second cousin Emily Nevada Smith
later became Jacks spouse until an unfortunate auto accident took his life while driving to work one sunny morning on
the way to developing a new transport plane. I guess air flight is kind of in our blood as I did a tour in the US Navy Plane
Captaining the A-6 Intruder jet aircraft. I have always had a core interest in flying the skies since a young boy when my
cousin Don took my new Christmas present, a gas powered warbird control line flyer right into the ground on its second
lap! I vividly remember that horrible demolition of such a cool little plane i knew would open up my young world, but it
never happened until later in life. 1990 became that year in which I decided to finally experience radio controlled flight
but this time without an engine. The day my radio controlled life changed was on a clear morning in the summer of 1990
in West Covina, Calif.
Ok, a short story and I'll wrap this up. Way back when I was a rookie high starting a 2 meter Gentle Lady at the local
High School football field, this guy shows up with a magnificent looking 3 meter super-sleek model. Now everybody there
is a member of the local flying club except me, and they use what they call "Winch Pull" devices to launch the models up
into the sky around 500ft before they release and soar the skies. This guys name by the way was Daryl Perkins, whom I
found out was one of the four currently active pilots on the US Soaring team in the F3B class. Daryl steps up and
launches his plane way beyond any other pilot up to this point and at the end of his pull he whips the model nose down
about 50ft then suddenly redirects it straight up towards the sun and gains another 100ft in altitude. We're talking 6 to
700 ft elevation now! I'm completely moved to the point that plane and pilot have my undivided attention.
I watched the plane go almost out of sight and down-field about three quarters of a mile and I can't figure out how he
can see it. He ends up thermaling for a good thirty minutes and then suddenly someone says "keep your eyes on the
plane and clear the field, he's coming through". The rookie that I was, I'm not sure what to do so I kind of brace myself
and finally find a slight glimmer in the sky off in the distance. The next thing, Daryl is pointing the plane down at about a
70deg incline and picking up speed, rapidly! I wonder when he's going to pull up and level off, but he keeps coming in
as the bystander said. Boy oh boy, he's not letting up, and then all of a sudden we could hear a horrible cutting sound
resonate the field. That plane is doing I would say at least 150 mph, maybe 180 as he finally levels off just above the
tree tops and continues across the field at a blistering speed. Then about 100 yards down field he pulls the craft up and
the thing just keeps on climbing as he does a couple rolls and then he's out of sight again. WOW, what happened? Can
you believe what we just witnessed?
Daryl then casually brings the plane in and lands it perfectly on a baseball cap and picks it up. Mind you, this is all
performed without an engine. This scene made a permanent impression on me so much so that I vowed one day I would
be able to do that kind of flying and that brand of SPEED!
Below is a collection of RC Sailplanes I have assembled and flown since 1990. Stick planes, Foam core
planes and Composite structure planes. The 90's were some grand years in Sailplanedom!
| Carl Goldberg SOPHISTICATED LADY. An all wood open bay wing construction, 2 meter entry level plane. 2 channel Elevator-Rudder controls. A very doscile and great plane to learn sailplane dynamics and principles of flight. |
| Carl Goldberg GENTLE LADY. An all wood open bay wing construction generally the same as its sister plane above. A classic worth building and flying. This one was left to me from my fathers collection, |
| Hobby Shack RIDGE-RUNT. This is an entry level 2 channel aileron-rudder model. Open bay construction, all wood model. A decent trainer step towards composite models. |
| This is a Bob Martin Models COYOTE slope flyer. 70" swept winspan 2 channel aerobatic ship that requires new and improved flying skills. A challenging step but a fun one when flying in strong slope lift conditions. This plane also advances one's building skills. |
| Now we're moving into combat flyng and tight maneuverability as well as durability. The Cheetah Models SUPER-CHEETAH is a great aileron trainer, fun flyer that can be a very serious contender for the skies. This plane is about the most durable and survivable plane in my quiver. A classic worth seeking in any condition and restoring. |
| This is an original "scratch built" GIGOLO designed by Dale Winder and later distributed by Hobby Shack. A very aerobatic pattern plane with symmetrical airfoil. 60" span and a real handful until you get happy with its responsiveness. It can perform any and all trick maneuvers as much as you can feed it. |
| My second scratch built plane called the STELETTO. A little sleeker and a bit more quick equally maneuverable as the GIGOLO. |
| CR Aircraft CLIMAX 60" hand launch plane. Only 14oz in total weight and loves to catch thermal lift in most any shcool yard field. |
| By 1992 the need for speed kicked in and we developed the EXCELORATOR, 80" wooden missile. Patterned after the famous V-Max this heavy plane is reserved for those heavy slope lift days when you want to fly big aerobatics or just want to speed around filling that need for an adrenalin rush! VIDEO |
| The RAPTOR was next developed as a 6 channel full-house ship. Aileron, flaps, rudder and elevator flight controls to be able to fly the full spectrum of the hobby. This is a 80" version with a E374 airfoil. Very smooth and precise ship that trains one to go to the next and ultimate step of RC Sailplaning. |
| The Mark Allan F3B-EAGLE above in 1993 was one of the worlds leading competition planes for the championship caliber pilot. My flying buddy and I built one together to explore the ultimate RC sailplane experience. 109" RG-15 airfoil full house ship weighing 83oz. The plane can be configured to carry another 64oz of lead ballast for extended kinetic penetration energy. This is a multi-task composite plane that is a dream to fly. It can literally be flown vertical to the earth at very high altitudes and withstand a quick 90 degree level off over 150mph without failure! My NEED 4 SPEED was finally met with the Eagle! Where does it stand today (Aug 2009)? I was absent from the sport since 1997 and have returned invigorated to pick up where I left off but in a new direction. Currently I am re-introducing a classic all wood ship called the GRYPHON. This is a highly aerobatic 71" wing that I have always wanted but was unable to source back in the day. I have the written approval rights to reproduce this model from its owner, Bob Martin. Below are a couple photos and video of the build for your viewing pleasure. For more info go to the build log on RCGroups.com here. Click for the 393mph World Speed record with a 100" radio controlled sailplane. Thats right, NO MOTOR! I hope you have enjoyed this RC Sailplane journey...EJ |
