Places to fly rc planes?

Silanos

New member
Hello everyone, I’m new to the hobby and have been looking to purchase an fms ranger rtf, it seems like a pretty good plane for begginers, can I fly the plane in a decent open park with little to no trees, but js surrounded by houses, a middle school and a neighborhood, it’s like a big square field with a large hill that goes up to another square field, (there’s also a basketball court kinda on the field but not in the way). Is that a good place to learn/fly?
 

Foamforce

Elite member
Wide open spaces are your friend when you’re learning. A good starting space would be maybe 8 football fields Put together. It’s surprising how quickly things can get out of hand. Every obstruction jumps right in front of you. 🙂

If you only have a park, I would suggest getting a smaller 1s plane, like the Volantex 400mm series. They’re extremely light which means that you can fly them slowly and they don’t get damaged easily. Also, they’re less threatening to other people in the park since they look more like a harmless toy and don’t make much noise. FliteTest has a number of good models too, like the Mini Tutor and Mini Scout. Just look for something sub-250g so that you don’t need the FAA transponder.
 

Mr NCT

VP of SPAM killing
Moderator
I agree with @Foamforce . Rules differ depending on what country you are in. If you're not in the US be sure to check your local laws.
 

Piotrsko

Master member
Schools anymore are resistant to people doing flight on "Their" Grounds at least in the West coast of 'Murica. Everyone's been freaky since 9-11

For a beginner, you want at least 400ft by 400 ft of empty ground. Area Soccer fields without light poles or buildings. Local Area league football fields for many games at once More empty flat space is better.
ASK before you fly, it helps to have your plane for show and tell The dude that shows up with garish flashing red and blue lights tends to be overprotective and under appreciative of your hobby
 

L Edge

Master member
Best not to have people around so if you "loose" it, no one will get hurt.

And worst of all, a dog off the leash loves chasing, a prop cutting him would not look good in the news for you and for our sport.
 

bisco

Elite member
start with a planeunder 250g. you can fly it anywhere there aren't people.
horizon hobby sport cub is a good starter because it has a gyro to help you learn to fly.
and there are less expensive options on amazon et al.
 

Tench745

Master member
I started with a Hobbyzone Champ, flying in a local park or one of the many school sports fields (on weekends when no one was around to care). I would only fly at the parks when there was no one nearby in case things got away from me, and they did a number of times. If people came around, especially if they had a dog, I would land as far from them as practical and wait till they left.

Looks like the FMS Ranger comes in three sizes. If you have your heart set on the Ranger and you're teaching yourself to fly, I would consider the 850mm one.

The #1 piece of advice newbies hear is this: If you haven't yet, get an RC flight simulator. You'll save yourself a whole lot of headache if you get the hang of flying the sim before you head out into the real world. Simulators aren't reality, but they give you a good feel for what to expect without crunching a real model into the dirt.