Reasonable winds for a foamy?

Hai-Lee

Old and Bold RC PILOT
If I have to wait to dead calm, I'm going to be waiting a long time... so just how much wind is reasonable with these ultra light electric planes?

I'm guessing less than 10mph
Anything less than a hurricane is OK if you know how to fly already. There is something that I do when flying in windy weather and that is to add some extra ballast and I make sure that I fly in an area where there are few trees or obstacles if possible.

One rule though! If you do not feel that you are capable of handling the bird in the wind, (regardless of the wind speed), do not attempt it.

You will need some finger skill if the wind is really blowing!

Have fun!
 

Captain Video

Well-known member
Depends on your skill level, the plane design and its weight. Heavier the plane, the better it handles the air. There are other factors as well but I try to fly in winds under 15mph.
 

Bricks

Master member
If a new pilot wait for 10 mph or less if experienced and you think you can handle the wind go for it.

I will fly my 32 inch EPP 3D plane in any wind slide the battery forward to make it nose heavy, it is fun to fly backwards, doing rolls while the plane is flying backwards or landing tail first. Many of my other planes I would not do this but this handles the wind extremely well. Funny but this light little plane is my go too plane when the wind is crazy.
 

Geronimo

Active member
If a new pilot wait for 10 mph or less if experienced and you think you can handle the wind go for it.

I will fly my 32 inch EPP 3D plane in any wind slide the battery forward to make it nose heavy, it is fun to fly backwards, doing rolls while the plane is flying backwards or landing tail first. Many of my other planes I would not do this but this handles the wind extremely well. Funny but this light little plane is my go too plane when the wind is crazy.

Wow, a 7 ounce plane in the wind! I have a lot to learn.
 

Piotrsko

Master member
ANNNDD just to be different, I fly slope which requires wind, the more the better. 60 mph is my current limit but that's too insane for most people..

On that thought, rule of thumb: take your plane outside, carefully hold the nose into the wind like for a launch but don't let it go. If it is bouncing around trying to escape your hand, it's too windy.
 

Merv

Site Moderator
Staff member
For me it's not the wind speed but the kind of wind that is most important. If it's a steady wind, then 20 mph is my limit. If it's a gusty wind 8-10 may shut me down.

It's not so much the speed of the wind but the abrupt change of speed and direction that is the problem.
 
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Figure9

Elite member
Wow, a 7 ounce plane in the wind! I have a lot to learn.

As a newbie there are 2 things I consider before every flight. I want my back to the sun & I would like be facing into the prevailing wind. The sun is most important of those two items. As you fly, having your back to the sun helps you maintain orientation by lighting the aircraft like you do when taking pictures. Facing into the wind assists you on the take off or toss off, which ever way you prefer to launch your plane. With a light weight & wind more than a light breeze, you might be able to keep it in front of you or at least try to land it if you can’t keep it in front of you. One last item I pay attention to is how much landing space I have available. I learned in a huge open field where I could land anywhere at any time during the flight & I never realized how hard it was to land on a given runway. I thought I had landing nailed down until I joined a club that has a runway in a tree lined mini-canyon with limited options for landing except on the runway. That means I needed to be competent enough to fly a pattern over the ground. I often hand my transmitter to an experienced flyer for landing if I don’t feel good about it or if the wind is a challenge, otherwise, no problem. Trees & poles are usually not much of a hassle when you maintain altitude in flight, but to fly among them is a challenge, especially in the wind. It only takes a light wind to complicate a mission when flying sub 250gr. Often, you’ll find that the higher you fly, the higher the wind you’ll need to deal with, sometimes from a different direction than you feel on the ground.
Good luck & fair winds...
 
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speedbirdted

Legendary member
For me, it isn't really wind speed but turbulence. If I have a constant, smooth 20 mph wind I'll be flying around all day but say that wind goes down to 10 mph but gets super turbulent and bumpy I usually pack up pretty fast. A constant wind is easy to work around, just messes with your frame of reference a bit before you really get used to it but after that it's pretty much a non-issue. It has its perks too - slow floaty planes are especially fun in wind because you can do stuff like land backwards.
 

Sero

Elite member
It's all been said but I'll put in my 2 cents.
Flying in the wind can be fun, but it all depends on which plane, and how consistent the wind is especially in direction.
Generally the higher the wing loading the plane is the better it will fly in wind.
 

Hai-Lee

Old and Bold RC PILOT
Just to clarify my earlier statement I will remind people that a site without obstacles is likely to have a somewhat uniform flow of air and so if the plane has a higher top speed than the wind it is possible to fly quite well.
On the other hand if the site is full of obstructions including trees the air becomes extremely turbulent and in turbulence even the best of pilots on the strongest and fastest planes can find their plane forced to the ground in a strong down draft or rolled on its side due to a column of rising air. The planes bucking can become beyond the planes handling ability and crashes can be quite common.

So apart from the pilot skill and the planes handling qualities the amount of air turbulence can be the limiting factor on flying your bird in the wind at any particular site. Know your site and how the wind is effected by it!

Have fun!
 

quorneng

Master member
This is exactly why slope soaring planes can be flown quite safely in ridiculously high wind speeds.
For slope soaring to work the wind has to be constant and for miles around the ground surface has to be relatively smooth and void of major obstructions.
 

Sero

Elite member
Just to clarify my earlier statement I will remind people that a site without obstacles is likely to have a somewhat uniform flow of air and so if the plane has a higher top speed than the wind it is possible to fly quite well.
On the other hand if the site is full of obstructions including trees the air becomes extremely turbulent and in turbulence even the best of pilots on the strongest and fastest planes can find their plane forced to the ground in a strong down draft or rolled on its side due to a column of rising air. The planes bucking can become beyond the planes handling ability and crashes can be quite common.

So apart from the pilot skill and the planes handling qualities the amount of air turbulence can be the limiting factor on flying your bird in the wind at any particular site. Know your site and how the wind is effected by it!

Have fun!

Yes exactly this, hence the reason I said consistent direction in my post. At one location that I fly the ground is sloped and there are trees, multiple forest edges and buildings (Family farm) that cause turbulent air. It can even seem calm where your standing yet trees at certain spots ,but not others, are blowing in the wind. Further down in the flats the wind direction is consistent.
 

Headbang

Master member
As everyone has said, wind is all about experience. I have my 40kph+ wind planes, and planes that would get blown away in a 30kph wind. I have 1 plane what has never flown in less then 35kph winds.