CU AES Preps for Alaska

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On Monday February 9, a group from Colorado University’s Research and Engineering Center for Unmanned Vehicles, which is part of CU Boulder’s Aerospace Engineering Sciences department test flew a RC Pilatus.  They plan to take the plane to Alaska to do an artic environmental survey and had concerns about carburetor freezing in the cold so they had converted it from gas to electric.  They flew several laps, then flew a preprogramed pattern on auto-pilot, and had a smooth landing for a successful test flight.

James Mack is the pilot and an AAM member;  Doug Weibel is a graduate research assistant;  Tevis Nichols is a graduate research assistant;  Gijs de Boer is with the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences which is a joint institute between NOAA and CU;  and Brian Argrow is a professor at Aerospace Engineering Sciences.

Legacy High School Aeronautics Class Demo 2015

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February 5th 2015, the Arvada Associated Modelers Club attended Legacy High School; in particular Mr. Godman’s aviation class. The class was made up of approximately 15 high school boys who are interested in aviation. On display we had numerous foam fixed-wing aircraft, a gyro copter, a quad-copter and a large scale aerobatics 28 lb. airplane. In addition Joe Falconer brought his hexacopter with a 3 axis gimbal and live feed camera.

ed started us off talking about the club and promoting our flight instruction. The class gathered around the large scale aircraft that Ted brought. The students asked relevant and thoughtful questions about Ted’s aircraft. We discussed how the plane works, the amount of electronics on board and approximate costs. He tied it into AAM’s training program and the students seemed very interested. Pat then talked about his aircraft and showed the functionality of his foam aircraft. There were a lot of questions for Pat about how much his aircraft cost and how hard it was to fly. Dewey then told everyone about his scratch built gyro-copter and explained how stable the design was. Finally Joe explained his hexacopter and how the 3 axis gimbal works along with an explanation of the future of UAS. A lot of questions revolved around cost.

Once we were done with the conversation portion of the demo we went to the gymnasium to demonstrate the capabilities of the multi-rotors. Pat went first and showed how stable his multi-rotor was indoors. Apparently if you can get the quad to use your head as a reference point it will follow you around as you walk. The students seemed to enjoy the demo that Pat gave. Joe was next to fly his hexacopter. He explained how he needed to calibrate the compass then gave a student a remote to control the camera. He also brought FPV equipment so the video signal was transmitted to a monitor the students could see. In addition Joe brought a pair of FatShark FPV goggles and the students took turns looking through the goggles.

The flight portion was uneventful and the students seemed to be enjoying themselves. Multiple people asked about the flight instruction that AAM offers. We expect we will see some of them at the field in the near future.

AAM Teaches Kids to Build

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On Thursday, January 22, a few of our club members visited Little Elementary School and taught some children how to build AMA Cubs, a balsa and tissue rubber band-powered airplane.  After the glue had dried, our AAM members returned to the school on Friday, January 23 and watched the kids fly their airplanes in the gym.  What fun!

Pat Vachon and Dewey Loudenback put the program together and received help from Dick Snyder, Rod Sage, George Baxter, Bill Neyman, Denny Malone, Ted Hughes, and Richard Maszy.  Well done!

Frozen Finger Fun Fly 2015

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Keeping true to AAM tradition, we kicked off the new year with our Frozen Finger Fun Fly.  This year we had gorgeous weather and loads of snow on the ground which meant landing gear wouldn’t work.  Several spectators showed up to watch the eleven contestants fly three timed events.  Once the points were added, Joe Pirozzoli took first place in the Expert Class while Dave Jones took first in the Novice Class.  Thankfully the worst incurred damage was a broken prop.

Stay safe and enjoy this year!

Photos taken by Rod Sage.

Turkey Wing Fun Fly 2014

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Nine contestants and many spectators showed up for the annual Turkey Fun Fly on Saturday after Thanksgiving. After three events, the points were tallied and Brad Weissenfels took 1st place followed by Lanny Hansen with 2nd and Joe Pirozzoli with 3rd in the expert category. In the novice category, Sam Sandoval took 1st, followed by Marv White with 2nd, and JD LaVasseur with 3rd. Ribbons were handed out for the top three positions plus a special Gold Plastic Cup was awarded to Sam Sandoval for getting the highest points in all three events. During the competition, we had a light cross wind; however just minutes after we opened the field to all, a squall came through and took out at least one plane.

Thanks to all who attended.

Rod Sage

Pictures by Joe Pirozzoli.

Arvada City Council Recognizes Brian O’Meara and Arvada Associated Modelers for 2014 Warbirds Over the Rockies

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By Joe Pirozzoli

The Arvada City Council presented Certificates of Recognition to Brian O’Meara and the Arvada Associated Modelers for bringing another “unique” and charitable event to the community. Councilmember Bob Fifer, on behalf of the City Council, presented the certificates at the 20-October-2014 Council Meeting.

Councilmember Fifer remarked… “The great air battles of the World Wars took place far from the open fields of north Arvada. However, for a weekend in September the triumphs of military aircraft were showcased at the Warbirds Over the Rockies model aviation event. With a passion for history, aviation and modeling, Brian O’Meara was instrumental in bringing the Warbirds Over the Rockies event to the Arvada Modelers Airpark. The weekend long air show, previously held in Ault, Colorado, drew modelers from all over the globe and gave members of the Arvada community the opportunity to view scale models of historic military aircraft in ground displays, flight and even mock battles complete with pyrotechnics. City council would like to recognize Brian for his efforts organizing this exciting event in our community at one of our most unique parks. City council would also like to recognize the Arvada Associated Modelers for hosting this event. In particular, Jim Manley President of AAM was instrumental in facilitating the move from Ault and coordinating the event that brought together military aircraft hobbyists and historians. As well as a unique opportunity for the public to learn more about aviation history during war time. A portion of the proceeds from the event were donated to the Colorado chapter of Mental Health America.”

Councilmember Fifer, Mayor Williams and others encouraged Brian and AAM to pursue WOTR at the Arvada Airpark. Their support and encouragement were vital to moving the event to Arvada. Brian went on to say that there were over 125 pilots from all over the U.S. and from 7 different countries around the globe. The event also attracted over 5000 spectators and donated $25,000 to Colorado Mental Health.

This is a great honor for both Brian and AAM. It reinforces that WOTR belongs here in Arvada and that our efforts were very well placed. Thanks to everyone that helped make WOTR such a huge success. In particular, we owe Jim Manley a huge debt of gratitude for the role he played in bringing WOTR to AAM and then for organizing and executing the effort. Thanks Jim, and we wish you all the best!

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How To Wire FPV For Your Aircraft

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First Person View (FPV) is a relatively new part of the aeromodeling hobby allowing the pilot to fly with goggles showing the view from a camera mounted on the RC aircraft.  A second pilot is present for safety and situation awareness.  During our April General Meeting, Mike Fontenot presented to the club how to wire FPV for your aircraft.  You can either download the PDF or view it below:

[gview file=”http://www.arvadamodelers.com/wp-content/uploads/presentations/FPV-Wiring-Howto.pdf”]

Pack 969 Enjoys a Successful Rocket Launch

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Pack 969 Rocket Launch 1On September 27th at 9:30 AM, Cub Scout pack 969, out of Westminster, visited the Arvada Associated Modelers Club for their traditional rocket launching event. Approximately 15 youngsters showed up whose ages ranged from 6 to 10 years old. They all brought rockets which were built at home and purchased from local hobby shops. Rockets ranged from mini size, A10-3t, up to a 6 foot, D12-3, multi-staged rocket. Albeit the D12-3 rocket was built, owned and flown by a parent, but he was a kid at heart. The purpose of the event was to pass an ‘achievement’ towards one of their Cub Scout badges.

Pack 969 Rocket Launch 2The weather was perfect, an absolutely beautiful Colorado day, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. JD started the day off by flying his Carbon Cub for a couple of touch and goes, loops and slow rolls. The kids and especially the adults seemed to enjoy the short airshow.

Pack 969 Rocket Launch 3Once Mick, the troop leader, talked to the group to emphasize safety and the rules of the field, the Cub Scouts started to prepare their rockets for launch. Three at a time were placed on the launch pad; each scout was able to launch their own rocket. Although there were a few minor technical difficulties, as to be expected, the launches went off without a hitch. In fact the first few, that were launched, were so straight and the wind was so calm, they almost landed back on the launch pad after reaching a height of about 500 to 600 feet.

JD and Dennis McNally donated numerous hobby materials and rocket parts to help with the Cub Scout’s event.

Parents and children enjoyed a fun filled Saturday with each other while experiencing the excitement and thrill of launching rockets at the Arvada Associated Modelers Club.