Safety

[wonwinglo]

:ohno: Now I did manage to finally get flying this evening but my experience was somewhat marred by the inconsiderate behaviour of a few,we all should I hope have safety in the back of our minds after the terrible accident last year to that young girl who was tragically killed when struck by a model,we must never forget the consequences that could happen if we have another accident like that however it seems that some modellers still have not learned a lesson from this,this evening I went flying to a site that I only use now and again,my normal site was un-available so hence the shift,it is a fairly tight strip flanked by a main road but flyable over open country,cars are parked in a layby with a sterile area that is used for overshoots,dead sticks or any emergency,it is an unwritten rule that this area is kept clear hence my concern when three little girls set up toys etc and started to play in this potentially dangerous area,I asked the children to move please and come away from the strip,they did so only I was then repremanded by their parents for moving their children,I poined out that it was unsafe as what would happen if there was a dead stick landing ? to which the mother reploied they will move away when the aeroplanes start flying ! at this time models were in the air and should any one of them have had problems then the sterile area would have been needed,the father who had just landed also had a go at me saying,anyway you wwere flying your helicopter there ! well big deal it is an airstrip not a childrens playground after all ?

Later said person insisted on flying his 3-D model smack bang in the middle of the strip just hovering when everyone was trying to take off or land,this in effect impaired take offs and landings,so in the air at that time we had-a 3D model,young lad with a trainer,a low wing model and myself trying to fly my Cub in a small area trying to keep away from said person with the 3D model ! talk about inconsideration for other flyers ?

Th strip in my mind should be kept clear for landings and take offs and not an area for personal practise,some people never learn do they,and who would be the first to complain if his children had been hurt with a model ?

An evenings flying spoiled.

What do forum members think,have you had any similar circumstances of bad flying behaviour ? and was I being unreasonable in asking for the children to move back ?

 

[adzam]

as always safety is of teh utmost of importance, peopel do take it teh wrong way however kindly they are asked to move children from a certain spot. some people take it as a personal attack towards thier family for some reason. i know you talk of safety which should be respected at ALL times. but there are also the `inconsiderate` public who choose to feed swans when people are sailing, or feed sea gulls when there is a flying demo on .

i know exactly where you are coming from mate, but people`s common sense seems to leave them for some reason in teh most obvious of reasons. and when intervention is required, you are the worst person in the world to sustain a point.

strange but true.

the only thing people seem to take notice of is DANGER notice`s , then they seem to take offence and again you feel like your hobby is somewhat perverse for the demands that are required.

in another way, you cant win, maybe just aim to break even

 

[wonwinglo]

Wise words of wisdom dear Adzam,we can only try our best,after all this is a great hobby and we just want to protect our interests,you have hit the nail bang on the head when you say some people take it personally,some people just cannot see any danger signs can they ?

 

[Wowbagger]

Hi all! I think I can guess where you were flying this evening Wonwinglo. Yes, it's a difficult area, made more so by inconsideration. When I hover or perform low level aerobatics over the strip I wait until the air is clear and no-one is flying. Everyone catches on to this it seems, and on a busy day, like seem to fly with like, each respecting the other's discipline. But, as you have found, it only takes one inconsiderate person and it ends in chaos, and maybe for the less experienced, a crash due to the mayhem of models all over the place and being unable to hear your own engine. I've seen it a few times. And why couldn't the fun fly guy hover to the side of the strip and away from the active runway area? It's just inconsideration. Showing off, perhaps?

As to the children; well, they should have been kept well away from the strip and the surrounding area. IMHO having children near model flying is courting disaster.

The whole safety thing is becoming a mania in some places.

I hope this board doesn't become another source of long lists of safety bullitins because, frankly, I'm sick of hearing about it everywhere I turn. In America, clubs are banning 3D flying and some manoeuvres are against the AMA code. We don't really want divisions to creep into our hobby here in the UK do we? If people cannot be tolerant of one anothers discipline then we will probably see the continuing decline of aeromodelling. Fun Fly and 3D are the only areas that are attracting young blood into flying, a lot of whom move on to IMAC and pattern or large models or scale and what have you. Fun Fly and 3D are a magnet for bringing in the youngsters. Don't squash it before it starts!

Ultimately, safety boils down to common sense and consideration.

Anyway, sorry your evening session was spoiled.

 

[duncan]

:wish: Wowbagger "common sense" wont do it. Manners ,applied to the rules, is the answer I think. Human nature being what it is, one man`s common sense isnt always the other guys. Bad habits and a "cushy-ness" ,familiarity with regulars at the strip all gets upset when a newcomer arrives to fly or spectate. When the rules are pointed out it sometimes "spoils the fun" and perhaps loss of a new flier to the club. They probably go and fly on their own causing more problems. BMFA have thousands of man-hour-flights experience and hence "the rules" (SAA in Scotland). I dispair at the number of cheap electric "toy" R/C flying models that bit the dust just after Christmas and birthdays, all on our 200 mph gas turbine frequencies. Hope this doesnt get the forum bogged down. We are all guilty, when we think nobody is looking we all take the odd risk.:shh: Just my two Groats worth. Duncan

 

[adzam]

aha !

it all comes down to the "human factor"

say no more. as soon as a human gets involved, the outcome is unpredictable.

 

[Wowbagger]

Hi Duncan. Yes, you're probably right. There's always one isn't there, sooner or later. I'm pretty lucky in my club I think, people do take the trouble to be courteous, although we have had one or two over the years!

I was going to post later about newcomers - potentially the biggest risk of all!

We have one right now. He's had a few flights with a trainer and now he's on a 60 powered Extra 300 despite much good advice from half the club! All eyes are on that model I can tell you. He has a hairy swoop around before the inevitable engine cut and rough landing, generally about two hundred yards away, with udercarriage removal. It doesn't matter how much friendly advice is given he seems to completely ingnore it! He's a nice bloke though and seems to have the normal quotient off intelligence. Odd isn't it?

Of course, if it wasn't for the ARTF syndrome, it would probably be a different story, if he'd had to spend a few months building the thing he'd probably have picked something a little less ambitious! That's part of the danger of the ARTF, isn't it? Both pain and pleasure.

Damn friggerty ARTF's! :rolleyes: Hmmm, really fancy that Jamara Pitts though! :cheesygri

Adzam, yes, very true mate!

 

[Wowbagger]

Just found out today that the contentious AMA Rule 9, which outlawed tail touching from the hover, has been modified after a two hour debate to allow this manoeuvre after huge pressure from AMA members many of whom had set up breakaway organisations such as Save3D, I3D and The Profile Brotherhood, all of whom have websites to further their cause.

I feel the real reason for this sudden change of heart was the amount of individuals and clubs who were willing to deaffiliate over it. Anyway, good news. Bravo to the Bro's! :bravo: