For those readers not completely familiar with the sport-hobby,
aeromodeling is defined as the patient painstaking assembly and
construction of model aircraft, usually made of a light porous
wood, purely for the joy and pleasure of participating in remote
control flight. Given that many people are not even aware that
such a hobby exists, those that have heard of the sport tend to
misunderstand its basic motivations.
During the years when various Caribbean islands such as Jamaica
were experimenting with various ideological forms of government,
we were told by our comrades in power that aeromodeling was a
sport for the bougeois elite and that there was no intrinsic
value either socially or individually, in being able to either
build or remotely control model aircraft. "Its a luxury for the
rich", they said.
As a result, government policies reflected this attitude with
prohibitive import duties on those items that could be linked
directly to the hobby. As a result, vital modeling accessories
such engines, balsa wood, paint, or "dope" as it is sometimes
called, were extremely difficult to obtain. Other
items such as the fuel sometimes had to be made at home, giving
rise to various "home brews" consisting largely of methanol and
caster oil. On closer examination it was clear to many, both
inside and outside the hobby community, that these unreasonable
and short sighted import policies, benefited only those persons
to whom it was intended to discourage or penalize, thereby
contradicting the very purpose of the policies themselves.
Fortunately, a lot has changed since those days but it has been
a slow and tedious process.
Aeromodelling has also been misunderstood by the spouses and
friends of some modelers. Not fully understanding the nature or
motivation for the hobby, some simply concluded that their mate
was trapped in a boyhood fantasy unable to mature into full
adulthood. I know of one case where a certain young lady would be
apprehensive about appearing with her boyfriend at many of the
regular model plane events, unless of course she could blend
in with the crowd as an anonymous spectator.
So what is it about modelers ? What motivates them ? Is it all
a waste of time ? A lesuire sport for the elite ? Well, I guess
we each have our own unique experiences so let me share a few of
mine.
I was in my early teens the first time I saw a model plane fly.
Although it was a control line model, which flew around its pilot
in circles, it touched a raw nerve in my creative spirit. I felt
the uncontrollable urge to build my own model just to have that
experience - even if I had to chop down my own balsa tree and cut
my own wood.
My first flight was a control line model, powered by a miniature
..O49 cu inch engine. The airplane itself was rather heavy, given
all the coats of"dope" I used in trying to get a finish like the
perfect ones shown in the model magazines. And so with a dull
yellow finish, and a wingspan of about 18 inches, my first model
actually lifted off the ground in a cloud of dust. I distinctly
remember a flawless flight followed by a smooth graceful landing
of both the plane and myself into the grass - yes I was very
dizzy and quite unprepared for the world continuing to spin
around me even after the plane had stopped.
Of course there was much frustration initially, since many of the
so-called hobby stores didn't carry any of the necessary modeling
supplies, due of course, to all the duty restrictions mentioned
earlier. The only thing I could find occasionally were the
pre-packaged plastic models made by Cox, that sometimes fly
backwards if you start the engine the wrong way. Eventually, I
was able to link up with one or two individuals that seemed
to be able to get supplies from abroad and this was enough to
keep me going for a while.
In time I became familiar with some of the standard model
building terms such as "Spars, ribs, bellcranks, landing gear,
center of gravity, elevator and rudder". As time progressed, I
also became intimately familiar with some of the flight terms
like "inverted", "deadstick", "stall" and "crack-up". Some of
these terms are quite memorable, especially when you experience
them in that order! Some of the more experienced modelers might
be able to relate to that.
I must add at this point, that my progress in the hobby was not
alone. All my very close friends got involved too. Together we
experienced some very special times, which, even as mature adults
we still take great delight in recalling. In fact my initial
introduction to the hobby came one long hot summer in the early
seventies when I met a very gifted and inspiring young fellow
from Trinidad. All of us, together with a next door neighbour who
had just completed the famous "Lil' Bean" model (Carl Goldberg),
headed over to the playing field of a near by school. Pretty soon
the little model was airborne, dancing and prancing through the
air, responding instantly to the commands of its pilot.
Once all the experienced flyers had each taken a flight, my
interest perked and I started firing off questions. Calmly and
patiently my friend from Trinidad gave me a very effective
on-the-spot course in building my own model airplane from scratch
- which I completely memorized. The summer slipped by quickly and
once more I was back at school. In the meantime I continued to
correspond with my friend in Trinidad as we kept each other
updated on our flying progress.
In a flash the next summer had arrived and my friend from
Trinidad was visiting again. I was amazed at how he had
progressed in his flying. The size of his models had grown from a
mere 18 inches to an intimidating 70 inch wingspan and his flying
skills now consisted of inverted flight and various types of
loops. He was also very active in a very well organized flying
club. "Martin would you like to come to Trinidad and fly" he
asked me. Now, how does an unemployed teenager who is spending
all his pocket money on model airplane flying come up with
airfare to fly from Kingston to Port Of Spain?", I wondered. "All
you have to do is form a club and I will take care of the rest",
he assured me in his usual calm but supremely confident voice.
And so in the months to follow, and with the encouragement of my
dear friend Stephen Lutchman from Trinidad, the constitution for
the Jamaica Model Airplane Club (JMAC) was legally drafted by my
father and a club was officially founded with some ten members -
three high school teenagers and six adults. This was and still
is, to the best of my knowledge, the first and only
constitutionally founded aero modeling flying club in Jamaica. My
father was made an honary member for his valuable contribution in
this area.
Well, in a very short time, airplane tickets arrived for six
members of JMAC to fly, courtesy of BWIA, from Kingston to
Port-of-Spain to participate in an International flying
competition, in which I won a silver medal. One of the very few
medals I have ever one, I must add. The entire event which took
place at Chagaramas airfield was quite a testament to Stephen's
organizational skills. I know of no other individual that could
pull sometime like that off - and at such a young age. The adult
members of our club, who initially were quite skeptical ended up
being very impressed with the entire execution and organization
of this event. And so my modeling career started off with a blaze
of interest and a flurry of activity.
As I look back at all my experiences with this hobby, the one
thing that still continues to amaze me is how unselfish most
modelers are. I have never encountered a modeler that didn't have
the time to answer questions, regardless of how busy they might
be. Even more surprising is the willingness to go the extra mile
and provide assistance and advise to other modelers in whatever
area was proving difficult.
After hearing of my passion for the sport, you might conclude
that my school work took a beating. In fact the opposite was
true. I found that my interest in subjects like physics and maths
was heightened. It was easy to relate to topics like "centripetal
force" which is the force required to keep an object moving in a
circle, or Bernoulli's principle as it relates to aerofoil design
and lift. What keeps an engine running after you disconnect the
battery ? Why is an airplane able to glide after the engine
stops ? It was the interest generated by modeling that gave me
the motivation to successfully complete both O' and A' level
Maths and Physics- undoubtedly the hardest exams I have ever done
in my life !!
I also found that modeling helps to shape the ego by providing
precise doses of humility at just the right time! Late one
Saturday evening John arrived at the field - big car, big model,
big radio, big ego. Without taking time to acknowledge any of his
fellow modelers and anxious to show-off his flying skills, his
new bright red "Quick Fly" radio controlled model slips into the
air from a near perfect takeoff. Within minutes there is a sudden
silence as the "Quick Fly", and John's ego, submerge into a six
inch crator at the foot of the small grass runway. There is a
sudden flurry of activity as other modelers rush to the crash
site to survey the damage.
Meanwhile a couple guys walk over to console John, still standing
in disbelief with radio on, trying to comprehend why the ground
so violently attacked his model. Very quickly the report comes
back. "John, your radio and engine are ok, but you'll need a new
model" they advise candidly. After the salvage operation is
complete and the remaining pieces of balsa and bright red
monocote are retrieved, John hangs around at the field wondering
how the very people he ignored at first could be so willing to
help him during his time of loss. John has now become a true
unselfish modeler and will now remember that he is amongst
friends whenever he returns to the field next week.
I must confess that writing this article has caused me to again
survey the landscape of my own accomplishments in life thus far -
a degree, a consultant practice, a group of lifetime friends, and
last but not least a wonderful family. Yet I must attribute alot
of this to God's grace along with my early involvement with
modeling. It is difficult for me to imagine what I would have
done without this magnificent outlet for creative energy.
In this day and age where our levels of personal and social
interaction seem constrained by the electronic gods of TV and
computers, model airplane flying is still a very relevant and
valuable hobby which can inspire young teens as well as adults
for a lifetime.
Cheers,
Martin Carberry