23
Takeoff
The goals of your fi rst fl ight should be to trim the airplane
and familiarize yourself with the airplane’s fl ight and landing
characteristics. You’ll want to perform a few tests at a safe
altitude to see how the airplane reacts. Take an assistant with
you or ask a friend at your fl ying fi eld to help you spot other
traffi c, adjust your trim for you, and mind the time as you fl y.
If you have access to a paved runway, we suggest using it to
takeoff especially for the fi rst few fl ights. Position the SPAD
XIII onto the runway pointed into the wind. Slowly advance
the throttle stick to half throttle, pulling back slightly on the
elevator to keep from nosing over. As the tail rises off the
ground, slowly increase throttle and apply a bit of up elevator
to lift the model into the air.
If you do not have access to a smooth runway or short grass, the
SPAD XIII can be hand launched. For the fi rst fl ight, have your
assistant launch the plane for you. This allows you to keep your
hands on the radio sticks and correct any trim problems that
are present. Have the person launching the plane hold it by the
fuselage just behind the lower wing. Throttle up to full power,
and have your helper give the plane a gentle toss at about a
30-degree angle upward into the wind. Climb to a comfortable
altitude and throttle back to a lower power setting.
Flight
When you get up to a safe altitude and are throttled back to
a comfortable fl ying speed, let go of the right stick and see
if the plane dives or climbs. Have your assistant add some
elevator trim and aileron trim if necessary. Fly the plane a bit
more and further adjust your throttle. Make a few more trim
changes while you fl y your traffi c pattern. Execute normal left
and right aileron turns, watching the tail to see how it drops
in each turn. Make a few more turns, adding a bit of rudder
to coordinate your turns.
While still at a safe altitude slow your airplane down and
execute a normal, straight-ahead, power-off stall. Hold full
elevator and watch how the airplane breaks at the stall. If it
“wing-walks,” keep in mind that rudder will have more effect
than ailerons will at low power settings. Knowing your stall
characteristics will prepare you to judge the airplane’s speed
on landing, so pay special attention to how the airplane feels
when it’s slowing down to a stall. If your plane enters a spin
from a stall, neutralize your elevator and ailerons and add
opposite rudder as you throttle up. The goal is to get the
stalled wing fl ying again.
When you’re comfortable with stalls, try some slow speed
maneuvering. Practice making shallow left and right banking
turns at low power while holding your altitude. Pay attention to
how the airplane tries to fall into the turn. At slow speeds you
will fi nd that you will initiate a banking turn with a little aileron,
but to hold the turn you’ll need rudder and a little opposite
aileron to keep your bank angle. Try transitioning from left to
right and making turns into the wind and with the wind.
Line yourself up for a few practice landing approaches. Slow
down and line yourself up while practicing your descent.
Establish a glide slope that the airplane likes and use power
to adjust your descent rate while holding a constant pitch
angle. Power up and go around. Remember that you have
about 8 minutes of safe fl ying with the batteries we’ve
recommended here.
Landing
Respecting your fl ying fi eld’s current traffi c pattern (landing
into the wind), enter your downwind leg at half-throttle and
maintain altitude as you set up for landing. You should
anticipate at least a 200 foot fi nal approach, so start your
base leg turn with that in mind. Your base leg will start your
descent. On base, reduce power to 1/4 throttle. Turn to fi nal
and power back. Establish a comfortable glide slope and use
the power to control your descent rate. Blipping the throttle
may help you get a feel for where your throttle should be.
When you’re over the runway, power off and settle into a
fl are. Remember that if it’s going to be a bad landing, go
around and try it again. When you land, rollout is short and
should be performed “tail-low” to keep from nosing over.
One fi nal note about fl ying your model: Have a goal or fl ight
plan in mind for every fl ight. This can be learning a new
maneuver(s), improving a maneuver(s) you already know,
or learning how the model behaves in certain conditions
(such as on high or low rates). This is not necessarily to
improve your skills (though it is never a bad idea!), but more
importantly so you do not surprise yourself by impulsively
attempting a maneuver and suddenly fi nding that you’ve run
out of time, altitude or airspeed. Every maneuver should be
deliberate, not impulsive. For example, if you’re going to do a
loop, check your altitude, mind the wind direction (anticipating
rudder corrections that will be required to maintain heading),
remember to throttle back at the top, and make certain you
are on the desired rates (high/low rates). A fl ight plan greatly
reduces the chances of crashing your model just because of
poor planning and impulsive moves. Remember to think.
Have a ball!
But always stay in control and fl y in a safe manner.
GOOD LUCK AND GREAT FLYING!