Flyzone SKYFLY, Instruction Manual

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so we suggest that you set your timer for 8 minutes for your
fi rst fl ight. If you experience the motor cutoff and the battery
voltage is still high enough, power can be briefl y restored by
holding the throttle stick all the way down for a few seconds.
After you land, run the motor at about 80% throttle while
you measure the remaining run time. When you fi gure out
the run time, reset your timer on the conservative side of
this to allow you extra time in the event you have to abort
several landing attempts. With the battery supplied in this
model, you can easily get 10 minute fl ight times even at
high power settings.
Take Off
The goals of the model’s fi rst fl ight should be to trim out the
airplane so that it fl ies straight and level “hands-off.” You
should also use the fi rst fl ight to 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 note of the wind direction. Model airplanes and full-scale
airplanes need to take off with the nose pointed into the wind.
This reduces the amount of ground it takes to lift off and the
wind helps hold the plane on the center-line of the runway.
Check to see that there are no obstructions or unusual wind
patterns caused by buildings or landscape in the area.
Until you have become comfortable with fl ying your
SkyFly Max, do not fl y if the wind speed is greater than
10 mph [16 kilometers/hr].
Always verify the fl ight control direction to your inputs
from the transmitter before every fl ight. Be certain the
ailerons, elevator and rudder respond correctly and that
none of the controls have inadvertently become reversed.
This model has enough power to take off from paved
surfaces and short grass with a fully charged battery. You
can also remove the landing gear and hand-launch and
belly-land your SkyFly Max. If you choose to hand-launch
your model, have an assistant do it the fi rst few times. Pay
special attention to where you hold the model – DO NOT
hold the carbon boom near the propeller! Grasp the fuselage
pod fi rmly about 4" [102mm] forward of the boom. Keep the
model overhead and keep clear of the propeller. Throttle up
to full power and pitch the model in an overhand fashion so
that the nose points slightly up as it is released.
When the model is airborne, climb straight out at a 15-20
degree angle until you are about 50 feet [15m] up. Start a
gentle turn and throttle back to about 80% throttle as you
level off.
Flying
Once you get the plane into the air and have climbed to a
comfortable altitude, the fi rst thing you should concentrate
on is getting the model trimmed to fl y straight and level
with the control sticks neutral or “hands-off.” Reduce power
to about 60-70%. Level the plane out and let the sticks
return to neutral. Focus on one axis at a time. The model
will probably pitch and roll, so concentrate on trimming out
the elevator. Feed in several clicks of elevator trim until the
model will not climb or descend. When you’re satisfi ed, turn
your attention to the roll axis and trim out the ailerons. Pay
attention to the wind and fl y the airplane in both directions
to fi ne-tune the trim. To trim the rudder, fl y the plane directly
away from you as you stand behind it watching to see if it
“yaws” in one direction. From a level attitude, advance the
throttle to full power and pitch the plane up. Watch to see
if it consistently falls off to one side when it loses speed.
Consider the wind again, and fl y the plane in several
directions. Trim the rudder accordingly.
After you have your plane trimmed out, make a few left and
right turns both with power on and power off to get the feel
of the plane. This model can be fl own at full throttle, but you
should get used to reducing throttle to about 60-70% for level
fl ying. The plane will settle into a more comfortable fl ying
mode and you will have an easier time learning from it.
When you’re at a comfortable altitude, cut the throttle
completely and try to maintain altitude by holding up elevator.
Eventually, you will be holding full up-elevator and you will
induce what is known as a “stall.” This is when airfl ow over
the wing breaks up and the wing loses lift drastically. By
nature, the wing will want to regain fl ying speed by dropping
the nose. If you release the elevator to neutral, the nose will
drop and the plane will pick up speed. As it picks up speed,
you’ll notice that it will pitch up and begin to level off on its
own. Every airplane reacts differently, but one of the fi rst
things you’ll need to know about the plane you’re fl ying is
how it behaves in a stall so that you will know how to react to
it and avoid it. This will also help you land the plane.
Remember to keep the model high enough to give yourself
time to make corrections, but don’t let it get too far away.
Otherwise, it will be diffi cult to detect its attitude and which
way it is going.
Before you run out of battery power, try a few practice
landing approaches. Focus on lining the plane up with
your runway fi rst. Then, try cutting the power and letting
the airplane establish a glide angle. This is called the “glide
slope.” Practice a few of these “climb and glides” to judge
how far out you will need to be when it’s time to land.