What is happening to our hobby?

When I started aeromodelling in the 1960s, life was much simpler and aeromodelling was a popular hobby.

Control line and free flight were the norm with the emphasis on control line. Radio control had just started but the expense was prohibitive. However I did notice that the few RC flyers were often met with prejudice.

As well as a plethora of model shops, there were many clubs - one within walking distance of my current address and at least 5 within 6 miles.

We were allowed to fly in public parks and school playing fields. IC flight in publice parks is now banned and our schools now bear a striking resemblance to prisoner of war camps. Heavy metal fencing and locked tight,

The balance has changed - the club I am a member of has 150 members but there are only 5 control liners. The flying site is 25 miles away and the control line area is only mown twice a year for special events. I have also joined a dedicated control line club - 12 members but the site is 45 miles away and only available on Sunday afternoons. RC flyers tend to hold control liners in low esteem but here I am referring to RC fixed wing flyers and they, in general, have developed a dislike of helicopter an quadcopter pilots. (I dislike the term "Drone" now being applied to anything flown remotely large or small unless it is a weapon of war. The use of this term has effectively turned public opinion against remote control flight as merely a hobby. )

However, as quadcopter flying hasn't generally been recognised or accepted as another branch of aeromodelling and not welcomed at traditional clubs - a younger generation have got used to flying anywhere and everywhere. I have watched them in my local park racing and doing freestyle flying and I have received quite alot of assistance from them with FPV and flight controllers.

I have quite a few indoor quads that I can fly in any weather but I also have a DJI Mavic, Spark and a Mini. These make RC flying a doddle - let go of the sticks and it stays where you left it - press a button and it returns to home and it lands almost exactly where it took off - if I leave it in the air too long and the battery runs low, it overrides and returns to home. Photography is superb with many options.

It is not the same as flying fixed wing - much simpler but not as exciting or challenging unless racing or freestyling. (both these are beyond my skills)

In the UK - the BMFA (US equiv AMA) has 50,000 members last year (now falling). Yet over 750,000 quadcopters have been sold. The rift is enormous and I find this distressing.

We are now all treated as "Drone" flyers and have to register with the CAA (US equiv FAA) for a flyer ID and an operator ID which has to be displayed on all models over 250g. We also have to carry certificates denoting competence to fly and are restricted to 400ft height. Not a problem for me but for some in hillier parts of the country - this is measured from plane to ground.

That aside, all this registration has caused many to drop the hobby. The other sad fact is that the clubs I am a member of have no members und 40 years of age - average age in the high 60s and NO youngsters at all!

Most of the quadcopter flyers I have met are sub 35 years old and as the technology they are familiar with has been transferred to fixed wing - flight controllers, GPS navigation, first person view, camera recording, telemetry ... they are starting to invest in fixed wing but .... sub 250g and not interested in old fogeys clubs.

We have to remember that quite a few club members don't have or use internet. The latest technology for fixed wing has quite a learning curve with a degree of PC literacy to set up flight controllers with INAV or Ardupilot but my point is that the quadcopter brethren have not been absorbed into the aeromodelling community.

I now have several fixed wing models operated through flight controllers, My latest is a sub 250g Strix Nano Goblin with the full works. It is capable of 40 minute flights with my setup from Park Flyer to completely out of sight (not legal).

Now what worries me is the FAA proposed rules which look likely to kill our hobby.

The key points being that registration isn't enough.

All models will have to be tracked and fitted with a location device unless you fly at an AMA site or restrict your flying to a max distance of 400ft (after connecting to the internet from your launch point to register your position). You will not be able o fit your own location device.

Now this may be a loose description but I can't imagine the quad flyers wanting to be restricted to a small open area or them being welcomed - yet they outnumber us many times.

Significantly though, it means that you chaps with open land that fly quite happily may find yourselves flying illegally even though you are miles from anywhere because the site isn't a registered flying site AMA or you don't comply with the location ID rules.

It also looks as if they will scrap the sub 250g exemption.  The future looks bleak. We have gone from having our fields closed through noise towards and almost outright ban.

In case you are wondering about the technolgy available to us - here is a playlist of a "BrainDart" build. I have used the same setup in the Nano Goblin,