- the easy way to get flying fast!
Without doubt, electric rc airplanes give you the easiest, quickest and cheapest way of getting started in powered radio control flying, and the relatively lower price tags and wide availability of these planes make them a big attraction to the hobby.
In recent years, RTF ('Ready To Fly') electric rc planes such as the 3 channel HobbyZone Super Cub LP, shown below left, have become very popular airplanes for beginners, either from scratch or as a natural progression up from simpler one channel rc planes. Incidentally, the Super Cub LP follows on from the hugely successful original HobbyZone Super Cub, shown below right.
HobbyZone is a big name in RTF electric airplanes designed for the beginner. The planes are excellent value and have brought countless people into the radio control flying hobby; the original Super Cub is their biggest seller to date.
The HobbyZone Super Cub LP, above left, is set to be as
popular as the original HobbyZone Super Cub, above right
One feature of certain HobbyZone rc airplanes, including the Super Cub, is the Anti-Crash Technology™ (ACT); an electronic gadget mounted in the airplane reads the model's attitude relative to the horizon, and communicates with the receiver accordingly. If the airplane appears to be out of control, the ACT takes over and gets the plane out of trouble and back on course, returning it to straight and level flight.
The ACT can, of course, be switched off at any time for when your rc flying abilities improve, and you feel like trying some basic rc aerobatic maneuvers!
The HobbyZone Super Cub, and similar design electric rc airplanes, make perfect trainers because of their inherent stability in the air; the real-life Cub was of course the most popular trainer of its time, so what better rc trainer to learn on?!
See the Super Cub LP electric rc airplane in more detail.
Examples of popular electric RC airplanes
While the HobbyZone Super Cub is an excellent choice for anyone looking to start flying powered rc planes, the variety of models available is vast, and growing all the time. It's easy to become overwhelmed with the choice available, but shown below are a few recommendable examples of currently popular Ready To Fly electric rc airplanes...
| The successful Firebird Freedom, also from HobbyZone, is a very different style of airplane with a distinct pod-and-boom design. The Firebird range is an extremely popular one for beginners to the hobby; they are easy to fly and great to learn on. |  |
| This attractive Super Decathlon makes a great 3 channel aerobatic trainer, its brushless motor and Li-Po power giving it excellent performance, yet the high wing design giving it the stability needed by beginner pilots. |  |
| This Ambassador, from Megatech, follows on from the successful Freedom Flyer but features a powerful outrunner brushless motor and Li-Po battery pack, and 4th channel ailerons are standard. A great 4 channel trainer and suitable as an all-round electric rc 'sport' flyer. |  |
| This E-flite Apprentice takes electric rc trainers into a new age. A great value larger wingspan 4 channel RTF airplane, with the latest 2.4GHz rc technology. This plane is proving itself to be a very popular choice with beginner rc pilots looking to get serious from day one. |  |
| This scale P-51 Mustang is a low-wing faster electric airplane, and a very popular scale subject. A great plane for when you've got a few hours under your belt, these ParkZone warbirds are excellent RTF models. Not particularly suitable as a first plane though, because of their speed and lower stability than a high wing trainer. |  |
Check out the above electric rc airplanes and more, if you're browsing to buy.
The 6 electric rc airplanes shown on this page are a good mix of examples to show together because of their differences; the Super Cub being a great flying scale trainer, the Super Decathlon and Ambassador both being great all-round 'sport' flyers capable of aerobatics, with the latter being a good aileron trainer. The Firebird Freedom is a completely different shape and style of airplane, while the Apprentice is a larger trainer that closely represents a gas plane in terms of looks and size, and finally the P-51 Mustang being an excellent 2nd or 3rd model, when you've got a few hours experience.
Of course, the electric planes featured on this page are just several out of hundreds that are available these days, but are excellent examples of trusted Ready To Fly planes that are bringing more and more people into the radio control flying hobby.
And as we progress through the technological revolution that has already changed the face of electric rc, electric planes just keep getting better and better. Brushless inrunner and outrunner motors, powerful Electronic Speed Controls (ESCs) and lithium polymer (Li-Po) flight battery packs are now commonplace, and the latest 2.4GHz spread spectrum radio control technology is being offered with more and more RTF models.
All this is fantastic news for the hobby and ensures a strong place for electric rc airplanes on the flying field in the future.
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