noterman

I know nothing about control line flying. Our club is considering adding an area dedicated to control line flying. Is there a standard size for the cicle? What is needed in terms of landing area, control area, etc.? TIA...

Bill Wheeler

Phlip

I don't know official "field size," perhaps the AMA rulebook would help you out there. I do know most full size planes are flown on approximately 60' lines, so you would need a circle of at least 130' DIA with a clearly marked pilot's circle to avoid wandering off the area. Take-off and pit areas will move on the circle depending on wind direction. Landing depends on when the engine quits and how well the pilot can "whip" the plane to keep it in the air. Most new-to-mediocre pilots, like me, will land where ever the plane quits!

kdheath

The longest legal line length per AMA is 70 feet. Add an arm's length and a couple of awkward steps and you're at 75 feet or so total length. We are working on a new site right now, and figuring 200 foot diameter circles with 20 or 30 feet of buffer room between two circles.

FWIW, if there are power lines in the area, AMA suggests 50 feet clearance. Most flyers prefer 200-300 feet from high power lines. They can arc over under the right conditions. Kinda ruins your day to get kilo-volted

Our last field had 5 foot diameter concrete pads in the center to give flyers a reference for staying in the middle. I really like these 'cause I tend to wander...

Hope that's some help.

noterman

Thanks for the responses. They will help us decide how big of an area we need and where to put it.