Ken Bryant

My Feedback: (10)

What do you use to fly and practice Jet flight without actually flying your big dollar jet? I know not much will be equal to the same thing. Basically, I’m wanting something to practice and prepare myself for the jet life. FWIW, I used to fly quickies and prop jets like the Patriot. I have a new Eflight F-16 ducted fan waiting in the wings to fly. But want to get my skills back in line before I fly it.

Eventually, a Bandit or Viper Turbine are in my sites.

BarracudaHockey

My Feedback: (11)

EDF's Though the E-Flite really isn't a turbine jet trainer because its so light. One of the heavier HSD or FMS 90mm is probably closer to flying a composite jet.

I also tell people to put a delay on the throttle channel to start to prepare for turbine lag maybe a second or second and a half.

Dansy

My Feedback: (53)

Before jets, I was flying mainly F3A type stuff….I had flown in the past some very fast planes in the nitro days….so I wasn’t worry about being able to keep up.

The main thing for me was to learned the engine delay in both up and down throttle movement….I just got a jet that was cheaper to buy in my case it was an Xcalibur….which I eventually lost 😬 that wasn’t expected but it’s life, now the trick is to buy something you can actually afford to loose in the next seconds……and be able to get something else to fly…..buy too much of jet that you can’t replace easily…is what many do and regrets it.

acw

My Feedback: (1)

The EDFs are easier because no turbine lag, however, some of them are significantly more difficult to fly than most jet trainers such as Bandit and Flash (less the speed). For example, consider getting a Freewing F5 or T45. You will need proper technique to land them properly and they will bite when flown too slow. For deltas the Freewing Mirage 2000, F22 or FMS Rafale are really good for these super high alpha landing training. The FMS Viper is pretty awesome too but probably too easy to fly although it will tip stall if you get too slow.

Just remember that when you saved that landing with lots of last second EDF power, the jet would have probably been damaged. Stable approaches are the key.

jvaliensi

My Feedback: (1)

I have a few turbines and they are all easier to fly than my FMS Futura or Freewing T45.
Turbine lag is a thing to deal with, the new Xicoy turbines have less spool up time compared to the older turbines.
The lag is really only an issue on landings and especially if you need to do a go around. I find getting into a stabilized landing pattern is the best.
And turbine models make exceptional bad gliders (Geemo excluded!) Have a flame-out plan before you take off.
For me- I like to fly downwind approach to landing with full flaps and gear down. Then I adjust the throttle to establish a nice rate of decent and maintain that as I turn base. I do a long enough final, to have time to slowly adjust the throttle and decent rate. None of my models are heavily loaded, so I generally can cut the throttle 100-150 ft out from the end of the runway. I feel like I came in to high or too fast, I'll make decision to go around before I'm over the runway. I keep the nose slightly down until I'm over the runway and ready to flare.
Really, it's not too hard to fly turbines, but the higher cost adds stress (for me).
If you want a new turbine kit to build and knock around consider these: Boomerang Turbinator, Aerofoam MB339 or Aerofoam L39. Any of those combined with an X85 is fun and easy to fly.

David Jackson

My Feedback: (15)

Boomerang Turbinator 2

jesse2357

My Feedback: (2)

I used a habu 32 for training to fly a jet. I also put 10% throttle to simulate residual thrust and a delay on throttle to simulate turbine lag. Had over 200 flights on it before transitioning to an avanti which was to easy to fly so was just learning the turbine aspect of it.
mad said before I don’t know a foamy really prepares you for. Unfortunately the airframes I think of like a spark or Habu 32 are not made any more. I e been itching to pick up another Habu 32

Milan V

My way to fly turbines:

Several hundred flies with fast electric model – as LEXX from JPmodels, CZ. To get used to high speed – LEXX with 6S battery flies round 200 km/h

After that – EDF as for example AVANTI from Sebart, IT with 12S, 120 mm fan.

After that – full composite EDF jet as VIPER 2m from Tomahawk, DE with 14S and 120 mm fan.

This EDF jet is big enough and heavy and flying is very similar to turbine jets.

And, finally – after several hundred flies with EDFs – it’s the right time for turbine – now VIPER 2,5m from Tomahawk, DE with 160N turbine.

Important note: start with “Sport jets”, avoid “Scale jets” – sport jets are designed for “easy flying”, scales are beautiful, but difficult to fly for beginners!

invertmast

My Feedback: (23)

IMO, there is litte difference in flying a turbine jet compared to any other heavy or high performance RC model except for one phase of flight, approach to land.

Most every other model you can get away with pulling the power to idle and gliding into a landing, while a true jet should be flown to the runway. This means, keeping the nose up and using power to adjust the decent rate. Anytime the nose drops, airspeed will increase and your landing distance will increase as well.
you essentially have to “drag” the tail of the airplane through the sky down to the landing without causing a stall. This can be practiced with essentially any model.

Milan V

O.K., you are right - but I was describing my own way from flying foamies to turbine jets.

acw

My Feedback: (1)

Totally accurate. The good news is that all our radios have flying modes that retain trim settings so the easy way is to program a landing mode and trim the plane to fly at approach speed with full flaps and gear down. That way you don't have to mess with the elevator much and power is used to control the rate of descent. On my planes, I don't even have a flap control. I just have cruise, takeoff and landing mode that retain trim settings and deploy flaps to the right level. By the way, this is pretty much what we do when landing a full scale airplane: elevator trim is used to set the speed and power to adjust rate of descent.

IMO, there are many sports jet on the market that are fun and easy to fly including landing with simple power to idle. For example and with first hand experience: Mini T1, Mini Ares I'm sure there are more. I don't think it is necessary to fly an EDF for hundred of hours. If you can fly say an FMS Viper consistently for like 50 flights you are ready for a turbine sport jet.

jackdiazccs

A few years ago, a friend gave me the following advise:
"A good flight simulator helps you to learn to land a jet ...... as long as you put a scorpion in your underwear while practicing !"


Jack

Steve Collins

My Feedback: (8)

Yep! There's just nothing like the pucker factor!

Thoemse

The best plane in my hangar to train is my 3D printed F-86 Sabre. With it's 1.45m span and 5kg it's much heavier than your typical foamie. The F-86 comes in quite docile with flaps deployed but because it is 3D printed it will shatter into a thousand pieces if you mess it up. If you get this one landed in one piece you can land turbine jets.

So far it is in one piece. I shattered two printed Mig 15s before though. I'll have to reactivate it soon. It is getting warmer and my jet is asking to be fired up.

qcsteve

I don’t have much to add on the topic of training. But I think another important part is “mental” ability to fly. I personally did not fly my jet last year because my own mind kept telling me I was going to crash. Now I have been flying for 30 years, jets for the last 5 years.

Last flying season was difficult getting myself in a flying mindset.I ended up selling my A-10 :-(. I finally flew my viper jet on the last day of our season.

so I’m going to try again with my new F-86.

Milan V

You are right - jets are "mentally difficult" - terrible roaring, smell, smoke and fire (sometimes) and high price as well.
For me - good preparation was flying big EDF with 120mm fan and 14S battery. It has similar noise as turbine, so you can slowly adapt to real turbine! Moreover - size and weight is close to turbine jet as well, so landing is similar to jet as well.

BarracudaHockey

My Feedback: (11)

Been there done that. Sometimes its just better to pack up and go home if you're not feeling it

Desertlakesflying

My Feedback: (28)

Love seeing comment about no EDF lag, try that at 5000' on a warm day, and you'll see it

flyinfool1

My Feedback: (2)

As Andy said way back in post #2 Almost any fast heavy plane will do as a trainer as long as you set in a throttle delay. How long that delay should be depends on the turbine that you will start with. Many start with an older used jet it get initial turbine experience and and then sell it to the next turbine newbie coming along. The older turbines do not spool up as fast as the new stuff. That is not a bad thing, just different. My old P70 takes 7 seconds to spool up or down. I have several fast prop planes with a 7 second delay on the throttle.
Surprisingly the plane that I always fly first on any given day to warm up my fingers is either an old e flight UMX Sbach 342 (No longer available) or the XK Edge A-430 3D6G. They both have the factory receiver/gyro removed and replaced with a plain Futaba RX, no gyros. Both are small (about 13" span) and incredibly twitchy to fly with the gyros removed. I have them both set up with 7 second throttle lag (to match my p70). If you can fly these you can fly most anything. Because they are so small they have a fairly high wing loading and glide like a rock. You even have to hold a bit of power to right before touchdown. Best of all they are really cheap and bounce well.