THE FLYER F L I G H T F O R A L L Prince George s Radio Control Club, Inc. AMA Club #334 April 2017 The next PGRC membership meeting will be held at the Club House, Tuesday 18 April 2017 at 7:00 PM. MARCH MEMBERSHIP MEETING New Members. John Vlna and Jonathan LaNore introduced themselves to the membership at the meeting. Jonathan, son of SLOW President Tim LaNore, is an avid CL flyer. John is a long-time model aviation enthusiast with experience in free-flight and CL as part of the SLOW contingent. John mentioned his involvement with a local 4H club, and expressed an interest in bringing the 4H folks to PGRC field for model-aviationrelated activities. Welcome, Jonathan and John. Treasury. Steve Baker reported $10,965 in the treasury per the most recent bank statement. Our latest BG&E bill was $100. As of the meeting, we had 134 paid-up members. Clean-Up Day. Members were reminded of our annual spring Clean-Up Day scheduled for the Saturday after the March meeting. (See the recap below). Field Electrification. Most of the material has been purchased; and we will soon be digging the trench for wiring from the Club House to the pavilion for 40-Amp service that will support lights and fans at the pavilion, a refrigerator in the concession building, and other amenities. Stay tuned for project updates. Altitude Waiver Granted. PGRC has been granted a waiver by the FAA to allow flying above the normal 400-foot AGL limit, up to 1200 feet AGL. While most of us seldom fly above 400 feet due to visual limitations, the waiver will benefit our sailplane enthusiasts. THE FLYER is published to provide information of interest to the members and friends of PGRC. Any opinions expressed are those of the Editor (and anyone else who submits material fit for publishing), and not necessarily those of the Board. PGRC BOARD OF DIRECTORS Dave Deacon (President) (443) 822-5805 Charlie Gettier (VP, Newsletter) (410) 757-3195 Steve Baker (Treasurer) (301) 352-4580 Alan Goodman (Secretary, Concessions) (301) 509-8589 Tim Williams (Field Marshal) (301) 249-6495 Roland Jackson (Safety Officer) (443) 623-3304 Rodger Binger (301) 261-7976 Bob Gensler (410) 268-0157 Mark Kikta (410) 867-9630 Alwin Alleyne (301) 324-7177 Rick Moreland (301) 261-7366 PGRC DUES SCHEDULE Initial Assessment $100 (New First-Time Members) Annual Dues (General) $75 Annual Dues (Junior) $10 Annual Dues (Family) $85 Annual dues for current members are considered late if paid after the January general membership meeting. An additional $25 late fee will be assessed. New members joining after July 31 pay half the annual dues for the remainder of the year. Dues can be paid at the meetings, or can be mailed to: Steve Baker 12215 Malin Lane Bowie, MD 20715 Be sure to include your address, phone number, and AMA Number on the check. You must be an active AMA member to fly at the field. DIRECTIONS TO PGRC FIELD (South of Bowie, MD) Take US Rt. 301 south approx. 3 miles south of Rt. 214. Turn east on Swanson Rd. and follow the signs. Address: 17230 Swanson Rd, Upper Marlboro, MD 20774 RUNWAY COORDINATES 38 51 03 N 76 41 59 W PGRC S WEB SITE Visit with PGRC on the Internet: http://www.pgrcclub.com/ 1
Show and Tell. Mark Bush brought in two projects that we should see flying this season. An old ASW-28 electric sailplane ARF needed replacement of the sub-standard motor that came with the kit. Mark also re-glued several structural components and loose fittings. Mark s second project was an in-the-bones Super Skybolt 60 that he had built from a Great Planes kit several years ago. After some finishing touches and covering, the glowpowered model should be ready for its maiden flight Mark Kikta brought in a lovely AS-2 Guardian that he scratch-built from plans. The electric-powered model sports scale panel lines, rivets, operating hatches, retracts, a fabricated scale dual tail wheel, an operating tail boom, and is finished in automotive paint. Mark explained that the Guardian was the first ASW plane to fly off Navy carriers, and that its weight and inherent instability resulted in the deaths of lots of pilots. The plane was in service only 10 years before being replaced. Don t be surprised if you see this model featured in one of the scale-builder publications Steve Baker showed off a nice.15-size P-51 control-line model he built from a Midwest kit. The model is powered by a Fox.15 CL engine, and features a built-up fuse (deviating from the original profile design), finished in epoxy paint; and a Monocotefinished wing. After Steve fine-tunes the elevator controls, we should see this model fly at our new CL facility this season. Raffle and 50/50. George Marenka won a nano quad-copter in the raffle. Charlie Gettier took home a FF P-51 rubber-powered model as second prize. George Strudgeon was not present to claim $120.50 in the 50/50 drawing. INSTRUCTORS WANTED. We are looking for additional volunteer flight instructors to help during the Tuesday evening training sessions. We could really use two or three additional instructors. Patience, time, and willingness to help folks master the fundamentals of RC flight are the key prerequisites. This is an important function of the Club to keep new members in the hobby, and to retain existing members who need brushing up on their flying skills. Please contact Charlie Gettier, or just show up on Tuesday afternoons, if you can help. MOWING SCHEDULE. Weekly mowing will normally start 10:30 Wednesday mornings and be completed by early afternoon. If inclement weather is forecast for Wednesday, the grass will be cut on a later day as soon as conditions allow. Your cooperation is appreciated. WIN A RIDE IN A STEARMAN BIPLANE. PGRC will be selling raffle tickets for a 30- minute ride in the Stearman biplane shown below. Tickets are $5 each or 5 for $20, and will be sold only at Club meetings. Only 100 tickets will be sold. The winner will schedule the ride with the plane owner during the 2017 season - from April until the end of October - out of St. Mary s Airport in Southern Maryland or Massy Aerodrome on the Eastern Shore. More information about the ride is available at www.biplanetours.com. 2017 SPRING CLEAN-UP DAY. Our annual Spring Clean-Up day, heralding the start of the new flying season, was held on Saturday 25 March. The following summarizes the work done and the folks who helped out. We apologize to anyone inadvertently left out. Clearing leaves and branches from the parking areas and entry road: Stony Jasper, Byron Jones, Roland Jackson, Frank Edwards, Vaclav Sychlovy, Kerry Cocherrel, Carl Becker, Harold Thompson, David Taylor, Ed 2
Stone, Alwin Alleyne, Tom Gurlacz, Edgar Hopson, Charlie Gettier Changing oil and filters for mowers, tractor, Gator, and installing new mower blades: Rodger Binger Trimming trees / branches, etc., from around the perimeter road: Rick Moreland, Mark Kikta, and new member Ben Jones from the UK Repairing model restraining apparatus in the pit area: Dave Deacon Installing trial aluminum flight-line barrier: Joe Pekny, George Marenka, Alan Goodman, Stephen Leavitt Cleaning up Club House interior and yard: Steve Baker, Kathy Binger, Chic White, Tim Williams, Bradley Williams, Samantha White, Alwin Alleyne, Dave Deacon, Frank Edwards Food preparation and clean-up: Bob Gensler, Alan Goodman Again, thanks to everyone who participated in the effort. The field and Club House look good to go for the new flying season. OPEN HOUSE FLY-IN. Our 26 th Annual Open House-Fly-In will be held Saturday 13 May. This is our first big event of the flying season, and all AMA members from PGRC and surrounding clubs are encouraged to attend and fly. There is no landing or entry fee. We will have our usual concessions of food and PGRC attire, and a raffle prize. Please mark your calendars and plan to attend. AMA / FAA NUMBERS. Members are reminded to have their AMA number and FAA registration number on all model aircraft flown at the field. Members should also have a copy of their FAA registration certificate with them when flying. IMAC BASIC-ONLY. Dave Deacon is heading up a Basic-Only IMAC event again this year, on Saturday 6 May. Contact Dave for details. Roland Jackson operates the Leaf Blower from Hell at the annual Spring Clean-Up Day on 25 March. Photo courtesy of Byron Jones and the PGRC website. PGRC Events Schedule for 2017 as of April Date Event Contest / Event Director March 25 Spring Clean-Up Day N/A April 22 PGRC Swap Shop Alan Goodman (301) 509-8589 May 6 IMAC Basic-Only Dave Deacon (443) 822-5805 May 13 Open House Fly-In Charlie Gettier (410) 757-3195 June 3, 4 CAPI IMAC Dave Deacon (443) 822-5805 Aug. 12, 13 Pylon: 424 (Sportsman), Steve Baker (301) 352-4580 426 (Super Sport Quickie), 422 Quarter 40 Sept. 23, 24 Big Bird / War Bird Fly-In Rick Moreland (301) 261-7366 3
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PGRC, Inc. c/o Charlie Gettier 190 Old River Rd. Arnold, MD 21012