History of RC Combat
In 2004 a couple of local RC fliers started to try to have midair collisions with EPP flying wings. What started as a couple of flyers has turned into three clubs in Utah. Now we get together twice a week to carry on the tradition. It is one of the friendliest flying events I have ever seen. We recently had more than 40 people participate in a local combat gathering.When we fly as a club everyone shows up and leaves at the same time. We warm up and finish with the exotic pretty planes like scale and warbirds, but when the call of "COMBAT" goes out everyone grabs their EPP flying wings. The new 2.4 G radios have made frequency boards rare.
There are no restrictions as to how many fliers are in the air. If you are present you are trying to get in the game and be flying. Some of the planes in the air are beat up. Some look great. There are 36" wings like the Assassin. Some are 48" wing spans or bigger. We have had Assassins, Pinatas, Wild Wings, Roswell Deltas, Extreme Wings, Unicorns, Strykers, Superflys, and a rare target plane like a Slowstick that someone wants to retire all participating at the same time. Most of the regulars have their tricks to reinforce the planes for combat.
Misconceptions about combat
First, the fastest plane wins. This is absolutely false. You win by participating and having a good time but if a score it kept at all it is of how many hits you have in a day, not how fast you fly. Slow planes have more hits. How many hits? I had 30 hits in a single day. On that day there were only a few of us and we flew formation and would try to make contact in the group. That was an incredible day. Most of the time hit numbers are around 5-10 hits a day.
Second, Combat is a flying free for all. This is not at all the way we try to fly combat. As a group we try to circle the field together. The lead plane often pulls a streamer and slows down and those behind try to catch up and cut the streamer and hit every plane in the sky. We usually try to get under another plane and pull up to make contact. There is definitely a knack to making the hit. We have several fliers that consistently have double or triple the hits of the rest of the group. They herd the group like a sheep dog, then sneak in for a kill.
Third, Your plane is destroyed every time you compete. Absolutely False!!! This is where the EPP foam comes into a class of its own. I have planes that have had hundreds of hits that are a couple of years old that are still flyable. In most cases it takes longer to heat the glue gun than to make the repair. I also carry a soldering iron.
Rules of Engagement
Plane restrictions. The motor needs to be in the back. We have an occasional plane out of control and we do not want anyone hurt. The planes should have a soft leading edge and not be glassed or have a hard spar on the leading edge. The plane should not be heavy. The 48" wings are usually under 32 oz. and the 36" wings under 16 oz. including batteries. Fast planes cause too much damage to other planes and themselves. Combat should be flown 20-50 mph.
Safety first. The more people you get, the more important the flight line enforcement. In our large combat events we will have everyone still in the air go to high altitude or land so people can safely pick up their planes. Don't fly over the crowd. Don't do repairs past the flight line. Don't participate with heavy or unsafe planes.
Combat Games
Fox and Hound - The group flies a low circle or a figure 8, always turning away from the crowd. Those at the front of the pack slow down and those behind try to catch up for the hit. As soon as they are ahead they slow down. You score by making contact. Many times the planes can be flown out of the contact and spin without hitting the ground. You get a "Nudge" if you just bump and a "Hit" if a plane rolls over because of the impact. The circle gives the fliers the ability to cut a corner to catch up or to go wide to slow down.
Streamers on Planes - This is more traditional combat where the planes have streamers out the back. On flying wings we put a center streamer or streamers on each wingtip and try to cut the streamers in the air. A variation is that one plane has a streamer and so is marked as the target plane and everyone tries to knock them out. In our group that does not mean hit the streamer.
Limbo - You can see our limbo poles in the videos but if you look back on some of our older videos you will see us use soccer goals for limbo poles. In limbo you can score however you want. Our most common limbo is won when you are the first to score 10 points. You score 1 point by going under the wire and two with some other factor such as inverted or an even harder lower wire to go under.
Skills - Simultaneously everyone will launch, do 3 loops, then 3 rolls and land, and the first with plane in hand wins. We have even done this with a required catch at the end to win. We have also required 2 catches to win. This is a favorite of some of the fliers. Did I mention that when you realize you are losing you try to take out the other plane so he can't win either?
Pylon Racing - An old favorite, but it takes on new meaning when you aren't afraid to collide during the race. We use our Limbo poles as the pylon poles for the races. We have been known to have one group go clockwise and another go counter clockwise.
Retirement party - This is how we get rid of old planes. It is usually that old Warbird or Slowstick or 3D plane that is near the end of it's life and so we euthanize it with the Assassins and other combat style wings. This is also a club favorite.
Bomb drop - I have a bomb release on my plane. We set up a target and people drop washers with a streamer on it and score by getting the closest to the target.
Streamer drop - I can carry and drop a roll of crepe paper or 1/3 roll of toilet paper and the group tries to chop it up in the air while it is floating down. A big challenge is to get the streamer to land close to the flight line.
Balloon Bust and Kick the Can - Take a 1/4" - 36" dowel and poke it in the lawn. Tape a balloon to the top. What makes this intense is everyone is trying at the same time to pop the balloon and traffic gets low and heavy. The dowel will knock down easily if hit and rarely hurts an EPP wing. It has been suggested that a pop can on the dowel makes a great sound when it is hit.
Parachute drop - The parachute drop is great for Scout groups or kids. Each Scout brings a light parachute and they get dropped from the bomb drop 3 at a time. The Assassin can easily carry the weight. The flier tries to hit a target but the boys don't care if he misses. The Cub Scouts think this is great and love to chase. The boys have spent previous meetings making and coloring their parachutes. This gets fun when you have 3 fliers dropping the parachutes as fast as they can.
Night Combat - Combat is also fun in the dark. We have had a great time chasing each other around with lighted planes. The danger comes when you collide in the dark and the lights go out and you can't find your plane. Take your mosquito repellent and a headlamp.
Fly in Formation - It is harder to fly together than to fly combat. Fly in formation and do rolls and loops together.
Paintball and Airsoft - It is fun to shoot at the planes. The shooter should set the paintball and airsoft guns at a low power and the pilot should realize what is about to happen. Low passes through the gun range will have a new intensity. The planes are harder to hit than you may think but when they do it definitly leaves a mark.
Have a Snowball Fight - Slow flying skills are popular with a plane that will hover like the Snowball. Land on a table, do limbo, play follow the leader.