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Nats News

July 18, 2019: CL Combat

By Phil Cartier

F2D Fast is a favorite with some F2 fliers. Any F2D plane from 2010 to present is allowed. They all have the same technical specs. The rules are AMA Fast Combat rules otherwise.

The bugs have been worked out. The planes fly the same as F2D. The shorter line length makes up for the slower speeds. Flying seems just as fast as AMA combat, but the line pull is a lot less. The planes have to be trimmed a little better because they don’t pull 15 or more pounds.

July 18, 2019: RC Combat

By William Drumm (midair72@hotmail.com)

Mother Nature did not let up with the rain overnight.

Day 2 of RC Combat started off with puddles all around. This again led us to start out using the red flagging tape streamers for the remaining three rounds of SSC. We continued flying all up and even with all of the planes up in the air. The scores were kept a little on the low side. This helped keep the rankings close together and the importance of every cut that much more important.

July 18, 2019: RC Precision Aerobatics (Pattern)

By Monte Richard (mrichard@compassengineering.com)

Hurricane Barry had its effects on the RC Aerobatics Nats, taking place in Blytheville, Arkansas. But despite the rain, we managed to process all of the planes on Tuesday. The airport authority at the Arkansas Aeroplex sponsored a barbecue dinner with fried catfish, barbecue brisket all the fixings, and banana pudding for dessert. Quite a treat.

July 17, 2019: CL Combat

By Phil Cartier

The closing day for the F2D Nats went pretty slick right up to the end. Flying started promptly at 8:04 a.m. It ended just before 1 p.m., before the rain came.

The early weather was very nice—about 80° with mild breezes. It got windier before noon, and the last 45 minutes or so were flown with gusts up to 25 mph. Most of the fliers handled it pretty well. The crashes were mainly dead-stick, or when the wind mixed the planes up and the lines tangled.

July 17, 2019: CL Navy Carrier

By Dick Perry (tailhooker@comcast.net)

To say that the Profile class of the Navy Carrier event was exciting for the contestants would be a bit of an understatement. The forecast storms held off through the morning on Tuesday, but the wind did not. Wind speeds of around 10 to 12 knots steady state were tolerable, but the gusts in excess of 20 knots through the morning made flying precarious. Those who completed landings were few, and, of course, they occupied the top spots.

July 17, 2019: RC Combat

By William Drumm (midair72@hotmail.com)

Just as everyone was ready to fly the first round of Combat for the 2019 Nats on Tuesday, the sky opened up for a brief morning shower. Everyone did his or her best to get his or her gear covered up to prevent water damage.

After that little setback, RC Combat started out with Slow Survivable Combat (SSC). SSC is the most popular class RC Combat has to offer. Only having a .15 engine and an rpm limit reduces the speed and the severity of the crashes that are bound to happen.

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