Just Plane Chris Interview

I recently got in touch with Just Plane Chris, one of the hosts of the All Things That Fly podcast, and he graciously agreed to an interview by email. Chris is an accomplished helicopter and fixed wing pilot and an active member on RCGroups, so I was curious to pick his brain a bit. Here are his responses:

ZeroRC: Can you give us a little background about yourself? How long have you been involved in RC, and what do you fly these days?

Chris: Hello, my name is Chris Boultinghouse and I'm an aviation addict. I've been fascinated with all things that fly as long as I have memories. As a kid I made my own "planes" out of anything I could nail or glue together. Models kept getting bigger until in the late 90's I actually built a full size airplane (since sold) and also got a pilot's license (PPSEL + glider).

I started flying RC in 1980. My first plane was a House of Balsa 2x4 glider, followed quickly by a high wing .40 glow trainer, which I never knew the name of... I bought it used, along with everything else back then. My first radio system was a used 6 channel "World Engines" brand with no servo reversing, no dual rates, no end point adjustments... and it cost $350! Times sure have changed for the better. Around 1986 I got my first heli, a GMP Cobra .50, which I flew for about a year before deciding it was just too expensive. I didn't fly helis again for almost 20 years! These days my fleet is all electric (for now). I've got a GWS Corsair, a self-designed 60" wingspan motorglider, a Sig LT-25 converted to electric, a 12ft wingspan Genie sailplane (scratch built from plans), and several flyable helis (Esky FP, Esky King V2, and Century Swift) I have a Dragonus under construction, and a few "carcasses" that might take flight again someday.

ZeroRC: How did the All Things That Fly podcast get started? Have the three of you ever met in person?

Chris: Jamie Burke (GFBurke) approached me via email and asked if I wanted to be involved in a podcast, initially about helis. When he first got involved in the RC hobby, the first thing he did was look for a podcast and found nothing. Since he was a newbie himself, he knew he'd have to tap someone else to provide the content, and he could handle the technical side of getting the podcast published. I'm comfortable speaking and narrating, having done it for work... so it was an easy decision. We have now broadened the show to include planes, and added a third host, which really livens up the mix.

ZeroRC: It seems like radio control has not been very well represented in the world of podcasting. Any ideas why?

Chris: My theory is that RC (and full scale aviation, for that matter) is aging as a group. If you visit any RC field in the country, you are likely to find an age group in the 50s or higher. That age group isn't really in the "podcast generation". Heck, I barely am! (41)

ZeroRC: You mentioned a neighbor's child who was fascinated by RC, and I get the same reaction whenever I fly at the local parks. What more can we do to get young people involved in this hobby?

Chris: I tried to get the local YMCA interested in a youth program for helicopters, even volunteering my own equipment, simulator, etc. After initial excitement, they stopped returning my calls and emails. I suspect their corporate lawyers put the brakes on it for liability reasons, but have no proof of that since they won't talk to me! I plan to approach one of the local elementary schools to see if they would be interested in some sort of program. My employer allows me to spend time doing "community service" during the work week, so I could probably spend a few hours teaching kids about planes and helis. We all really need to try and get more young people involved, or the sport will wither. (See my comment above about the average age of the RC flyer!)

ZeroRC: What do you recommend for people wanting to get into helicopters? Do you think it's best to start with a coaxial, or just jump straight to a fixed pitch heli?

Chris: Neither! I think the best first heli (or plane) is a simulator! If such things had existed when I was learning to fly it would have saved me a lot of time and repairs. I think a few hours on a good simulator would allow someone to totally bypass the usual "coax/fp/cp" path and jump right into whatever helicopter they want or can afford. Or, it might reveal that they simply don't have the reflexes or depth perception to fly. Not everyone can do it! I learned to fly a .50 size nitro heli without the benefit of simulators, so I know it can be done with a sim.

ZeroRC: What advice would you give for learning forward flight?

Chris: Fly a plane first! Seriously, even if you just do it on a simulator flying planes will allow you to become comfortable with seeing the machine pointed towards you. An inexpensive "foamie" plane is not only a lot of fun, but will improve your heli flying skills. If you don't want to take that route, learning forward flight is best done in slow steps. First just slowly drift back and forth in front of you, using the rudder to make the tail follow the nose, with your turns at either end being away from you. As you get comfortable with that, make the turns at the ends wider, so you start to fly more of a figure 8, allowing the nose to turn in towards you as you "cross" in the middle of the 8. Gradually speed it up and let it get bigger, and before you know it you'll be flying around!

ZeroRC: I've been learning to fly ovals with my Honey Bee FP, and I've found the balance between right rudder and right cyclic inputs in the turns to be tricky. How did you learn to turn smoothly without skidding through the air sideways, or falling over on your side?

Chris: Practice! I know that's not the answer you wanted to hear, but that's really the only way to fine tune that skill. It won't take long before you'll "get it" and it will all come naturally.

ZeroRC: Have you flown anything really wild, like an ornithopter or an autogyro?

Chris: I had a free flight ornithopter, but that's about as crazy as I've gotten. My RC flying has ranged from slope soaring to pylon racing, with some giant scale, warbirds, and just about everything else thrown in.

ZeroRC: I was laughing (and sympathizing) with the commentary subtitles you put on your Honey Bee CP2 crash video, above. I've pushed my luck and turned my share of good models into splinters too. Why do you think RC flyers don't know when to quit while we're ahead?

Chris: LOL! I don't know. The adrenaline buzz? The "hey y'all watch this" syndrome? Over the years I've begun to listen to those little voices, and when I catch myself saying "just one more flight", I usually just put the toys away. Usually. There's video proof that I don't always listen to myself.

ZeroRC: Besides giving Jamie (one of your co-hosts) a tough time, what else can we expect from the podcast in the future?

Chris: Oh, do I give Jamie a tough time? Surely not. LOL

Expect more product reviews, and hopefully some event coverage as well. We want to expand our website to include discussion forums, photo galleries, etc. The biggest issue we face is time, since all three of us have full time jobs and of course we want to have a hobby too. I've been down the path of trying to make money with the hobby (I designed and kitted an RC glider and electric-powered P-51 Mustang in the early 90's) and got burned out bigtime. I don't want that to happen again, so we're going to try and keep things fun.

ZeroRC: Well thanks for your time, and keep up the good work on the podcast.