Model Airplanes

Southwest Airlines flight 994 from Louisville to Baltimore was evacuated this morning while still at the gate because of a smoking Samsung Galaxy Note 7 smartphone. All passengers and crew exited the plane via the main cabin door and no injuries were reported, a Southwest Airlines spokesperson told The Verge.

More worrisome is the fact that the phone in question was a replacement Galaxy Note 7, one that was deemed to be safe by Samsung. The Verge spoke to Brian Green, owner of the Note 7, on the phone earlier today and he confirmed that he had picked up the new phone at an ATT store on September 21st. A photograph of the box shows the black square symbol that indicates a replacement Note 7 and Green said it had a green battery icon.

Green said that he had powered down the phone as requested by the flight crew and put it in his pocket when it began smoking. He dropped it on the floor of the plane and a “thick grey-green angry smoke” was pouring out of the device. Green’s colleague went back onto the plane to retrieve some personal belongings and said that the phone had burned through the carpet and scorched the subfloor of the plane.

He said the phone was at around 80 percent of battery capacity when the incident occurred and that he only used a wireless charger since receiving the device.

Running the phone’s

Article source: http://www.theverge.com/2016/10/5/13175000/samsung-galaxy-note-7-fire-replacement-plane-battery-southwest

Prompted by the commission’s desire to clarify its policy on remote-controlled drones, Ottawa County parks staff tweaked the parks systems policy toward the airborne devices, as well as a number of other topics, for the board’s meeting on Oct. 5.

Although de facto banned in county parks by a rule prohibiting motorized model airplanes, drones have not been explicitly banned by the Ottawa County park’s list of rules and regulations.

The proposed rule, under section 16.1c of the park system’s rulebook, is as follows: “No person while on Commission Park Property shall … use or operate any remote-controlled airplane, helicopter, drone, car, boat, or similar device, unless prior permission is obtained from the Commission or its Agent.”

The parks commission is waiting a month to approve the new rules so parks commission staff and the county prosecutor can look them over.

The rise in popularity and public accessibility to drones in recent years sparked a policy debate among park managers around the United States. Throughout this time, the Ottawa County parks staff has taken a “wait and see” approach to officially codifying any drone policies.

Other park systems have not waited so long. The National Parks Service, for instance, banned the use of drones in all of its parks in 2014 citing the potential disturbance to parkgoers and wildlife.

Now, after several years of conversations and a steady stream of letters both for and against drones, the parks commission decided to go ahead and direct parks staff to modify the rules at its September meeting.

Parks spokeswoman

Article source: http://www.grandhaventribune.com/Local/2016/10/09/Ottawa-County-parks-system-looks-at-rules-on-drones-hammocks.html

Planes from a range of eras took to the skies above Love-Hatbox Sports Complex Friday and Saturday. Of course, they were-remote controlled models, but that didn’t stem the crowd’s enthusiasm during the 15th annual Hatbox Memorial Giant Scale Fly-In. 

The event, hosted by the Three Rivers Area Model Plane Society (TRAMPS), saw pilots flying everything from a Japanese Zero fighter aircraft to a Piper Pawnee crop duster. Each plane was “giant scale,” which meant they were larger than your standard model aircraft.

While most planes relied on standard propellers, there also were several jet aircraft, which used turbine engines to climb into the air.

Pilots stood in a safety box nearby as they guided their planes through twists and loops, coming down for low passes over the runway or chasing one another through the sky.

The Pawnee crop duster showed off its functioning applicator, thanks to pilot and Oklahoma Sooner Squadron member, Jim Ellis. He sprayed the runway during a sweeping pass early Saturday morning.

Ellis said the plane was a 40 percent scale model of its real-life counterpart, and took about 10 months to build because it was created from “scratch,” using plans.

There also were planes at the show described as “ARF,” or “almost ready to fly,” he said, which can take around a month to prepare for flying.

Ellis said a large part of the fun when it comes to building model airplanes is delving into the original aircraft’s past.

“You have to do a lot of research,” Ellis said. “You learn a little history. All the pilots will

Article source: http://www.muskogeephoenix.com/news/model-airplane-group-takes-to-the-skies/article_e2eda677-ab4b-5361-8326-ef094d213f1f.html