Young Pilots and AMA's Influence

Stew and Sam with the Avistar at the TRCC field.

      Sam Egan started his RC experience roughly two years ago, when he bought a little park flyer at Hobby Barn. The shop owner gave him all the information about the local club, and Sam headed out to the Tucson Radio Control Club (TRRC).

     Admiring Les Ervin's Sukhoi, Sam became his friend and RC student. That Christmas, Sam studied with the RealFlight G3.5 simulator and learned all the controls.

     One day, Les asked Sam if he wanted to fly the Sukhoi. He flew it well and has an AMA 90-day trial membership to thank for it. At the field by day and on the simulator at night, Sam flies frequently.

     Sam received a Hobbico Avistar on his 12th birthday. His father chose that model for him because it was an advanced trainer, which was just what he needed. A few days later, Sam joined the TRCC.

     "I was having such a blast there," he said.

     Sam admitted that glow models require more work than his park flyer.

     "I had no idea how much maintenance went into an RC airplane," he said.

     Les and Sam flew for months after that via a buddy box. Sam soloed before long and has been flying on his own for months.

     Sam is grateful for the support he has received from his mom and dad, Brian Malm, Les Ervin, Roy Iley, his friends at the field, and Terry Hummingbird. Now he looks forward to meeting Frank Noll and Billy Hempel at the next Joe Nall Fly-In.

     Alex "Stew" Stewart, 12, started flying when his friend, Sam, told him how great it was. They went to the local flying field and Stew watched Sam fly.

     "It was awesome!" Stew recalls.

     When Sam asked Stew to go flying with him again, he eagerly followed and got to fly Sam's trainer. After that, Stew was convinced that there was no better hobby than model aviation.

     Stew asked his parents if he could have his own RC airplane, which they considered but didn't come to a final decision about it until they were on a month-long vacation. During those 30 days, Stew dreamed about his model.

     At the Hobby Barn, they finally settled on the Hobbico Superstar, which is a basic 40-size trainer.

     "It was beautiful!" Stew exclaimed.

     Roy Iley, the president of the TRCC, met with Stew, and soon they were flying.

     When Stew was asked why he loves flying, he replied, "I don't just sit there on a couch and watch TV or play video games!"

     He finds himself outdoors more often since he started flying models. According to him, it's the best thing there is to do when you're a kid. When he started flying RC, Stew weighed 223 pounds; he is much healthier now.

     "I started flying—I'm more active, and I have more fun," he said. MA

—AMA Staff

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