34 Vol.3 No.4 / April 2014
LIGHT PL ANE WORLD
college students in one of the dormitory towers at the Univer-
sity of Illinois (hence the name). About that same time
Great
Planes Models
was founded by Don Anderson. In 1985 the two
companies merged to form Hobbico. Over the next 29 years, the
company developed dozens of in-house brands and acquired
other brand names to become the giant it is today.
THROWING CONFET TI INTO THE WIND
A big part of E-Fest is the programs designed for kids, and a
lot of youngsters can be seen attending, brought there by their
dads as the perfect way to introduce them to aviation. At the
"Make It - Take It" booth, volunteers help young kids build
their fi rst rubber-powered model, and later in the day, a group
of about forty kids are lined up for a simultaneous launch. After
a controlled countdown, all the kids release their models to see
which would travel the farthest and win a prize. From a distant
vantage point at the end of the line, it looks a little like throwing
confetti into the wind. Slightly older kids abound at the event
and show impressive skills fl ying RC airplanes and helicopters
with the improved ability that comes from starting early in life.
WHAT IS A DRONE?
The schedule at the 2014 E-Fest included seminars covering
subjects from model rockets to drones. The talk on drones by
master RC pilot RJ Ritter of the
North Carolina State Aerial
Robotics Club
was very informative. The people who design
and build unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are keen to ditch
the term "drone" because of its negative connotations. The FAA
rulings have come to dif erentiate between UAVs and RC mod-
els based on a few simple principles:
1) Sometimes you can't tell them apart by simply looking at
the equipment.
2) UAVs usually have autopilots and can fl y totally autono-
mous missions. Some have manual controls, but some do not.
3) UAVs have a payload such as imaging, communications,
or emergency relief package.
4) Finally, UAVs are used for research, military, or commer-
cial use. Hobby RC airplanes can carry a payload but absolutely
cannot be used for commercial purposes. A fully autonomous
NCSU engineering students and their competition UAV.
The cavernous Armory Building has a 98-foot-tall ceiling.
E A A E X P _ A p r 1 4 . i n d d 3 4 EAAEXP_Apr14.indd 34 3 / 3 1 / 1 4 9 : 4 5 A M 3/31/14 9:45 AM