Carl Goldberg GBGA1040 User Manual

Page 15

The Electra was designed for long, slow, relaxed flying -

not loops or similar aerobatic maneuvers. Save that kind

of lying for your next, higher performance sport plane.

Practicing precise control and glide planning on the

Electra is good preparation for the demands of advanced

aerobatic flying.

We recommend you use 3 channels, as this will allow

you to cut power whenever you wish to do so. On your

first few flights, after a couple of minutes, you may feel

you have "had enough" and want to land and relax. A 2-

channel system without motor control will not give you

this option; you will have to keep flying until the battery

power runs down.

You can expect a good solid 4 or 5 minutes of powered

flight with a properly charged battery. In this amount of

time, Electra will gain several hundred feet of altitude and

will allow you time to get oriented and familiar with the

control "feel." When the battery power begins to run out,

climb will slow down and the model will begin a slow

descent. You should continue flying your same flying

pattern as the model slowly glides.

For your initial landings, you should not be concerned

about trying to land at a specific spot. Your prime con-

cern should be a controlled landing, always into the wind,

with wing level. With practice, you will be able to plan

your approaches to land just about where you want.

The Electra must be hand launched. This is easy to do,

but must be done carefully to avoid damaging the

model. It is best to launch over some tall grass. Facing

INTO the wind, hold the transmitter in one hand, the

model in the other and raise it above your head. The

wings should be level and the nose pointing straight

ahead-not slightly up. Imagine that you are gliding it

towards a spot about 50 feet ahead. DO NOT throw the

model UP. It's a natural tendency, but it will make the

model stall (fall) and dive to the ground.

After checking all controls, seeing that the Tx trim tabs

are centered, and making sure the Tx meter registers in

the safe zone, turn on the motor and hand launch the

model into the wind. Immediately take the Tx in both

hands and, remembering to operate the controls smooth-

ly, begin to direct the model in a gentle climb. Add slight

back stick pressure, if necessary, to keep the model from

descending. Soon, when it is about 100 feet away from

you, it will start to climb. Be patient; let it climb slowly. If

the climb is too steep, the model will stall and fall to the

ground. Avoid over-controlling.

CLIMB OUT. 1. During the climb out, just try to keep the

model flying into the wind with the wings level until you

reach an altitude of at least 150 feet.

STARTING THE PATTERN 2. At 150-200 feet of alti-

tude, add just a touch of left or right stick pressure until

the model begins a very shallow turn in the direction you

want to go. 3. Try to maintain this shallow turn. The

wind will tend to blow your plane and the pattern further

downwind. Try to keep it flying upwind at all times prior

to your landing approach. It is more difficult to fly a

model when it is downwind, and if a mistake is made, the

model will end up further downwind, making it more dif-

ficult to fly back to the field. To compensate for wind,

continue to make upwind turns shallow, but make the

downwind turns a little steeper.

CLIMB OUT SHOWN HERE IS
EXAGGERATED. ACTUAL CLIMB
OUT IS QUITE SHALLOW.

DOWNWIND TURNS A LITTLE STEEPER

UPWIND TURNS SHALLOW

HAND LAUNCHING