Model airplane club takes to the skies weekly

May 08, 2024

Larry Griffin

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Every week in the big field on Cherokee land off Highway 19, the Bryson City chapter of the Academy of Model Aeronautics meets up to fly model planes.

Many planes have crashed in the past, according to group veterans Bob Driver, who serves as its president, and fellow member Dave Thomas. But they sound jovial about it and their main goal is to enjoy themselves.

“I’ve crashed into every tree across [Highway 19] there,” Driver said, pointing.

“I’ve crashed in the runway,” Thomas said.

“I’ve crashed in the river,” Driver said.

Thomas added that another member, Bernie Chap, “has got one in the river now.”

It’s all in good fun for them – they know it comes with the trade and they’re simply trying to enjoy their leisure time with some model planes in flight.

Both Driver and Thomas have their pilots’ licenses, and Thomas can “fly a bigger plane.”

“Dave’s owned a plane or two,” Driver said.

Thomas has been practicing at the hobby since 1982, and said he remembered when the field was owned by a previous owner before being sold.

The field today is owned by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, and the men said part of their duty with the chapter is keeping the field mowed. They have to get reapproved by the tribe to use the field once a year, but Driver said that’s never been a problem so far. “They work very well with us.”

Practice makes perfect

On Saturday morning, July 22, the day was mellow for July as the club members set up their various planes and make sure everything is in order to fly.

There isn’t a lot of fuss about it. They get set up and get the planes out of their trucks parked on the grass. Putting their planes on the ground they use their remote controls to begin to steer them and then take off.

The current members of the local AMA chapter come from as far as Florida – some of their members have vacation homes in Swain County. And some others, still, come from Asheville. The way the men talk, the hobby is an addicting one.

“It’s a hobby,” Driver said. “You’ve just got to be into it. You’re hooked before you know it. From there, you just get a bigger plane, then a bigger plane, then a bigger plane…”

He said many members try to work toward the “360,” or doing various flips and flying the planes upside down – but that’s something to work toward.

“It takes a lot of practice,” Thomas said.

But that can be fun to watch – the club invites spectators driving along the road to come and watch, and the club welcomes anyone to come and enjoy the spectacle.

Ultimately, the hobby is one that the men do because they have a community as well as the support of their families.

“It gives us something to do,” Driver said. “It lets us get together.”

“Our wives don’t have to see us all the time,” Thomas joked.

Driver added, “You’ve got to have the support of your wives and family. These planes are not cheap. If you buy a plane, you more or less have to put it together from a box, get the controls right for you, then get in the car and come fly it.”

There’s some things now that have changed for the better. Transmitters, which are used to control the planes, are vastly more powerful now than they were when Thomas started flying model planes.

Where before they were limited on channels and thus on the amount of planes that could be flown on one channel, the increased gigahertz available through the transmitters now allows for much more expansive amounts of planes to fly comfortably at once.

“You can program different planes into the transmitter,” Driver said. “One is all you need.”

The club also works with other types of remote-controlled model aircrafts including helicopters and jets.

Model planes

through generations

With that comes a realization that none of them are getting any younger, however. Club vice president Pete Moschetto said they were trying to get younger people to come out more often, and were trying to make it known for them. He acknowledged, however, that it may prove difficult.

“It’s hard to get people to do it during this time,” he said. “The planes cost a little money, and some people would rather feed the family than play with planes.”

He said they offer training programs to hopefully get newer members up to speed. Novice flyers can get their model plane on the same transmitter as one of the more experienced club members. That way, if the plane goes awry, the more experienced member can take over the controls and avoid a crash.

“If you don’t like it, you haven’t lost anything,” Moschetto said.

“We’d like to have more people come,” Driver said. “Most of ours are elderly or retired. We’d like to get the younger generation. They got them fingers, they’re always texting. They’d be good at this.”