A few months back when Porus Shroff, an RC (Radio-Controlled) plane enthusiast, found his teenage son glued to his electronic gadgets, he knew it was time to take drastic measures. So he returned to his hobby that he had quit earlier, but this time got his son hooked onto it too.
“There was no looking back after that. My son got so involved with building his own RC planes and flying them that these days he uses his gadgets only to learn something about these planes. Even his academics have improved after this, he shows a lot of interest in science and mathematics,” affirms a proud Shroff.
RC planes, which are operated from the ground with a radio transmitter, are becoming quite popular among aviation geeks in the city.
With roughly around 50,000 flyers in the country, Bengaluru has two RC clubs that gives interested people an opportunity to learn aero-modelling and fly the planes.
Sujju, the president of Club RcBazaar in Jaya Nagar, who has been flying planes for almost 37 years, says: “We have about 95 members and our aim is to mainly promote aero modellers. The runway we use is located in the Hennagara Lake bed, which is 20 kms from the city and is open every weekend.”
According to him, flying RC planes is an extremely creative hobby. The reason, explains, Sujju, is a learning process that includes engineering, drawing, designing, building and understanding aero dynamics, which is not very easy. “The whole concept of building and flying has always interested me from childhood and I can proudly say that this is what let me to pursue engineering,” he recalls.
The Bangalore Flyers Club, with its runway near Anekal, is the other one on the list that has paved way for all RC enthusiasts to nurture their interests. Adarsh Nagarajiah, a member of both clubs, says: “Anybody would want to fly and I had my training in full size aviation first. It was in this training that I learnt aero modelling which I found was more fun and interesting. It is all the more challenging to fly a plane while you are on the ground than in it.”
Speaking about it as developmental tool, Sujju points out that it is a multi-disciplinary activity. “This involves science, technology, engineering and mathematics. It doesn’t stop there. The enticing part lies in the fact that the aircrafts should be built to fly in the air. When a plane crashes, it gears you up to face failures and try to succeed again. Children involved in this hobby learn teamwork, patience, and become very innovative.”
Shroff points out that kids are naturally very curious and they should always have something to challenge their minds. When such options are unavailable, they tend to spend their time on futile things. Parents should direct children creatively and aero modelling can be a great platform for this, he adds.
Known to be rich man’s hobby, people usually hesitate to pursue it mainly because of the money and space required. Sujju dishes out the details: “The cost of such planes varies from Rs. 6,000 to Rs. 3,00,000. However, if you try a DIY, it can be cheap for a beginner and starts with a kit cost of Rs. 2,000. We provide the space for flying and encourage interested people to join the community.” Enthusiasts below 18 years of age can operate the planes only under parental guidance. “We don't want such an excellent hobby to die and we are ready to encourage as much as we can,” Sujju concludes.