District X
Arizona, California, Guam, Hawaii, Nevada, Utah
This month, I want to share from Dan Mitchell, club president of the Reno Radio Control Club (RRCC), about the club’s exciting community activity—the 2024 Reno-Sparks Indian Colony (RSIC) Field Day.
The RRCC has had a Bureau of Land Management lease for its flying site since approximately 1976. In 2017, the land was transferred to the RSIC and the old lease was honored.
That lease finally ran out in 2023. In 2024, a use permit was signed between RSIC and RRCC. Rather than being just an isolated airfield in the middle of the desert, the RRCC is now part of an actual community (there is some colony housing roughly a mile away). So, the club decided to engage with its new community by putting on a STEM event for the tribal youth. On August 3, 2024, the RRCC hosted its first annual RSIC Field Day.
The support from the club members was awesome. More than a third of the club membership showed up—more than 25 members. Five RSIC youth and two of the four adult escorts each got at least one session on buddy-box flying. The attendees also participated in ground schooling with a couple of flight simulators, an RC aircraft control systems mockup, and a discussion on the differences between engines and motors.
The air show flights were conducted during gaps between buddy-box sessions. These included a large-scale warbird, big 3D aerobatics, aerobatic helicopters, fast EDF aircraft, and a multirotor with FPV (where the kids could see the screen).
The air show provided a display of flight that was beyond the “simple” trainer flying that the kids were experiencing. There was also a static display of models. All the aircraft went home pretty much in one piece. Feedback was positive, and timing for next year’s presentation is already being considered.
Feel free to reach out with any questions, comments, recommendations, or issues. There is much to share across the district. Enjoy everything you build and fly.
