NOTAM
This Notice to Air Men (NOTAM) is a new permanent feature to inform you about field availability & new information. Check back often as this information will be regularly updated.
Thank you
September 24, 2016 was...
...the annual Stetson New Pilots Fun Fly!
On the first cooler temperature day of Autumn, 15 registered pilots, several volunteers, club members & families decended on the Stetson field for this great event.
It might be one of the smaller gatherings but it is important... new pilots are the life-blood of the club and there is a great deal of satisfaction in seeing these students flying confidently at the end of the season, many of which got their wings.
I'd like to thank all the Instructors, assitants, & executive that helped make this event and flight school a success. Without your help it wouldn't happen.
Thank you!
Goose
Photos: Goose.
August 28 & 29, 2016 was...
...the annual Stetson Giant Rally & Pig Roast!
This year's annual Giant Scale Rally and Pig Roast was a complete success. Mother Nature cooperated with a warm sunny day and gentle winds. The event was well attended with 34 registered pilots many of whom brought multiple aircraft. Some notables on the flight line were Walter's Sopwith Pup and Chris' Dam Buster AVRO Lancaster. There was plenty of flying throughout the day and to my knowledge only one mishap.
In the evening a group of 50 of our friends and family gathered to feast on a slow roasted pig with all the trimmings.
I'd like to thank all the volunteers that helped make this event a success. Without your help it wouldn't happen.
Happy Landings
Scott
Photos: Goose.
August 13 & 14, 2016 was...
...the Stetson IMAC competition!
With some baaad ass weather forecast for the event, we crossed our fingers and planned for the worst, hoping for the best.
With pilots and family coming from all over Ontario and a few from Quebec,we were unsure of who would make the trip.
Most came and signed up which was great! We lost a few for sure due to the dismal weather forecasting.
Nevertheless, we signed up enough competitors to break even, so that is a blessing!
Friday practice day was a warning of what was to come Saturday, with extreme humidity, showers and thickening cloud cover as the day wore on.
Not too much flying was done!
Saturday started off wet, and continued wet!
We had to cancel Saturday flying, but we didn't waste the day.
We held a Judging Seminar and Training Clinic with Lee Prevost and Brendan Grace from Sudbury leading the instruction.
Stetson Canteen Volunteers Barry Hanna, Fred Lottes and John Jackson did us up burgers, so everyone was happy with lunch.
Following this, several folks scattered to the Aviation Museum, shopping, etc, for the afternoon.
We re-convened for the Pilots' dinner Saturday evening at the D&S BBQ and enjoyed a great evening of food, drink, and good friendship.
It was really nice to see so many wives and family members join us for dinner.
Sunday morning played a nasty on me at 7AM, as the final weekend shower got me soaking as I was setting up! REALLY???
Then it cleared away and we were able to hold a successful 1 day event, per IMAC Standards, and get it done by 3 PM.
The pilots flew well with very few problems, in spite of some 50K winds in the afternoon. Even the biggest planes struggled to land safely in this!
Once again, Stetsons lunch crew including John Jackson, Marc Lanthier and Gilles Chenier took good care of us with another great lunch!
I am pleased to report that everyone took home their equipment in one piece!
That is a testament to some excellent piloting in the winds Sunday afternoon!
Results for the event in full detail will be available soon on the IMAC website.
In the meantime, our guys did well:
Basic: Tony Garbisch. First Place. Norm Belair, Third place.
Sportsman: Mike Lalonde. First Place. Dave Percy. Second Place. Pierre Coulombe. Third Place. Bob Myhara. Fourth Place.
Intermediate: Gary Robertson. Fourth Place.
The Grand Champion and winner of Unlimited class was Denis Dionne, in a superb example of aircraft handling.
Second Unlimited was Lee Prevost, close behind.
The IMAC group expressed their deep appreciation of the Stetsons organization and our support of this event.
We were dealt a bad hand this weekend, weather wise, but in true Stetson fashion, we did our best to turn lemons into lemonade!
Many thanks go out to all the Stetson members who assisted us in holding this event.
Special mention goes to Dave Martin and Michel Boulerice for keeping the flight line going and getting the scoring posted in record times!
Thanks also to President Dan for doing the shopping and photocopying for the event.
In spite of being very tied up with family visits, he made it happen for us again on several levels.
By the way, the new PA System works incredibly well! This is long overdue at the Stetson events, and will be much used and appreciated going forward.
Gary Robertson
Photos: Gary Robertson
June 25, 2016 was...
...the third annual Stetson Heli Fun Fly!
The weather was perfect, 32 degrees C and no wind. With 13 registered pilots flying for the day and some 40-50 machines it was spectacular. There was some impressive 3D flying. As well as some beautiful scale machines courtesy of Pierre and Peter. Some nitro birds and of course the always impressive turbine.
Many thanks to the Kingston and Arnprior guys for attending and all the volunteers who made this event successful. Thanks to Dan for his efforts with a great canteen lunch setup. As always the field was in top shape and we look forward to this event next year.
Jim Denyer
Photos: Goose.
June 4, 2016 was...
...Ed Rae Memorial and 40th Anniversary Fun Fly!
WOW!
What a truly magnificent day to hold a big fun fly!
Mother nature gave us a perfect Saturday with blue skies, some puffy clouds, and gentle winds.
We saw 50 pilots register for the flying, and a large contingent of past members come out for the camaraderie.
It was a great trip down memory lane for many as old friendships were re-kindled and new ones started!
Several of our senior members treated us with old photo albums to review, and many stories of members past.
It was a great way to celebrate the Stetson Flyers 40'th Anniversary year.
Thank You for your participation!
We must tip our Stetson Hats to the participaction of old-time members such as Gerry Pronovost, still very active today, and a treasure house of history, stories, and knowledge of our wonderful hobby/sport.
We also need to thank the Ed Rae family for once again gracing us with their presence. Ed was a founding member of this great club, and his contributions and tireless efforts will never be forgotten!
The trip down memory lane was supported by many others such as Fred Zufelt who brought out two hand-built models that his father, Jim Zufelt, constructed many decades ago.
Jim would be very proud to see his creations maintained and still flying today! Thanks Fred for keeping the legacy alive and well!
Our local Hobby Shops were all present and well represented. Thanks to all of you for assisting the Stetsons with your ongoing help, generosity, and participation!
We tip our hat to Great Hobbies and Dave Rees, Orleans Hobbies and Emmanuel Briere, and of course, Fred Z's Dynamic Hobbies!
Our governing body, MAAC, was well represented with the active attendance of Zone Director Chris Malcolmsen, Deputy ZD Karl Kingston and also representation from several other clubs from Arnprior, Manotick, Kingston to Cornwall and beyond.
The event provided an opportunity for the Stetsons to showcase 4 decades of progress and development in our Radio Control hobby/sport.
We held a first ever FPV Quad Racing demonstration with Pierre and Emmanuel piloting these incredibly fast and nimble quads, complete with live video feeds on a big screen monitor.
Demonstrating the other end of the speed spectrum we saw a model R/C Parasail aircraft brought out and ably flown by Elckar Monsalve. His top speed was a comfortable walking pace!
In total juxtaposition to these newest elements in our hobby, we saw Gerry Pronovost fly a beautifully constructed DeHaviland Tiger Moth Biplane model, showing everyone the elegance and grace that these early aircraft brought to the skies.
Jim Brown showed us today's fast lane with his Aviation Design PHOENIX Jet powered sport aircraft. This super-slippery bird was clocked at 196 MPH on one pass, and in reviewing the data logged records afterwards, the jet aircraft achieved a true top speed of 201 MPH today! Everyone enjoyed the sights, sounds and smells of Jim's super-slippery creation, which won all the marbles, including the People's choice Award and the Ed Rae Family Awards! Congratulations go out to Jim, who actively supports our events and continues to be a long standing and proud Stetson member!
Throughout the day we were treated to dozens of flights by the fifty active pilots in the event, showcasing every aspect of our hobby/sport, from beautifully constructed and flown scale aircraft, to aerobatic giants of 10 foot wingspan, and every imaginable type of aircraft in between!
Lunch hour saw fantastic special demonstration flights from Stetson pilots John Stewart (3D Helicopter), Pierre Menard (Flying to music) Paolo Sousa (3D Hucking, with music) and a great Warbird Gaggle with six giant scale warbirds all at the same time, down low and full throttle, trying hard to mow the grass!
This evening, as I sit at home doing this write-up indoors, a group of Stetson enthusiasts and guests are flying night-lighted R/C aircraft and continuing the day for as long as their rechargeable batteries last!
What a fitting tribute to 40 years of loving labor, sweat equity, and hard dedicated efforts of so many past and present Stetson members!
We thank you all for attending today, whether to fly or just to meet old friends and reminisce on the Stetson Flyers history and growth.
We must also thank the MANY volunteer Stetsons who worked hard to make today the success we all enjoyed:
The many hard-working canteen staff, the folks who helped with parking, putting out the signs, selling the 50/50 tickets, getting the Anniversary Cake, and on it goes...
Thank you President Dan for shouldering the load as always, and leading by example once more! You do realize of course, that the membership will NEVER let you retire, right?
The Stetson Flyers membership should be proud tonight:
Proud of the success the club enjoys today;
Proud of our history and our founders, on whose shoulders we stand on this day, 40 years later!
Gary Robertson
Photos: Goose (click the image above for the full album).
March 5, 2016 was...
...the Stetson Club's annual Winter Fun Fly!
Saturday March 5, 2016 was a really nice Canadian Winter Day!
It was a bit nippy, but sunny and most importantly, CALM! 08:00 -16C to noon, -6C afterwards, winds nil.
The Stetsons hosted our Winter Fun Fly to 28+ hardy folks who came out and flew, chatted, and enjoyed the Chili!
Thanks to Sue and Hal MacDonald for being the organizers of this event.
Mostly, Thanks to SUE for the great Chili and Buns. Sorry Hal!
Dan, our intrepid leader, was out there at 7 AM, with Pierre Coulombe, field coordinator, making sure all was ready for us wimps that stayed warm in bed for hours after that. The infield plowing was much appreciated by all, and the residual ice was testament to why we had to clear off the pits and entrance areas.
Hal demonstrated this for us with a not-so-gracious swan dive on the icy runway entrance at mid field.
Safety Officer! Get the Safety Officer!
Dan, just a heads up: Hal's attorney will be in touch with you Monday AM regarding the unsafe conditions.
...and so the fun continued...with big, small, in-between and all sorts of aircraft in the air taking advantage of the CALM day.
We enjoyed seeing many, many electric foamies just having a blast! THAT has to be the way to go for trouble-free winter fun!
We enjoyed watching the gasser and glow guys flip and flip and flip....and flip some more....
BUT, they were all successful and got airborne, enjoying the day, and with that SMUG smile that comes with knowing that you got a REAL engine airborne in winter!
Way to go, you guys!
We nearly had a perfect day of fluegeling until poor Les got all excited at missing the group photo and dumped his sport flyer onto the ice!
Never mind though, Pierre Menard was there with his 200 hp, 3 cylinder, tuned pipes recovery vehicle. Les says the crash was nothing, but the recovery trip turned all his hair white! Just check him out next time you see him!
It was really a great day.
It made us all yearn for spring, for green grass, for WARM, for more great flying days with our buddies.
It made us all happy to be Stetson Flyers!
Thank you to all who contributed!
Gary Robertson
Photos: The first 36 by Gary Roberston, the remaining 91 from Hal MacDonald.
February 27, 2016 saw...
...the Stetson Club visit Vintage Wings of Canada!
The Stetson Flyers Model Aircraft Club would like to thank Vintage Wings for providing us with an excellent experience this morning at the facility.
We had 26 members visit the hangar and thoroughly enjoy the guided tour. Our THREE guides were delightful to listen to and learn from.
They provided us with so many anecdotes, facts, history, great stories and lots and lots of answers for the questions from our very keen group!
I must say that I was personally very impressed with the developments I saw on this visit. It's been a few years since I last visited, and it was great to see the flags,
posters and memorabilia in the hangar. The place looks great!
Your well stocked gift counter is new to me, and great to see! You got us on the Junior Bomber Jacket for our grandson!
Thank you to Vintage Wings staff and volunteers for the dedication, vision, and sweat equity needed to create this impressive operation!
The Stetson Flyers would like to extend an open invitation to you and your staff to come visit us at Stetson Field on the nice calm summer days and see what we are up to!
Best Regards, and thanks again for a wonderful experience!
Gary Robertson
[Written of behalf of the Stetson Club to Peter at Vintage Wings]
Photos: The first 29 by Dan Marcotte, the remaining 53 from Hal MacDonald.
January 1, 2016 was...
...the annual Stetson First Fly of the Year event!
Contrary to last year we actually got snow this time around and around 25 people showed up for the First Fly of the Year event.
-3 degrees C was quite mild and the forecast wind didn't begin picking up until after 9am and not to the expected 24khp (luckily!).
7 aircraft were entered for the electric 'race' won by Tony Garbish and 2 for the glow powered class won by Gary Robertson.
John Jackson manufactured amazing trophies for each class and did an outstanding job, thanks John!
Many thanks to Michael Lalonde and all the volunteers that made today a success! The Tim's coffee and Timbits were very much appreciated as was Gerry Nadon's donation of a bottle of bubbly.
Nigel, Gary and Hal have additional images from today's event here: Dropbox link.
Click the picture above for the full album, share and enjoy!
Goose.
Photos: Goose
Stetson Web History...
Wednesday January 27, 2016 is the next scheduled meeting at the Aviation Museum. Catch up with club members and let everyone know what you have been upto this past summer.
Meeting starts at 7:30, come around to the back door.
Spring 2016 Newsletter Available!
2015 Stetson Brochure
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Color Brochure
