ON THE COVER
The Samurai had their swords, but the Imperial Japanese Army and Navy Air Services had the Zero. Of necessity, in a country with few mineral resources, the Japanese had long since made themselves masters of metal alloys, and so the Zero’s wing main spar used Extra- Super Duralumin, whose tensile strength was reportedly 30-40% greater than previous alloys. It was this which, in part, gave the Zero a 650lb weight advantage over the Spitfire I – lightness that gave the impression of weakness in what was actually a very strong structure
FREE PRO PLAN
MITSUBISHI A6-M2 ZERO
Tony Nijhuis models Jiro Horikoshi’s lightweight and deadly rapier,
the Japanese fighter that put performance before everything else
REVIEWS
BUCKER BU133 JUNGMEISTER
A review with a twist: Graham Ashby uses Seagull’s 1/4-scale Jungmeister to show the way to true RC Utopia
HAI 2
David Ashby reaches a new, erm… Hai when he discovers this flying wing from Pichler
DJI PHANTOM 4
“What’s the Phantom like to fly?” Tim Kearsley asks; in a word – fantastic!
E-FLITE MK.XIV SPITFIRE
Form a queue all you fans of Griffon engine cowlings and big canons – E-flite’s 1.2m Mk.XIV has arrived!
COLUMNS
BEST PRACTICE: EUREKA MOMENTS
Graham Ashby shares some of those little model-making epiphanies that will change your (modelling) life
BEST PRACTICE: AN EYE FOR DETAIL
Are you a cowboy builder or a conscientious modeller? Take the Ashby Fastidiometer test
BEST PRACTICE: TESTING TIMES
Is your new model ready for its maiden flight? Then here’s a test-day checklist that’ll help to ensure a successful outcome
BEST PRACTICE: WELL-ROUNDED
Graham Ashby’s back again to guide you on your journey to becoming an aeromodeller of accomplishment and sagacity (at least, that’s what it says here)
WIZARD OF OZ
Boxing clever: Brian Winch brings his down-under ingenuity to some of the most frequently asked engine mod’ questions
BEST PRACTICE: A LITTLE TLC
Teething troubles? Poor reliability? Maybe you should try Graham Ashby’s post-flight care plan?
FEATURES
DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE
Dave Roberts takes to the ‘Drink me’ bottle and makes a trip to the World Scale Championships
MAKING THUNDERBIRDS GO
With the help of Depron and Arduino, Ian Nash solves the riddle set by Gerry Anderson – how do you make Thunderbird 2 fly?
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ON A SHOESTRING
Can Nigel Hawes, the Uncle Bulgaria of electric flight, rise to our recycling challenge and achieve near zero-cost RC flight?
THE BIG PICTURE
Integrating the control of an RC aircraft and sophisticated photographic missions has never been easier, says Tim Kearsley
PONTY WI’ KNOBS ON
Our wandering bard, Alex Whittaker, casts a nostalgic eye over Pontefract’s single-channel celebration – and is delighted
POINTS OF VIEW
FPV fIrst-timers David Ashby and Ian Nash take different approaches to shared issues
CONFESSIONS OF AN ACCIDENTAL COLLECTOR
Magpie Whittaker explains the very English joys of fettling small pieces of internal combustion jewellery
ON ANY SUNDAY
They do clubs differently in Oz: join Brian Winch for a guided tour of Sydney’s 110-year old Society of Model Engineers
TURNING PRO’
A technicolour career in aerial photography starts with the black and white of a commercial pilot’s ticket. David Burton explains the small print
MODEL MAGIC
This month, John Kidd’s 1/4-scale scratch-built model of Fieseler Storch Fi156 A-1 is the subject of Alex Whittaker’s lens
NEXT MONTH
Just when you thought it was all over…
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