Good things come in small packages. Never has this saying been truer than with the recent explosion of small electric airplanes.

E-flite Tribute EP (EFL2000)

My love of electric flight started when fellow Team JR pilot George Hicks sent me one of his original Tribute kits. I had been flying large-scale aerobatic airplanes for about 10 years and really had hit a wall in my flying skills, in no small part due to not flying as much as I wanted. But here were a few pieces of foam, which when coupled with a few dollars of electric components, could perform all of the same wild 3D flying as my 40% aerobatic monsters-now any park or open space became a flying field! I no longer need to hook up my trailer and drive 40 minutes and spend all day at the field in order to get in some flying.

3D flying requires new skills, and the new breed of small electrics really allows you to learn and hone those skills down low and up close where you can see the airplane. Crashes are easily fixed with a little CA, epoxy, or sometimes even just a little packing tape. The best part is that everything I learn with these small airplanes translates back to the big stuff, making all of my flying more enjoyable.

Who ever thought foam could be so much fun?