What makes a good RC Trainer Airplane?

A good trainer RC airplane is stable, self-correcting, and can fly at very slow speeds without stalling. These are exactly the traits that beginner RC pilots need when they're learning how to fly RC airplanes.

This page explains how trainers are designed to have these flight characteristics that are so critical for the beginner RC pilot.

If you're actually looking to buy your first RC airplane, there is an extensive list of RC trainer airplanes here that you don't want to miss.

Stable RC Airplane
high wing

The wings on a trainer will be on top of the fuselage. This causes the weight of the fuselage to hang under the wing. This is much more stable than having the weight of the fuselage sitting on top of the wings, as it is with a low wing RC airplane.

With a low wing airplane the weight is on top of the wings and gravity is constantly trying to make the airplane fly up side down.

Self-correcting RC Airplane

If a beginner gets overwhelmed and lets go of the sticks while the airplane is banked, a good RC trainer plane will self correct and fly straight and level. This is accomplished by wing dihedral. Dihedral is the angle that the wing tips are raised.

High Lift

The third characteristic of a good RC trainer airplane is a high lift wing. This is accomplished best with a flat-bottomed wing. We know that the lift of an airplane wing depends on the shape of the airfoil.

On a flat-bottomed wing, the air going over the wing must travel farther than the air going under the wing. This produces much more lift than a symmetrical wing. More lift allows the airplane to fly much slower which gives the beginner more time to react.

Hanger 9's ALPHA is an example of a trainer airplane with a flat-bottomed airfoil.

Some trainer RC airplanes have semi-symmetrical airfoils. These are a step up from a basic trainer. Since the wings will provide less lift ,these airplanes will not fly as slowly before stalling. Semi-symmetrical airfoils will make a trainer airplane much more Hanger 9 Alpha aerobatic.

Hanger 9's ARROW is an example of a trainer airplane with a semi-symmetrical airfoil. If you think you will be a fast learner and have someone to help you, then you should consider a semi-symmetrical trainer airplane. If you want to be safe and have the easiest RC airplane for learning to fly, then stick with a basic trainer airplane with a flat-bottomed airfoil.

Tricycle Landing Gear

A good RC trainer airplane will have tricycle landing gear with a steerable nose wheel such as this MegaTech Airstrike. Staying on the runway when taking off can be challenging for a beginner. When taking off, a tricycle gear makes the airplane much easier to steer than a tail dragger.

Three Bladed Propeller

Three bladed propellers are also a good idea to use on your first nitro trainer airplane. Three bladed props provide more thrust to get the plane off the ground faster for a short easy take-off. When using a 3-bladed propeller the top end speed is much slower than a 2-bladed prop giving the pilot more time to react to the airplane. A 3-bladed prop will also slow the airplane down when the engine goes to idle. The diameter of the blades on a 3-bladed prop are shorter than the blades of a 2-bladed prop. This is helps protect the propeller for those first landings, and they generally are rough ones!

If you plan to buy a nitro RC trainer airplane you should consider the Evolution Engines Trainer Power System. This package actually comes with a flywheel in addition to the 3-bladed prop. The flywheel slows your engine down and allows it to run more smoothly. It minimizes the risk of a dead stick landing when you are learning to fly.

Think of the 3-bladed prop and flywheel as training wheels. Once you get the hang of flying your RC trainer airplane can change to a 2-bladed prop and remove the flywheel. This makes it feel like you just bought a much more powerful engine but it doesn’t cost you a dime!

Great Deals on Ebay

Many times you can buy brand new RC airplanes from Ebay for a fraction of the normal retail cost. If your looking for a trainer airplane I highly suggest that you check out what's available on Ebay.

Remember, a good trainer airplane will have:

High Wings
Moderate Dihedral
Symmetrical or Semi-symmetrical Airfoil
Tricycle Landing Gear

If the RC trainer airplane you're interested in meets this criteria, you can rest assured that you are buying a good trainer aircraft regardless of what brand it may be. Check out the selection below and make sure to click the "View All" link at the bottom to show all of the trainer airplanes available on Ebay.