General RC

Prior to taking the RC micro Albatross out for a spin, my “micro” flying experience was limited to Airhogs airplanes (which do have their place and are fine products). I am greatly impressed with the Micro Albatross (find it here).

Everything needed is included in the box, even batteries for the transmitter (2.4 GHz and doubles as a charging station). No assembly required unless you want to add the pilot figure and scale machine guns (I opted not to include these initially). I installed the batteries in the radio and plugged in the 3.7v 130 Mah battery and after about 20 minutes I was ready to go.

Bad news. A bit windy when I hit one of my favorite flying fields (a local elementary school). I had always been warned that the micro aircraft needed very light wind conditions to fly so I opted not to fly the micro that day.
The next day was quite windy, and the next after that too. I really wanted to take the Albatross up to see how it would perform but the weather was not cooperating.

I was determined to give it a go. Even though the winds were 5 to 10 I had waited long enough. If I crashed, so be it! I waited for the wind to die down a bit and placed the Albatross facing into the wind and fed it power. After a short (few feet) run I gave it up elevator and took to the sky. Fortunately, the wind stayed light for the first few minutes of flight so I could get a feel for the controls (very responsive – as with most RC airplanes, a light touch on the controls is preferable). The the wind kicked back up a notch.

I flew the Albatross into the wind and played with the throttle setting. There was the Albatross stationary in the air – just enough throttle to offset the wind. Very cool. Lower the throttle setting and turn to fly with the wind – the bird was really moving with the tail wind even at low throttle setting. Start a turn back into the wind and throttle up; this thing can handle some decent wind!

Later flights were in less windy conditions. Flight times are good. Loops are doable, but mostly this is gentle flying just for fun. Several touch and goes which were very easy – this is a very responsive little 3 channel model.

Over all, the cost is good ($80), it flies well and is fairly durable (see below)

On the down side, there are a couple weak points; the landing gear is attached to the fuselage at four points with a little glue (more would be nice) and the upper wing has four points of attachment to the fuselage as well that could be reinforced. The trim settings don’t quite put the Albatross into a neutral flight setting. I found myself applying slight down elevator and right rudder at all times to maintain straight flight even with trim set at maximum to offset the tendency to climb and turn left.

Still, flying the Albatross is quite enjoyable and rivals many of its larger cousins. A big plus is that the Albatross does not require much space to fly, many back/front yards would be enough to enjoy an after work flight.