S

Sun

W

Wind

E

Eventualities

E

Emergencies (inc. Fail Safes)

T

Transmitter Control

S

Site Rules

Sun

Where is the Sun in relation to where you will be flying? Will it affect your flight patterns? What actions will you take if you accidentally fly through the Sun? Should you be wearing sunglasses? Remember that low Sun in Winter can be a particular problem.

Wind

Consider the wind strength and direction. How will this affect your flights? Will you have to modify your normal take-off and especially your landing patterns? From your local knowledge, will there be any turbulence with this wind direction and strength?How bad might it be?

Eventualities

What will you do if you hear or see a full-size aircraft or helicopter flying at low level near the field? What if the landing area is suddenly obstructed when you are on finals to land? What will you do if a nearby footpath or bridle path suddenly has walkers or horses on it?

Emergencies

You may have an engine cut at any part of a flight so consider where your deadstick landings might be safely made and which ground areas you should definitely avoid. How will you warn other field users if you have an emergency? You may also have a complete loss of signal and therefore before every flight you should check that the fail safe is working how you expect it to.

Transmitter Control

Is the site pegboard in operation? If not should it be and why not? Where has the pegboard been placed? Are you familiar with the system and understand how it works?

Site Rules

Are there any specific  site rules you should be aware of? Most importantly, where are the no-fly zones or dead airspace areas on the site?