A 101" wingspan aircraft that fits in any car, will accept a variety of engines, incorporates the most modern modular construction, has full flaps and is a ball to fly. Sound too good to be true? Well, until Craig Morse, a certified full scale A & P mechanic, decided to produce the Frontier aircraft, it was.
Craig and Sandy Morse are the husband and wife team
that make up Tailwind Aviation based in Vicksburg, Michigan,
I.M.A.A. members had a brief glimpse of the first Frontier in
Volume 10 No. 4 of High-Flight. In that brief article Craig told
of his desire to make a Giant model aircraft that incorporated
a unique design that would make it easily transportable yet
when assembled, would be a superior performer. When our
members read that information, the High-Flight phones
started to ring with people wanting more information on this
aircraft.
Craig and Sandy attended the Oshkosh Rally and supported the I.M.A.A. by having a booth inside the South Exhibitor's building. There, they showed the Frontier, its modular construction and ultra sleek airframe. It was the hit of the show with Craig bringing home more orders than he dreamed of. Our membership liked what they saw in person and this article is dedicated to this young couple who have taken their dream to the limit by going "full time" into the production of this 101-inch Giant.
Why did an aviation technician change vocations and begin producing R/C models? Craig told me: "with the advancement of technology, reliability of accessories and the fact that I knew I could incorporate full scale technology, we felt the market was ready for a top of the line Giant aircraft. I love big R/C aircraft! They have more realistic performance and are just flat out more exciting. It's the only way to fly!"
Using their home for a production base, Sandy handles all of the incoming calls, orders and customer requests. With each Frontier having a serial number, customers are not "here today and gone tomorrow." Craig's aviation experience is evident in that he sends updates and maintenance tips out to all customers. "I haven't seen an airplane with a better strength-to-weight ratio," Craig said. "The modular construction around the aluminum boom means that the boom will absorb an impact and minimal stress will be transferred from one part to another. But I realize that some of our Frontiers will sustain damage. We are here after the sale to help our customers!"
The construction of the Frontier is pleasantly
different from the standard balsa stick and rib we were accustomed to.
An aluminum boom is the "backbone" of the Frontier and you
build around it; which keeps things very true. The aluminum
sub-assemblies are all pre-built and if you are into float flying,
the Frontier has been designed to accept that hardware also.
The wings are made of foam and are skinned with
1/64-inch ply using Hobbypoxy 2 (45 minute). Happily we found the servo
pockets, servo lead channel and spar slots pre-cut. Construction
of the wings on our test bird were very straight forward
and we didn't use retracts. You can go either way with the
Frontier. In fact, that is one of its strongest traits. With the
modular construction that Craig has developed, you can
replace damaged parts quickly and within two minutes you can
have a frontier dismantled into 5 parts (wings, nose section,
tail section and canopy) for EASY transportation.
The Frontier is so far advanced in this area that there is no competition. Imagine putting a 101-inch wingspan, 86-inch long model in the rear of a compact car? We did it ourselves. The Frontier has solved a major problem that haunts many IMAA members. We build the Giant of our choice then... Oh oh! How do I get it around? The High Flight staff recently purchased a Wells Cargo trailer for that very reason. Transporting our Giant aircraft can be a headache, but not with the Frontier.
The fuselage is built around the aluminum boom, first
mounting the formers, then the nyrods for the cable pull/pull
system that operates the rear control surfaces. It was evident
to the folks who saw the Frontier at Oshkosh and to us, that
it was in fact designed by a full scale mechanic.
Craig's touches were everywhere from the use of aircraft grade bolts to the way he installs the servos and radio gear. Very, very clean. After checking out the Frontier, Bob Obenberger, owner of Tru-turn Spinners remarked: "that is an advanced radio control model. It's built like a Cessna!"
Once you have your Frontier roughed in, you will be able to finish it in any conventional way you like. To keep the weight down, we decided to use MonoKote where possible and Formula U for the cowl area.
You can put anything from a 1.20 four stroke all the
way up to a G-62 in the Frontier, using Tailwinds shock mount.
In fact, when you place your order, Sandy will ask you
what type of engine you will be installing. The proper bolt
pattern is machined for you so you can breeze through
installation. We decided to use a Saito 300 single carb twin
four stroke with C&H ignition system. Bill Carpenter really
knows how to make the big twins handle nicely and ours was no
different.
As you can see from the pictures, the large twin four-cycle is a great choice, not only from the standpoint of power but from looks too! As we said, the Frontier is sleek (only 4 1/2 inches wide at the nose) and those twin cylinders protruding out each side is a real eye-catcher and they sound realistic. Tru-Turn did some work on one of their 3 1/2-inch spinners to make it fit both the large 20-8 prop hub as well as the narrow Frontier cowl.
A JR PCM-10 radio was installed and we used their high power NES 4031 servos for all but the elevator, where 1/4 scale World units were placed. A call to SR batteries had one of their pre-tested 1200 ma battery packs on the way. Try SR when you have battery needs. As well as being a strong supporter of IMAA, they are very responsive over the phone and their product is NASA quality for our Giant needs.
While the Frontier is quick building in that it is self-jigging and all the aluminum is pre-drilled, it will take about 40 hours to complete the construction. Building in sub-assemblies and the use of Tailwind's 4-hour video tape can be a lifesaver. This is a video supplement manual that allows Craig (who takes you through the video) to elaborate on specific areas. Ours came in at 19 lbs., which was a pleasant surprise.
Bringing the Frontier to our test field was a different kind of experience because the aircraft did just that: different. The usual crowd was there buzzing and spinning their big and small R/C "dreams on wings" but when they saw us set up the Frontier, all flying stopped. Only once before has this happened and that was when we tested a Giant military drone that was shaped like a jet!
We gassed up and with flaps in the up position, the Frontier jumped off the ground in 40 feet! Wow, talk about STOL capabilities! Craig had shown us video footage of Frontiers being flown from a football field in another part of the country and we can see how it was accomplished. He has designed a model that will either climb like an F-15 on take-off or if you wish, gently ascend. It's up to your mood.
Flight was rock steady and the Frontier goes where you point it as if it were on rails. No wavering or unusual slipping. But we were just beginning to have fun.
Remembering that the Frontier had flaps, we lowered them during slow flight and realized their full impact. The aircraft ballooned up but down trim brought the Frontier back to the straight and level. Does this aircraft fly slow! It will float along and our first landings were well down the field because the Frontier will land at a walking speed! This is not what we are familiar with. A Giant model that performs aerobatics with the best of them, yet can be flown as slow as 10 m.p.h.
To date our test Frontier has been flown by five members and their comments are interesting: "someone finally blew the dusk off of 1/4 scale flying!" ... "It has instant recovery" ... "I just finished a Laser, I should have bought a Frontier" ... "Look at this construction!" ... "Where are all the stringers, ribs and balsa wood?" (That comment from a GM Engineer).
As most progressive companies do, Tailwind offers the Frontier in three versions:
We liked it. Actually, we liked it a lot and we need it. The techniques that Tailwind Aviation incorporates is that of the 90's and Craig envisions a twin in the near future. Tailwind has brought us into a new area, a new field of learning and of Giant scale flying.
Maybe that's why their aircraft was named the "Frontier,"
Specifications: Model - Frontier
Type of aircraft - Sport/Fun Fly
Wing span - 101"
Total wing area - 1455 sq. in.
Wing loading - 27 oz./sq. ft.
Length - 86"
Stabilizer spon - 36"
Flying weight - 19 lbs. with Saito 300
Rec. Engine - 1.20 4-cy. / 3.7 2-cy.
Price - Kit $395
- Ready to cover $875
- Ready to fly w/ radio & engine
installed $1,200