How to Take Off and Land an RC Plane

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Takeoff is the easy half. Landing is where beginners usually get into trouble: power chopped too early, a flare started too high, a gust that arrives at exactly the wrong moment. The good news is that landings are a procedure, and procedures can be learned with a simulator, a patient instructor and a calm day.

This page is a researched guide, not a record of our own flying. The step-by-step sequences come from the manuals of two popular trainers, the HobbyZone AeroScout S 2 1.1m and the E-flite Apprentice STS 1.5m, which share nearly identical landing instructions. Crosswind terms come from the FAA's Airplane Flying Handbook, which is written for full-size aircraft and is used here only for definitions. Your own model's manual and an experienced instructor outrank all of it. The text assumes the common Mode 2 layout, with throttle and rudder on the left stick and elevator and aileron on the right. Mode 2 is described as by far the most common in the United States, though no AMA or Horizon document we found calls it a formal standard.

If you are brand new, start with our beginner's guide to flying an RC plane. If you are still choosing a trainer, our beginner planes guide and trainer comparison cover the field.

Before you leave the bench

Practice in a simulator. The AeroScout S 2's preflight checklist literally starts with "Practice with RealFlight." The RealFlight Evolution package with the InterLink DX controller (Horizon lists it as in stock) includes a simulator controller, a Steam key for the software and an installation guide, and needs a Windows 10 or 11 PC and an internet connection to download the software. A gamepad does not give you the same stick feel, which is the reason for a real controller. Our simulator guide compares options.

RealFlight Evolution with InterLink DX controller

Get an instructor and a buddy box. Both trainer manuals recommend help from a qualified flight instructor for the first flights. With a buddy box, two transmitters are linked: the instructor holds the master, you fly the student transmitter, and the instructor can take control instantly by releasing the trainer switch. The AeroScout S 2 manual describes a wireless trainer option using a separate remote receiver (sold separately), and recommends Flight Mode Switch Position 1 when instructing a new pilot.

If you do not know an instructor, the AMA's Introductory Pilot Program is built for this. Per the AMA, a non-member can fly under direct, one-on-one supervision of a club-designated mentor, with liability insurance coverage, for a learning period of up to 90 consecutive days from the first flying session. Buddy-box use is recommended but not required, participation is one-time, and neither club nor mentor may charge training fees. The AMA also notes that high-performance models are not appropriate for training. Find a club through our club guide.

Trainer cord or wireless buddy box

Set up the airplane. Check the center of gravity against the manual with a CG balancer or the fingertip method, and run the control-direction check with the propeller off. If the model has SAFE, follow the manual's check sequence, which for the STS must be done in Experienced mode, not Beginner or Intermediate.

Check the rules. The FAA says recreational flyers must complete TRUST and carry proof, and that an aircraft of 250 grams (0.55 lb) or more has to be registered. Our license and registration guide walks through it.

Two trainers whose manuals back this guide

Horizon describes the AeroScout S 2's pusher layout as offering better propeller and motor protection. The AeroScout S 2 RTF package comes with the RealFlight Trainer Edition (software only) and a Spektrum DXS transmitter. Neither package includes the flight battery or charger.

HobbyZone AeroScout S 2 1.1m RTF

E-flite Apprentice STS 1.5m RTF Basic

Step 1: Read the wind and pick the direction

Both manuals say the same thing: take off into the wind. The AeroScout S 2 manual's checklist puts it plainly: "Taxi into position to ALWAYS take off into any wind," and its troubleshooting table lists launching downwind or crosswind as the cause of a hard-to-launch aircraft. The STS manual adds "Always launch your aircraft directly into the wind if possible."

How much wind is too much depends on the model. Here are the figures makers actually publish:

Gusts matter as much as the average. A steady breeze changes your ground speed; a gust changes airspeed and direction without warning, which is why the AeroScout manual's advice is to postpone.

For a quick read of the wind, a windsock helps. The FAA's windsock specification is built around a sock that is fully extended at 15 knots, which is about 17 mph. A limp sock means calm, and a half-extended one is a roughly mid-range breeze, so for a small trainer you want something close to limp.

Step 2: Take off

1. Put the airplane on the runway facing into the wind and set the flight mode switch to Beginner for your first flights. The AeroScout manual also suggests a 5-minute flight timer with a 3S 1300 mAh battery.
2. Slowly advance the throttle. Per both manuals, small rudder inputs may be needed to keep the aircraft headed straight.
3. As speed builds, the airplane begins a slow climb-out on its own. Do not yank the elevator.
4. Climb into the wind. The AeroScout manual says to climb at full throttle to about 100 feet (30 m), then reduce the throttle to half. The STS manual says to climb to about 50 feet (15 m), turn away gradually, then continue to about 200 feet (60 m) and reduce throttle to around 50 percent.

The STS manual also mentions that in Beginner mode the nose wheel and rudder throw are set for taxi when the airplane is on the ground and below 6 meters of altitude, then automatically reduced for flight. That is why the nose wheel feels livelier on the ground than in the air.

Hand launching

When pavement or short grass is not available, a hand launch can be the better choice, if your model's manual allows it. The AeroScout S 2 manual's sequence is:

1. Grip the aircraft under the fuselage, behind the main gear.
2. Slowly advance the throttle to 100 percent.
3. Throw the aircraft slightly nose up and directly into the wind.

The HobbyZone Sport Cub S 2 manual allows either a hand launch or a ground launch from a hard, level runway. Follow your own manual for the throttle setting and throw angle, because they differ by model.

Step 3: Fly a repeatable pattern

The point of a pattern is repeatability: the same sequence of legs every time, so landings stop being improvisations. Full-size pilots use a rectangle with upwind, crosswind, downwind, base and final legs, and the FAA handbook describes maintaining airspeed, wind-drift correction and altitude on the base leg. For models, the manuals give you the shape without the numbers: the AeroScout and STS landing procedures both have you fly downwind past the end of the runway, then turn into the wind and line up with the centerline.

Keep the model where you can see it, and remember the manual's warning that "flying with the nose pointed toward you is one of the hardest skills to master." Fly big circles high up while you learn. If you lose orientation, the manuals say to press and hold the Panic Recovery button and release the sticks. Remember that the AMA safety code asks you to avoid flying directly over unprotected people and to keep visual contact with the model.

Step 4: The approach

Here is the landing procedure from the AeroScout S 2 and Apprentice STS manuals, which agree step for step:

1. Reduce the throttle to around 50 percent to slow the airspeed.
2. Fly the aircraft downwind past the end of the runway.
3. Turn into the wind and line up with the runway centerline.
4. Gradually decrease the throttle further to begin descending, keeping the wings level. Try to be at approximately 10 feet (3 meters) as the airplane passes over the runway threshold.
5. As it passes the threshold, decrease the throttle.
6. Just before touchdown, gently pull back on the elevator to raise the nose, which is the flare. The goal, per the manuals, "is to be at a low enough speed so the aircraft will not climb when the landing flare is started."
7. Keep steering with the rudder stick through the rollout.

Both manuals also note that a properly trimmed airplane climbs at full throttle and descends at reduced throttle without elevator input. That is the idea behind "throttle for descent, elevator for attitude" on a stable trainer: a small throttle change moves the descent, and a small elevator change holds the nose attitude. Do not use the elevator to "steer down" toward the runway.

The AeroScout S 2 manual also says: "For landings, use high rate elevator" after flying the first flights on low rate. The reason is that you want enough elevator authority to flare.

Step 5: Flare, touchdown and go-arounds

The flare is the last few seconds of the flight, and it is the part worth repeating in a simulator until it is boring. Flare too early or too high and the model runs out of airspeed and drops; flare too late and it touches down fast and may bounce. The manuals do not give a flare height; they describe the goal: low airspeed so the plane does not climb.

If the model bounces, both manuals give the same tip: either add a little throttle and ease the airplane back down, or go to full power, climb out and go around. The FAA handbook makes a related point for full-size aircraft: if a landing cannot be made on the first third of the runway, or the airplane drifts sideways, go around. A go-around is a good landing decision, not a failure.

If a crash is imminent, both manuals say to use throttle cut or quickly lower the throttle and throttle trim, because failing to do so can cause greater damage to the airframe, the ESC and the motor.

Step 6: Crosswinds

The best crosswind landing is the one you avoid by choosing a runway or waiting for a calmer day. If the wind is not aligned, the FAA's Airplane Flying Handbook (written for full-size airplanes) describes two classic methods:

• Crab. Point the nose into the wind so the ground track stays on the centerline. The crab has to be removed the instant before touchdown so the wheels do not touch while moving sideways.
• Wing-low (sideslip). Use rudder to keep the heading aligned with the runway and just enough bank into the wind to cancel drift. The handbook says to keep the upwind wing down through the round out, because leveling the wings lets the airplane drift and touch down sideways.

Common errors in the handbook include inadequate compensation for wind drift, too low an airspeed or excessive sink rate from the extra drag of a sideslip, and touching down while drifting. The handbook's stated goal is to land without side loads from touching down while drifting. Models are far lighter than full-size airplanes, so treat these as concepts and let the model's manual set the limits. Taxiing deserves attention too: the Sport Cub S 2 manual warns to avoid taxiing crosswind in a breeze because the aircraft can flip.

Common mistakes

• Over-controlling. Small corrections only; if the plane is flying straight and level, leave the sticks alone.
• Landing downwind. Both manuals say to land and launch into the wind.
• Using elevator to steer down. Descent is managed with throttle on a trimmed trainer.
• Cutting power too early. The manuals reduce the throttle gradually and cut it at the threshold.
• Ballooning or bouncing. Add a little power or go around.
• Treating SAFE as an autopilot. The STS manual says its SAFE Plus system "is designed as flight assistance, not an autopilot. The pilot should fly the aircraft at all times."
• Skipping the simulator and the instructor. That is what they are for.

When you are ready for more airplane, our intermediate planes guide shows what comes after the trainer.

Frequently asked questions