DERBYSHIRE RADIO
CONTROL FLYERS
CLUB HANDBOOK
Introduction
This handbook sets out the rules for running the Club and contains maps for its two current flying sites at Ashbourne Airfield and Longford Hall Farm
Club Rules
1 The Club shall be called the DERBYSHIRE RADIO CONTROL FLYERS.
2 The Club shall operate from Ashbourne Airfield, Longford Hall Farm or any other designated site.
3 The objective of the Club shall be to encourage and promote the interest of building and flying radio-controlled model aircraft.
4 The Club shall consist of Senior and Junior Members; Junior Members must be under 18 years of age. Members who are over 18 on 1 January and are in full time education, may retain Junior Membership, but must provide a copy of their current NUS card or equivalent. There shall be no annual fee for a Junior member where a family member is also a Senior member of the Club. Where there is no family member of the Club, the Junior fee will be 40% of the Senior Club membership subscriptions. Junior members must be members of the BMFA and comply with CAA registration requirements. Junior members under the age of 16 must be accompanied at the flying site at all times by a family member, parent, guardian etc. who is responsible for their health and safety, behaviour and their equipment and belongings.
5 New Senior members on election shall pay a joining fee of £50 and a key deposit of £3. The joining fee will be waived for Junior Members. A Junior member who transitions to Senior membership will not be required to pay a joining fee.
6 The election of members shall be by a majority decision of the Committee.
7 The annual subscription shall be paid by 1 January. The annual subscription fees shall be decided at each Annual General Meeting (AGM). New members elected in August, September, October, November and December shall pay a reduced subscription.
8 Any member whose subscription has not been paid by 1 January must not fly at any Club designated site, as the British Model Flying Association (BMFA) insurance applicable to both the member and the Club will not be valid. Flying may be resumed once the full subscription due (including BMFA subscription or confirmation of current BMFA membership) has been received by a Club Officer.
9 Any member whose subscription has not been paid by 1st January shall be deemed to have left the Club. Re-joining after this date shall incur a Re-joining Fee of £10 (Senior or Junior) in addition to the normal annual subscription. The Re-joining fee shall be applicable up to the fifth anniversary of leaving the Club, after which time the full joining fee shall be applicable.
10 The Club shall be affiliated to the BMFA. All Club members must be members of the BMFA.
11 The Officers of the Club shall be Chairman, Secretary, Membership Secretary and Treasurer. Should any Officer, for whatever reason, wish to stand down, the Committee may appoint a Deputy who will enjoy the full powers of the office, with the exception of online bank account access, until the next AGM.
12 Management of the Club shall be vested in the Committee, composed of the Officers and a minimum of four elected members.
13 Four members of the Committee, two of whom shall be Officers, shall form a quorum.
14 The AGM shall be held in November or December. The business of the meeting shall be: -
a) Apologies for absence
b) Approval of the Minutes of the previous year's AGM
c) Matters arising
d) Approval and adoption of Annual Reports from the Committee
e) Adoption of Accounts
f) Election of Officers and Committee
g) Any member's proposals received under Rule 15
h) Any other business
15 If two members make a written request to the Secretary before 24 October stating a motion to be proposed, the Secretary shall give notice of the motion in the notice convening the AGM.
16 An Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) may be called by the Committee at any time as deemed necessary. An EGM shall be called if a written request is received by the Secretary, which states the motion(s) proposed and is signed by five or more members.
17 At least 21 days before the AGM and at least 14 days before an EGM, the Secretary shall send to every member a notice stating the date, time, location and agenda of the meeting. No business other than that specified in the notice shall be transacted at the meeting.
18 The quorum of an AGM or EGM shall be ten members. If a quorum is not present, the meeting shall be adjourned for two weeks. The Secretary shall notify all members of the adjournment. The adjourned meeting may proceed without a quorum.
19 The Chair at all General Meetings shall be taken by the Chairman. If he is not present after 5 minutes of the appointed start time of the meeting, the Chair shall be taken by a Club member elected by the meeting.
20 Every member shall have one vote; the Chairman shall have the casting vote.
21 In the event of dissolution of the Club for any reason, assets remaining after the Club’s liabilities have been discharged shall be divided equally amongst the current members, providing that they have five full consecutive years as a member.
22 Membership of the Club may be terminated at the discretion of the Committee for blatant disregard of the Club Rules.
23 The Club shall have a bank account; the signatories shall be the serving Officers of the Club.
24 All frequencies in the 27, 35 and 459 MHz and 2.4GHz bands may be used for fixed wing aircraft, helicopters and multi-rotor aircraft.
25 Airfield Discipline – General
a) Flying times shall be between 10:00 a.m. and 8.00 p.m. on Monday to Saturday and 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on Sunday, or at the discretion of the Committee. This restriction does not apply to gliders and quiet electric-powered models.
b) All IC engines shall be fitted with an effective silencer that complies with current noise limits. Any member not complying with this rule may be instructed to cease flying by any Committee member present.
e) All accidents must be reported to the Committee and an Accident Report Form completed and sent to the BMFA.
f) Take care to minimise damage when entering the crops to retrieve a model. Use the tractor tracks whenever possible.
g) All children and pets must be kept clear of the take-off and landing areas and must be kept under proper control at all times.
h) Members are responsible for their own and their friends’ safety and for the removal of litter.
i) Spinners, propeller safety nuts and all projections forward of the propeller shall be rounded - no needle noses.
j) When flying, all pilots must stand together in the pilots’ area, which should be sited at least 3 metres away from the pits, in both the crosswind and upwind directions.
k) The prevalence of larger models results in quantities of flammable fuels being in the pits. To reduce the risk of fires, smokers must move away from the pits to a safe area. Whenever petrol or gas turbine powered models are being operated, a fire extinguisher suitable for use on petrol fires and a fire bucket must be to hand and ready for immediate use.
l) Bona fide guests who are BMFA members may fly at either site on a maximum of 3 occasions in total per year, subject to approval by a member of the Committee on each occasion.
m) Due to the potential risk of mobile phone transmissions corrupting the memory of computer type transmitters and the distraction that may be caused when making calls, sensible precautions should be taken when using mobile phones.
Phone calls should not be made in the pits area. If receiving a call whilst in the pits area, you should move away from the pits area.
No mobile phone calls should be made or answered in the pilots’ flying area.
When lone flying, it is recommended that pilots keep a mobile phone with them for use in the event of an emergency.
n) No member shall fly unsupervised until he/she has passed at least the appropriate BMFA "A" proficiency test for the class of aircraft being flown unless flying alone or with the agreement of all other members present. The member’s proficiency rating will be shown on his/her membership card, which will be reissued annually. This card must be displayed on the member’s flight box or stand.
o) No more than six aircraft may be airborne at the same time. Helicopters flying from the main site count as one of the six.
p) Fail-safe systems on any model should be set to close the throttle to the idle position (stop, in the case of electric power) upon loss of signal.
q) Aircraft weighing 7 kg. or more must be fitted with a fail-safe mechanism. The pilot must hold at least a BMFA "B" proficiency rating.
r) It is important for members to keep their CAA registration up to date and to display their operator number on every model. Failure to do so could result in the member’s insurance being invalid, as the model is not being flown legally. It could also result in the member not being permitted to fly at the Club sites.
26 Airfield Discipline – Ashbourne Airfield
a) Access to the airfield must be gained only as directed by the Committee. Current access is either via the middle gate off Ladyhole Lane (main runway) or the gate off Harrison Way.
b) All members must lock the gate on entry to or exit from the Airfield.
c) Vehicles must be parked behind the container, extending down the approach road as necessary. Vehicles may be taken into the pits for loading and unloading, but should be removed as quickly as possible.
d) Flying over the pits area, container and car park is NOT permitted. Models must not taxy out of or into the pits area. Whenever the pits are located on the west side of the runway, models must not be flown through the gap between the pits and the container.
e) When grass mowing is taking place, flying may only take place to the west of the white line designating the normal pits area, extended for the full length of the patch. Any pilot who does not feel capable of staying within this area, because of wind direction, model type or personal competence, should not fly.
f) Flying Limits
· The main flying area is between the north / south runway and the airfield perimeter in the direction of Ashbourne over Bradley Wood.
· The main east/west runway marks the limit of flying to the south.
· The first hedgerow visible to the east of the main flying area marks the limit to the east.
g) Flying of gas turbine powered aircraft:
· Operation is subject to the prior approval by the Committee and endorsement of the member’s DRCF membership card.
· The BMFA Code of Practice for operation of gas turbine powered aircraft must be followed.
· The pilot must hold at least a BMFA "B" proficiency rating.
· New members may not fly gas turbine powered aircraft within one year of joining the Club.
27 Airfield Discipline – Longford Hall Farm
a) Access to the site must be gained only as directed by the Committee. This is currently as shown on the Longford Hall Farm map. Drive slowly through the farmyard and under no circumstances use any other access.
b) Vehicles must be parked in the designated car park. Vehicles may be taken into the pits for loading and unloading, but should be removed as quickly as possible. Ensure that the vehicle is in motion before moving the steering to prevent damage to the grass.
c) Flying Limits
· The main flying area is east of the take-off/landing area.
· The track leading to the car park marks the limit to the west.
· Flying over the pits area is NOT permitted.
d) There shall be no flying when grass mowing is taking place.
e) Flying of gas turbine powered aircraft is not permitted.
28 The Committee may amend the rules as necessary, but no resolution to wind up the Club may be passed except by a 2/3 majority at a General Meeting.
29 This issue of the Club Handbook supersedes all previous issues. Repeated failure of a member to conform to the rules, when requested by a Committee member, will result in a written warning to the member. Further failure could lead to membership being withdrawn. A record of a member's verbal and written warnings will be kept for 12 months
DERBYSHIRE RADIO CONTROL FLYERS
ASHBOURNE SITE MAP
PILOTS’ AREA AND PIT POSITIONS
The grass area on the patch provides us with increased scope to cater for varying wind conditions, longer take-off runs and the ability to land models without wheels safely. The drainage of this land is not very good, so the Committee has ruled that cars should not be driven onto the grass.
To obtain maximum versatility, members should practice and be able to take off and land from the left and the right, either to the front or rear of their model. For most wind directions, the pilots’ area sited at position #1 should be used, with the pits between the pilots’ area and the container. Pilots’ area position #2, with the pits on the west side of the runway, should only be used in the case of a wind in the East to South quadrant.
DERBYSHIRE RADIO CONTROL FLYERS
LONGFORD HALL FARM SITE MAP
