The last few years have seen an explosion of the multirotor part of the hobby and driven a huge amount of innovation in the flight controllers and the software and firmware that runs them.

We’ve all seen the guy who runs like an ageing warrior with a spear at the ready, determined to launch his spear into a close earth orbit. In reality, his sprint falls short and he tosses the glider like he has given up the will to live. Never was there a greater anticlimax!

Hands up who has seen a botched hand launch so sketchy it smashes into the ground full throttle ripping the front end clean off?

It’s important that you know some of the key components that make your plane. In most cases, you will have to do some minor assembly for your first plane which will require some minor tweaking to get it flying right. It also may be that you crash and need to replace parts. A good start is knowing what the parts are so you can do some research.

We have provided below most of the common problems when preparing your plane for its first flight.

You have either seen someone flying or you have had a taste of what it's like to fly a remote control plane! You're excited and want to take the next steps to make your first flight. Why shouldn't you be? Flying an RC plane is a lot of fun, gets you outdoors in the fresh air and will enable you to meet like-minded people in the hobby!

The best way to learn how to fly (and cheapest), is to purchase a flight simulator. This will allow you to develop much-needed hand and eye coordination. This by far will make the biggest impact on your first successful flight.

You should spend enough time on a simulator to the point where you can take-off, perform a figure of 8 and land.

You’re excited to fly your first plane; and why shouldn’t you be? It’s great fun and it gets you outside to enjoy the weather. One thing most people do when starting out, is eye off a difficult model to fly because it looks cool!

In some instances, a transmitter is supplied with most first models. These kits are especially designed for people getting into the hobby and can provide you with a cheap entry into the hobby. However, you may want to purchase your own transmitter.

The day has come! You have done the hard yards on the simulator (at least I hope you have) and you’re ready to take to the skies! The most important thing to remember is that you shouldn’t fly if you’re not ready or if the weather is not favourable.

They say, taking off is optional but landings are mandatory. The more landings you do the better you’ll become at it, as practice makes perfect.