FRANKLIN COUNTY RADIO CONTROL CLUBAMA 1661


ABOUT FCRCC & CLUB SAFETY INFORMATION

Getting To the Field
From I-91:

Take Route 2 East – Right at Traffic Light on to Main Rd (Avenue A Bridge) – Left at 3rd St (Traffic Light in Turners) and head up the hill (Follow Signs for Airport) – Continue on Unity St and bear left on to Millers Falls Rd – Left on Industrial Blvd and start looking for “Gate 4” and our sign on the right just after Pioneer Aviation

FROM THE EAST:

Take Route 2 West to Prospect St (Millers Falls – Bear Left off of Rt 2) – Left on to Lester St (Rt 63) – Take next left on Bridge St – Take Right on W. Main St (Millers Falls) then bear slightly right on to Millers Falls Rd – Follow Millers Falls Rd and take a right on Industrial Blvd (a few hundred yards beyond the entrance for the airport). Once on Industrial Blvd and you pass Pioneer Aviation, start looking for “Gate 4” and our sign on the right.

Our Club’s History & What We’re About

For over 40 years our club has been operating safely next to the Turners Falls Municipal Airport (0B5) . We have a unique location within an industrial park that allows us to operate away from the airport and away from the general traffic patterns with the main runway at our back.

We also work with the Airport Staff and our neighbors to integrate safety and education into our diverse general aviation community. This is truly exciting and FCRCC is privileged to be a part of the Turners Falls crowd.

The Club has grown and shrunk and grown again over the years. Interests in each category of the hobby have changed over time from original stick built airplanes with FM transmitters, to Helicopters, to more modern ARF’s, Park Flyers/Foamies, Electrics, Glow & Gas, to multi-rotors. Today we still have a great deal of diversity amongst our membership from stick builders to multi-rotor pilots and one thing we have in common…. We all love to fly!

In 2014, our members voted to resurface the runway and we chose to go with a geotextile fabric since the ground is susceptible to the frost that New England provides every year. This has been a great improvement to the club and our members and guests love flying off the surface!

FCRCC provides a variety of opportunities for both our members and the community. Our members have worked with the local schools, home-school groups, Civil Air Patrol, Boy Scouts and a variety of organizations to assist with aviation related subjects through safety and eduction.

FCRCC also welcomes the new and interested RC Model Aircraft Enthusiast to be our guest and see what we have to offer! FCRCC takes part in the AMA Intro Pilot Program and can get you up in the air to start working on your skills as a model aircraft pilot! We do this with a “Buddy Box” to keep you inside our flight pattern safely, and without having to accelerate your building (or shall we say “Repair”) skills too quickly.

CLUB SAFETY INFORMATION

From the Club Safety Officer

Welcome to FCRCC! To comply with the FAA and maintain our open site for hobby flight operations, our club is chartered by and follows the community safety guidelines set forth by our Community Based Organization (CBO), The Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA). We only have a few guidelines to keep flight operations safe for you, spectators, our neighbors, and most of all, manned aircraft operations in the vicinity. Our hobby operations take place in the National Airspace System (NAS), and just like driving a car on the road, we need to abide by the “Road Signs” while in the air. We encourage all who are interested in the hobby to join us for instruction and a sample of how safe, fun, and educational the hobby can be! Fly by the “Code” and that will ensure our first line of safety when conducting Model Aircraft Flight Ops!

If you feel that any of the AMA Safety Code Rules or items listed to the right have been infringed, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me or one of our club officers immediately. We need to know about any safety issues as quickly as possible to assist you and the club, especially if any other parties were involved. Dealing with a situation “head-on” is far better than finding out way after the fact or from a different party who was not directly involved.

Thanks for abiding and don’t forget to have fun putting your latest creation or favorite aircraft in the air at our awesome field!

The AMA Safety Code

-Robert


DO NOT FLY TOWARD THE ACTIVE RUNWAY!

The Cardinal Rule – If you do start to feel your plane is going behind the pilot line, please immediately change course and head over toward the trees across the field from our runway. If you end up behind the spectator line and the clubhouse, put the plane down as soon as it is clear of any cars parked in our lot. DO NOT FLY BEHIND THE PILOT LINE.

Do Not fly during FCTS outdoor sporting events

Do not fly during outdoor home games or while students are using the outdoor fields at Franklin County Tech. We want to be good neighbors and ensure that we are not flying near or over people while commencing flight operations at the field. Use good common sense. If there is not a scheduled game, but people are on the fields, a small electric (park flyer) might be OK if kept close and quiet over the runway area. A big gasser or larger glow plane shouldn’t be flown while people are occupying the fields. Again, use good judgement and common sense.

AMA Safety Handbook

AMA Safety Handbook

SEE AND AVOID

See and avoid is our easiest tool to prevent collisions with manned aircraft. If you are flying alone, we do ask that you only fly smaller electric and glow airplanes. If you are flying Giant Scale, we encourage you to have a spotter, someone who can scan the sky around you and let you know of any approaching aircraft. If an aircraft is spotted, and is on a course intersecting our flight pattern, land immediately or if you cannot land, slow down and reduce your altitude – AMA Guidelines for See and Avoid

FIRST PERSON VIEW OPERATIONS

For those interested in FPV operations please review the AMA guidelines for – Unmanned Aircraft Operations Utilizing First Person View

AMA Insurance

Before any claims are reported, a club officer must review the incident with the pilot(s) and the injured and/or property owner. An officer will assist with the claim

Insurance information

Accident/Medical Info

Fire Theft & Vandalism

EMERGENCY RESPONSE PROCEDURES – UPDATED 11/1/2023

  1. Please CLEARLY STATE the nature of the call when dialing 911:  Just for Reference, if 911 hears that there is a propeller strike at the Airport, they are going to call Life Flight thinking someone is cut in half or has an arm off that is bleeding out. If they know it is a RADIO CONTROL plane, they can send an ambulance to administer first aid and give a ride to Baystate to get stitched up. Please follow the steps in (1-6) below so that 911 can provide the appropriate care or response team (Police, Fire, Rescue) 
    1. PLEASE STATE THAT YOU ARE WITH THE FRANKLIN COUNTY RADIO CONTROL CLUB
    2. PLEASE STATE THAT THE ADDRESS IS APPROXIMATELY 80 INDUSTRIAL BLVD, GATE 4 AT THE AIRPORT
    3. PLEASE CONVEY THE SERIOUSNESS/NATURE OF THE CALL: HEART ATTACK, CONTUSION THAT REQURIES FIRST AID, ETC…. THIS WILL ALLOW DISPATCH TO RESPOND ACCORDINGLY WITH THE APPROPRIATE FIRST RESPONDER
    4. PLEASE STAY ON WITH THE DISPATCHER UNTIL HELP ARRIVES – DO NOT DISCONNECT THE CALL EVEN IF IT SEEMS LIKE YOU OVERREACTED TO BEGIN WITH AND BLEEDING OR TROUBLE IS SUBSIDING.  PLEASE LET EMERGENCY SERVICES RESPOND APPROPRIATELY AND CLEAR THE SITUATION BEFORE HANGING UP WITH 911 DISPATCH. COMMUNICATION IS CRUCIAL IN AN EMERGENCY!
    5. ONCE THE EMERGENCY IS MITIGATED AND YOU HAVE BEEN CARED FOR, PATCHED UP, ETC… PLEASE NOTIFY A CLUB OFFICER SO THAT WE CAN FILL OUT AN INCIDENT REPORT TO FILE WITH AMA AND COPY THE AIRPORT MANAGER FOR INSURANCE AND PROPER DOCUMENTATION.  IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT AN OFFICER KNOWS ABOUT THE INCIDENT WITHIN 24 HOURS AND FILES THE REPORT WITH AMA IMMEDIATELY FOR INSURANCE AND LIABILITY PURPOSES.  IF THE MEMBER IS NOT ABLE TO CONTACT WITHIN 24 HOURS, PLEASE HAVE SOMEONE IN YOUR PARTY NOTIFY A CLUB OFFICER AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE.  NOT FOLLOWING THIS CAN JEOPARDIZE THE CLUB, MEMBERS, OFFICERS, AND POTENTIALLY OUR LANDLORD (0B5 – Town of Montague).
    6. IF YOU DO NOT SEE CONTACT INFORMATION POSTED IN THE CLUBHOUSE, PLEASE REPLY TO A CLUB EMAIL OR USE THE “GET IN TOUCH!” BUTTON BELOW

Overview of FCRCC Operational Area

Want to come fly with us?

LET’S GET IN TOUCH!

Click the link below to access our Contact Form, FCRCC Membership Application, AMA Membership Portal and more!