New Student Information

Anyone wishing to learn to fly a model aircraft at our field must first join our club and also join the Model Aeronautics Association of Canada (MAAC). There are two club forms which can be found under the Forms tab. Fill both forms in completely and mail them to the Membership Officer. You can pay by making an email money transfer for the appropriate amount or by sending a cheque made out to RCFCT. The address can be found on the application form . If you are under 18 years of age, you must have the declaration form signed by a parent or guardian. This form is required so that the club or any of its instructors will not be held liable for any damage that might occur to your equipment no matter how caused, or any damage that your aircraft might cause as the result of an accident.

Once the Membership Officer receives the forms and payment, and has verified that you are a current MAAC member, he will send you a club membership card. We recommend making two copies of both membership and MAAC cards. Keep one set of the cards together in your field box and the other set will be used for the field frequency board to identify you to other members. These can be laminated or such so they do not get damaged. Your frequency board cards should also have a means of attaching it to the board itself - clothes peg, tie wrap etc.

You can apply for MAAC membership by clicking here. This will take you to the MAAC website where you can fill in an application and pay by credit card. They will mail you a MAAC membership card once your application is processed. Make sure you contact the Membership Officer with your MAAC number. (This number stays with you for life.) He will then send you an RCFCT membership card. Other information regarding MAAC can be found on their website or in other places on this site.

Make sure that you carry both membership cards with you when you are at the field as they form part of your frequency peg which is fastened to the frequency board. If kept in your flight box, you will always have them. By the way, most members have some sort of flight box that they use to keep all the accessories that are necessary in this hobby. You can purchase one from a hobby shop or make your own. Take a look at what the other guys are using and decide from there.

The next step is to buy or build a trainer type of aircraft along with a radio, engine or electric motor, and all the other necessary stuff. We recommend an airplane made from balsa with a wingspan of no less than 56” for the best experience possible. Please come prepared with your own aircraft and field equipment for training. We do not supply a club trainer for students any longer. If you’re unclear about anything or have any airplane technical or equipment purchasing related questions, please contact the wings officer or any other trainer at wingsofficer@rcfctoronto.ca. We’ll be happy to guide you in the right direction.

Get everything together and come on out to the field and get started in a great hobby. Attend as often as you can and ask all sorts of questions. Information on our Wings Program can be found on the Wings Program page and some questions you have might be covered on the FAQ's page. Come out to our meetings where you will also pick up ideas, information and meet some friendly faces.