Glossary

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AM:

Amplitude Modulation; Requires less power, has more distance than FM, but is more prone to radio frequency interference (RFI).

ARF:

Almost-Ready-to-Fly; a model airplane that can be put together with a minimal amount of time.

Angle of Attack (AOA):

The angle between the chord of the wing and the relative wind that strikes the airfoil. The Angle of Attack is independent of the attitude of the sailplane with respect to the horizon.

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Battery Cycling:

To fully discharge and charge a battery to erase battery memory.

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Capacity:

The maximum amount of energy a battery cell can store.

Center of Gravity (CG):

Balancing point of an aircraft.

Cell:

A single energy or charge-storing unit within a pack of cells that form the battery. Each cell has a voltage rating that is combined with the other cells' voltages to form the overall battery voltage rating.

Charge Jack:

The plug receptacle of the switch harness into which the charger is plugged to charge the battery (if so equipped).

Charger:

The plug receptacle of the switch harness into which the charger is plugged to charge the battery (if so equipped).

Control Surfaces:

The moveable part on the wing and tail that causes the aircraft to roll (aileron), pitch (elevator) or yaw (rudder).

Crystal:

The device that sets the radio frequency of the transmission.

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Dead Stick:

When the airplane is in flight gliding, without the engine or motor running, it is called dead stick.

Digital Flight-Trak:

It is a 'digital' (computer) approximation of the Flight-Trak control system used in the Firebird Outlaw. When each motor runs, it gives an element of turn, and lift, just as Flight-Trak does. The Outlaw does not employ a straight mixer. It has a 'look-up' table that gives the appropriate amount of throttle for any given control input to offer control, without spiraling, or loss of control.

Dihedral:

The degree of angle (V-shaped bend) at which the wings intersect the plane (or fuselage) is called dihedral. More dihedral gives an airplane more aerodynamic stability. Trainer planes with large dihedral may dispense with ailerons and use only the rudder to control the roll and yaw.

Direction of Flight:

The relative direction of the wing in relation to still air.

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Electrolyte:

A caustic material found in batteries.

Elevator:

The hinged control surface on the horizontal stabilizer functions as an elevator, which you adjust to control the airplane's pitch axis. Pulling the transmitter's control stick toward the bottom of the transmitter adjusts the elevator upward, and the airplane begins to climb. Push the control stick forward, and the airplane begins to dive.

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Fin:

The Fin, also known as the "vertical stabilizer", is the fixed vertical surface at the rear of an aircraft. It provides yaw stability for the aircraft.

Flight-Trak:

Makes flying a Firebird like driving a car. The tail of the Firebird acts as both elevator (lift) and rudder (steering). The Flight-Trak system allows only one control to move at a time. Your plane steers without having to coordinate elevator at the same time.

FM:

FM, or Frequency Modulation, is now the common method and is less prone to interference than AM. Information is transmitted by varying the frequency of the signal.

Frequency Flag:

The frequency flag is a marker that is mounted on your transmitter to indicate what frequency your system is operating on to alert other modelers so as not to cause interference.

Fuselage:

The main body of an airplane.

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Gimbal (or Stick):

The device that allows the user to input desired control movements into the transmitter.

Glide Ratio:

The glide ratio is defined as the distance traveled in a horizontal direction compared with the vertical distance dropped on a normal glide. A 10 to 1 glide ratio means that the aircraft would loose one foot of altitude for every ten feet of distance traveled.

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Handle:

The device for carrying the transmitter.

Harness:

A device consisting of wires, switches, and a fuse that connects a motor to a battery.

High Wing:

This term describes an airplane that has its wings mounted on the top of the fuselage.

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Landing Gear:

The wheel and gear assembly the airplane uses to land. It is often attached to the bottom of the fuselage.

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mAh (Milliamp Hour):

A measure of a cells capacity. The larger the number of milliamps the longer the battery cell will last.

Multi Mode:

Multi-Mode consists of two ways to fly: Sport Mode and Pro Mode. Sport Mode combines HobbyZone's patented Flight-Trak control system with pitch, keeping control responses smooth and manageable. Pro Mode uses standard V-Tail mixing, providing greater control throw.

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Ni-Cd:

This abbreviation stands for Nickel Cadmium, the chemical compound used in this type of rechargeable batteries.

Ni-MH:

This abbreviation stands for Nickel Metal Hydride, the chemical compound used in this type of rechargeable batteries. These batteries often offer greater capacity, and are friendlier to the environment.

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Penetrate:

To make progress against the wind.

Pitch:

Degree of nose up or nose down from level to the horizon.

Pitch Axis:

The horizontal axis on which the airplanes nose is raised or lowered. By adjusting the elevator, you can raise the airplane's nose above the pitch axis (climb) or lower it below the pitch axis (dive).

Polyethylene:

Most beginner aircraft are constructed out of foam, which isn't very durable in the event of a crash. Firebirds are constructed out of super-tough polyethylene plastic with foam inserts that are designed to absorb shock.

Polyhedral:

Polyhedral refers to the multiple angle wing panels make with the horizontal. A wing with polyhedral has more than two wing panels and the angle of the wing changes at each joint.

Prop shaft:

The main engine or motor shaft, which transfers the power to the propeller.

Proportional:

All HobbyZone products use proportional steering and throttle. This allows you to incrementally adjust the speed and direction.

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RTF:

Ready-to-Fly; a model airplane that is sold with installed electronics, power system, and supplied radio. Assembly is minimal but sometimes requires purchasing separately batteries and/or fuel.

Relative Wind:

Direction that the air molecules strike the leading edge of the wing.

Rudder:

The hinged control surface on the vertical stabilizer that controls the airplanes yaw. Moving the rudder to the left causes the airplane to yaw left; moving the rudder to the right causes it to yaw right.

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Smart-Trak:

Smart Trak adds advanced software to the benefits of Flight-Trak, ensuring superb responsivenes at all throttle settings and adding two different flight modes - Standard and Expert. In Standard Mode, Smart-Trak uses time-based calculations to adjust control surface travel, so beginners can enjoy excellent control responsiveness at all throttle settings without over-controlling. At high throttle settings, Smart-Trak will reduce control surface travel if it calculates the pilot is in danger of over-controlling and spiral-diving. Likewise, when the throttle is reduced, Smart-Trak will increase control surface travel to compensate for the reduced airflow over the control surfaces. In Expert Mode, Smart-Trak Removes the time-based compensation of Standard Mode so pilots can exercise full control authority at any throttle setting. The result is extreme turning performance that is perfect for combat or limited aerobatics.

Span:

The maximum distance from wingtip to wingtip.

Spinner:

Name describing a cone that covers the propeller hub.

Stall:

Loss of lift resulting from exceeding the critical angle of attack.

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Thermal:

Rising body of hot air that can take a sailplane to a great height.

Trim Lever:

Slides used to adjust control surfaces during flight, which are primarily used to adjust the plane to fly straight when the sticks are released.

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V-Tail:

A V-Tail is a special tail surface configuration where the horizontal stabilizers and elevators are mounted at an angle in a V-shape and the vertical fin is eliminated entirely. The stabilizers provide stability in both pitch and yaw while the moveable surfaces provide directional control in both pitch and yaw.

Vertical Stabilizer:

The vertical surface of the tail gives the airplane stability while in flight.

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Wing:

Because wings provide the primary lift force on an airplane, adjustments to the wings affect the airplanes movements while in flight.

Wing Area:

The Wing Area is the total surface area of the wing of the aircraft, usually calculated by the multiplying the wingspan times the wing chord, although more complex calculations are used on unconventional wing plans.

Wing Chord:

The Wing Chord of an aircraft is distance from the front or "leading edge" of a wing to the back or "trailing edge".

Wing Loading:

Wing loading is the weight of the aircraft divided by the wing area. It is usually designated ounces per square foot in models.

Wing Span:

The maximum distance from wingtip to wingtip.

Wing Tip:

The very outer end of a wing.

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X-Port:

A port on the bottom of the Firebird Commander and Aerobird Challenger that expands your flying experience to include aerial combat or aerial drop capabilities using plug-n-play accessories like the Sonic Combat Module or Aerial Drop Module.