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Stories from the Flight Line

NATS News

Coverage, results, and stories from the National Aeromodeling Championships.

Man holding a large model airplane on a grassy field.

John Armstrong with his super cool Fox glider. It is fast and aerobatic.

July 18, 2025: Cross Country Soaring

Day three of the Cross Country (XC) portion of the 2025 Soaring Nats began just as the first two did…rain! It went away around 11AM. We began our day setting up the winch and starting festivities under heavily overcast skies. The ceiling was somewhere around 1500 feet and the air was buoyant with some really good lift in spots.
Jul 21, 2025
NATS 2025 National Aeromodeling Championships logo.

Nats Newbs: RC Scale

The video features a conversation between Terry, a novice to the National Aeromodeling Championships (NATS), and Mike Barbie, an experienced scale model airplane pilot from Delaware, Ohio. Mike is attending his 41st NATS and shares detailed insights about the scale modeling competition, explaining the structure, judging criteria, classes, and the various skill levels involved.

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00:00:00 - 00:00:57 Introduction to Nats Noobs and RC Scale Line
Terry, a self-proclaimed novice to the Nats, introduces the segment from the AMA Nats event. He is joined by Mike Barbie at the RC scale line, where Mike begins to explain what will happen there.

Jul 18, 2025
Two people in a truck bed, one holding a device, both looking and pointing at the sky.

Cross Country Posers

July 17, 2025: Cross Country Soaring

The day began much like yesterday, waiting for the ominous weather to pass us by, and it did! Launching the Pike Perfect on the winch is a nice stress-free experience, straight up and smooth.
Jul 18, 2025
Six people with model airplanes and trophy on an airfield.

2025 Epilogue: Control Line Precision Aerobatics

What a week it was at the 2025 Nats! I have to hand it to the team that ran the show.
Jul 17, 2025
Welcome sign for the National Aeromodeling Championships 2025 on a lawn.

The 2025 RC Soaring Nats is underway!

July 16, 2025: Cross Country Soaring

The Cross Country portion of the Nats got off to a rainy start at Monroe Central High School in beautiful Parker City, Indiana, postponing our day for a few hours. We, of course, sat under the pavilion telling tall tales as the moisture fell.
Jul 17, 2025
Man holding large model airplane on grassy field, cloudy sky overhead.

This is a purpose-built Catalina XC sailplane by Mike Ward with motor launch.

2025 Cross Country Soaring – Introduction

Flying at the AMA/LSF soaring Nats has been the highlight of my flying season for several years now. I spend two weeks camping and relaxing under the sunny/starry Indiana sky. I made it out after years of “next year, I’ll go next year.” Now, it's every year…because “Glider Camp” is awesome!
Jul 17, 2025
Radio-controlled Red Bull model airplane on grass.

Rory Hartman’s modified Carbon Cub.

2025 Epilogue: RC Scale

The 2025 AMA RC Scale Nationals is in the books. We’ll look back at a few of the highlights. There were 34 registered pilots. Thirteen pilots flew in more than one class. In total, there were 47 potential flights scheduled for each round.
Jul 17, 2025
Four people holding model planes and awards, standing on grass near a pavilion.

Fast Combat winners (L to R), 1st place Neil Simpson, 2nd Brian Stas, 3rd Bill Maywald, 4th Chuck Rudner.

July 12, 2025: Control Line Combat

There were 11 entries in this wild and crazy, fast event. Some airplanes were hitting 130 mph and pulling on your arm like a whale on a harpoon. These monsters take some real concentration and muscle to maneuver.
Jul 15, 2025
AMA NATS 2025 logo for National Aeromodeling Championships.

Nats Newbs: Pylon Racing

Our latest video features Doug Killebrew, contest director for the pylon racing events at the AMA National Aeromodeling Championships (NATS), giving us a high-speed tour of one of the most thrilling competitions in model aviation.

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00:29 - 00:01:40 Overview of event schedule and speeds
Jul 15, 2025

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