Electric RC Planes: The Most Popular of the Family

There’s no doubt that electric RC planes have drawn a huge number of people into the radio control hobby in recent years, and it’s easy to see why.

Here we’ll go over the details and give you a guide to help you choose yours. Remember that you can also pick one of the following RC planes to learn more about it.

A little history behind the electric RC plane

A few decades ago, getting a ready-to-fly electric RC plane was very complicated, and they weren’t cheap either. Only a handful of companies mass-produced them, mostly building them out of foam.

Back then, batteries couldn’t hold a charge for long and were fairly expensive. But LiPo battery packs started to change everything, and the reality is that today the radio control hobby offers more electric models than fuel-powered ones.

Foam scale models have also become the industry’s standard material for RTF (ready-to-fly) electric planes. Of course, planes built from traditional balsa or plywood are still widely available as kits and in ARF (almost-ready-to-fly) form, and to a lesser extent as RTF.

Electric RC planes today

In the early days, before they became so popular, electric RC planes had little power and speed. They mostly came with brushed motors and gearboxes, paired with heavy nickel-cadmium batteries.

Add a fairly poor airframe to that, and the result was weak, unstable flight performance.

Fortunately, those days are gone, and battery-powered planes have reached the point where they can match, or even beat, a fuel-powered plane in terms of flight times and performance.

Electric power has exceeded every expectation in the radio control hobby, no doubt about it.

Buying an electric RC plane

Buying an electric RC plane means diving into the fascinating world of scale aviation and advanced technology. These miniature aircraft give you an exciting chance to fly and control an airplane from solid ground. With their quiet, eco-friendly electric motors, you’ll enjoy smooth, relaxed flights without the need for expensive fuel.

From sleek gliders to high-performance aerobatic planes, the wide range of models available lets you choose the one that best suits your preferences and skills. Whether you’re an enthusiastic beginner or an experienced pilot, flying an electric RC plane gives you a unique sense of freedom and excitement every time. Besides being an endless source of entertainment, the hobby also helps you develop skills like coordination and concentration.

So if you’re looking for an exciting way to take your passion for aviation to new heights, buying an electric RC plane will take you farther than you can imagine in the world of model aviation.

Things to consider when choosing an electric RC plane

With so many RC plane models on the market, picking the perfect one can seem like an impossible task.

Still, choosing a new electric RC plane gets much simpler if you keep a few basic points in mind. Many electric planes are designed for beginners and come ready to fly, although plenty of others don’t.

Here are some of the points to keep in mind when choosing yours.

Planes with a high-wing design (the wing sits on top of the fuselage) are always the best choice for anyone learning to fly, thanks to their natural stability in the air.

E-flite Power 25 brushless outrunner motor for electric RC planes

If you have no experience building model planes, we recommend choosing an RTF (ready-to-fly) model. These come with all the instructions you need to put the RC plane together in a few hours and start practicing.
Size matters: we recommend an RC plane with a wingspan of about 3 ft (1 m). If the plane is very small, once it’s in the air you may have trouble seeing what you’re doing.
Check on replacement parts: sooner or later you’ll need to replace parts on your RC plane, so make sure they’re easy to get.
Choose a tough, durable plane over speed and power. That will also make it easier to repair.
Always do some research before buying any model. There are plenty of blogs like ours with useful information, as well as forums.