Club Rules 2024

There were no new rules passed at the 2023 AGM...

1) BMFA Achievement Requirements
a) A minimum of a BMFA "A" Certificate is required to fly solo (without an instructor) and trainees may only be instructed by a recognised club instructor.

2) Age Requirements
a) Anyone under the age of 17 must be accompanied at all times by a Parent, Guardian or responsible adult.

3) Transmitter control.
a) Pilots flying with 2.4GHz transmitters do not need to display any transmitter pegs, channel flag or pennant.
b) Pilots flying with any transmitter system that is not 2.4GHz based, such as 27MHz or 35MHz, a transmitter peg with the pilots name clearly displayed must be placed in the appropriate area and an orange transmitter pennant must be clearly displayed either on the transmitter or harness,

4) Solo Flying (when you are the only pilot at the field)
a) You must wear a fluorescent vest at all times.
b) Lone fliers should not fly large, heavy or fast models (max size .53 2st or .61 4st)
c) Extra care and visual scans must be taken before taking off.
d) No low - passes, prop hanging, 3D flying or inappropriate aerobatics.
e) Landings must be within the immediate field of view of the pilot. This means the landing should be completed and the model stopped before the model passes the pilot.

5) Safety Marshals
a) At least one person on the flightlight must be waering a hi-vis jacket.

6) Incident reporting. (Also see Rule 15)
a) Any incident at all outside the field must be reported to a committee member within 24 hours of the incident.
b) Any incident inside the field involving or near persons, animals or property must be reported to a committee member within 24 hours.
c) Points a) and b) give the club time to notify the Council. Failure to do so will result in disciplinary action being taken.
d) If a complaint is made before the club reports an incident, it will have a detrimental effect on the club and its flying rules.
e) Notification should be by telephone or by entering details on the GMAC website from any pilots involved, the acting safety marshal and at least one other witness if available.
f) The safety officer will keep a record of all such incidents.
g) Incidents that require an insurance claim must follow BMFA guidelines in addition to the above.

7) I/C Flying Times.
a) Permit holders may only fly I/C powered aircraft during the agreed hours. See the section called "Flying Times"

8) BMFA Insurance and Walsall MBC Permits
a) Members must carry BMFA insurance and Walsall MBC Permit at all times. The Metropolitan Borough of Walsall will not be liable in respect of any accident, damage or injury caused to or suffered by a permit holder in the exercising of his or her permit, nor in respect of any accident, damage or injury caused by a permit holder to persons or property of any other person.

9) Glider Towing
a) A heavily silenced plane may be used during silent flight sessions for the sole use of Glider Tug Towing.

10) Engine sizes and weights
a) Members who hold an A Certificate will be allowed to fly an aircraft up to a maximum engine capacity of 20cc or glow or electric equivalent.
b) Members who hold a B Certificate will be allowed to fly an aircraft with any engine capacity, as long as it meets the weight and noise rules.
c) Multi-engine aircraft - The total capacity must not exceed the maximum capacity allowed for a pilots' single engine capacity. See points a) and b) above.
d) Free flight aircraft have a maximum engine size of 1.3cc.
e) The weight of the aircraft, but with all flight batteries fitted must not exceed the following weights:
* For "A" Cert pilots: 7.5 kilograms AUW (All Up Weight) including fuel and batteries.
* For "B" Cert pilots meeting criteria in point g): 11.0 kilograms AUW (All Up Weight) including fuel and batteries.
f) For environmental and compliance reasons, the maximum allowed noise level of the aircraft should not exceed 82dB at 7 meters. Noise levels will be periodically checked by the Committee.
g) For pilots who have held a "B" Certificate for more than 3 years, the total AUW limit is increased to 11.0 kilograms. There is no engine capacity limit, but the pilot must meet and fly under the following conditions:
* The pilot must have held a BMFA "B" Certificate for a minimum of 3 years.
* The pilot must NOT fly solo and must have a flightline observer or "spotter" who must also hold a "B" Certificate.
* The pilot must be competent to fly the aircraft, as judged by the Safety Officer. Competent pilots shall be placed on the "10kg Competency List".
* The aircraft must have its receiver failsafe set and tested by a member of the committee.
* The aircraft receiver must be powered by a redundant power system, such as dual receiver batteries.
* The pilot must fly below the 400 foot ceiling as defined by the ANO.

11) Weighing models
a) All planes with 20 cc Petrol or 120 I/C engine and above or combinations that equal this size, or electric planes using batteries of 40v at 2300Ah or greater have to be weighed and certified by two Committee members prior to being flown at GMAC.
b) All I/C planes should be weighed with empty fuel tank(s). If any significant changes or repairs are made to a certified plane, it must be reweighed.
c) Spot checks may be undertaken should a plane be suspected of changes.
d) Anyone flying over weight planes, giving false or misleading information or disobeying this rule will be disciplined and may have their flying permit removed.
e) Weighing certificates must be produced on request. You should have the planes certificate with you if you are flying a large plane.

12) Flying Boundaries
a) No flying to be undertaken outside the perimeters of the field i.e. roads, garage, car park or flying over the woods.
b) During the football season, under no circumstances will it be tolerated for flying to take place over the pitches.
c) Glider pilots of a 'B' certificate or equivalent may extend their flying perimeter if above 500 feet, however common sense prevails.

13) New Pilots
a) New pilots to the club with a BMFA certificate will be asked to fly an inaugural flight with a recognised club instructor. This is to ensure that they fully understand our club rules and field requirements.
b) If the pilot does not perform to the instructor's satisfaction then the pilot might be asked NOT to fly until they re-sit their BMFA test with a GMAC Examiner or undergo further instruction. If they still do not perform or disregard the rules they will be asked to leave the club and their field permit be withdrawn.

14) Flying Permits
a) Flying permits must be produced when required, to any authorised steward, patrolman or officer of the Council and / or Greenacres Model Aero Club Member.

15) Incident Reporting.
a) Under Rule 6 of this handbook, if a member does not report an uncontrolled downed model outside of the flying boundaries or an incident that involves or is near persons or property (animals included) inside or outside the boundaries the following actions will be taken:
i) Stage 1: An incident not reported within 24 hours will result in a verbal warning.
ii) Stage 2: Any further incidents not reported within 24 hours for a second time will result in a written warning being given under rule 12 of the clubs constitution.
iii) Stage 3: Any further incidents not reported within 24 hours for a third time will result in the member being asked to meet with the Committee where disciplinary action will be taken which may lead to membership removal.
b) In all cases of the above stages the Committee will report all major incidents to the responsible body Walsall MBC.

16) Petrol and other IC fuels
a) Petrol fuel for model aircraft must be in a British Standard container designed for petrol.

17) High-visibility Jackets
a) At least one person on the flightline must be wearing a hi-vis jacket. Spectators or observers, not actively flying or helping a pilot, does not need to wear a hi-vis jacket.

18) Multirotors & Helicopters
a) Pilots can fly multirotor aircraft, commonly known as "drones" with between 2 and 8 rotors, with a maximum diagonal distance between motor centres of 460mm.
b) Pilots can fly single rotor helicopters, up to and including a 450 size helicopter.
c) Multirotor and helicopters must be flown within a pre-defined area. Currently this area is the disused bowling green next to the Outdoor Activity Centre. Rotor aircraft must not be flown outside the bounds of the defined area and must not be flown at the normal flightline.
d) A maximum altitude of 30 feet or 10 metres must be maintained.
e) If control or orientation is lost, or the aircraft is badly affected by wind, the throttle should be shut down immediately bringing the aircraft to the ground within the bounds of the defined area.
f) Flying rotor aircraft should be pursued in order to obtain their pilots' BMFA "A" & "B" Certificate for those aircraft types.

19) Visiting Pilots
a) Visiting pilots can request to fly at Greenacres normal weekend strip, up to three times per year, in accordance with the BMFA Insurance Policy.
b) Visiting pilot must have the minimum BMFA Certificates and Insurance to allow them to fly their aircraft, in accordance with the Club Rules.
c) All weight, engine size and power limits must be adhered to, in accordance to the Club Rules.
d) Visiting pilots must seek approval from a sitting Greenacres Committee member, by email or telephone, before arriving to fly at Greenacres.