In May of 2025, the radio control hobby will play center stage for a first-of-its-kind event. Gathered at the National Museum of the United States Air Force in Dayton, Ohio, will be Ohio STEM school students, administrators and faculty, along with full scale aviation organizations, and roughly 100 scale RC helicopter pilots from all over the United States and from other nations like Chile, Germany and Canada. What makes HeliStorm 2025 different begins with its creator and organizer, Michael Kranitz, who has embarked on an ambitious and innovative plan to expose more people to radio control flight. “Scale helicopters are the perfect attractant,” he says. “People of all walks are drawn to the beauty, complexity and flight dynamics of scale RC helicopters, so we made them center stage at an event designed to introduce the STEM community to both the hobby and the aviation industry at large.” The event is expected to attract more than 200 scale helicopter models of almost every type, including an exceedingly rare collection of HeliClassics helicopters, among which is a Russian Ka-52 built by HeliClassics founder, Matthias Strupf, and is only one of two in the world (the other one is in New Zealand). According to Kranitz, pilots and attendees can expect to see models from America’s top builders and pilots, including, Nats champ, Butch Wellmaker, Mark Smith of Heli Workshop, Tyler Gray of TGM Models, Gonzalo Martinez, founder of Helicopter Scale Masters, Mike Spinner, creator of Heli Palooza, Sandy Jaffe from Team Vario, and many others.
What’s Different?
Although pilots in the RC jet community have had tastes of events of his scale, those in the scale helicopter realm have had to travel to Germany for events lik JuiPower to experience something even close to what HeliStorm will offer. There is no RC venue in the world quite like the National Museum of the United States Air Force. HeliStorm pilots will not only fly above the front grounds of the museum, but they will also be treated to an after-hours, private tour of the world’s largest military museum followed by a fully catered banquet, which will feature Pilot Poker and a live auction. HeliStorm distinguishes itself beyond the venue. Organized as a 501(c)(3) charity, HeliStorm’s aim is to award cash scholarships to the top three STEM schools that send the most administrators, faculty members and students to the event. With $5,000 in scholarship cash up for grabs, Kranitz expects robust attendance from the STEM community. STEM participation, in turn, will allow aviation industry professionals to engage with both students and staff in order to enhance current and future opportunities between aviation companies and students interested in aviation careers. For pilots, the sheer scale of the event will be irresistible. In a time when we all gather online but don’t get to meet fellow pilots, HeliStorm is a singular opportunity for pilots from both ends of the nation (and beyond) can gather to share their passion for this tiny segment of the RC hobby. HeliStorm has even arranged car-carrier transport for pilots on the West Coast – something that has never before been done in the hobby. Open to both flying and non-flying pilots, registration will include access to a massive, air-conditioned pilot lounge that will host workshops on Friday and Saturday during the event. Workshops will range from turbines to gyro setup and will be taught by recognized experts in the hobby. Pilots also will get free snacks and beverages while taking in new information or just relaxing in the lounge. Outside, free flying, hover testing and flight competitions will take place over two primary flight areas and a special “hover test” area at the end of the flight line. Competitions include, best military flight, best EMS flight, precision hovering and best team flight. Contestants will be judged by full scale pilots on a simple rubric that emphasizes smooth, scale-like flight. For fun and a cool grand prize, every pilot who flies will receive a playing card for each flight they take. After receiving their maximum of five cards, pilots will play their hands against each other at the Saturday banquet. The winner will receive a branded set of casino poker chips and cards worth $300. On Friday night, registered pilots (flying or non-flying) can enjoy a free pizza party sponsored by Cassano’s Pizza, a longtime Dayton area favorite. On arrival, every registered pilot will receive an insulated grocery-hauling swag bag filled with cool stuff that pilots never see at the events they attend. According to Kranitz, every detail – down to the souvenir badges and Super Bowl-sized banquet tickets – “screams different.” The event will have local and national and international media coverage. Model Airplane News and Flight Journal are the official print media partners for the event. An announcer will help keep the crowd informed and engaged on Friday and Saturday.
When Does Stuff Happen?
The event, itself, kicks off on Thursday, May 29th. This day is a pilots-only setup and fly day. Although visitors to the museum will be able to observe, there will be no structure to the day’s activities. Vendors will also be setting up their booths.
On Friday, the real action begins. Workshops will be conducted throughout the day along with free flying and scheduled rounds of competition. Pilot Poker will be ongoing and the day will end with the pizza party. The general public and STEM attendees will be invited into the fold with limited access to view models and engage with the pilots near the flight line. On Saturday, free flying and workshops will background the day with final competition rounds peppered in between. The day’s activities will be capped by an after-hours, catered banquet followed by a private tour of the museum until 10pm. Sunday will have free flying until noon, when teardown begins and pilots head home.
How Do I Register?
To learn more about the event and to register, just visit HeliStorm.org. If you are interested In exhibiting, go to the same place and click the REGISTER TO ATTEND button. Anyone with questions, can visit ScaleHeliPilot.com and select the HeliStorm filter or just reach out to Kranitz directly at michael@helistorm.org.
