Despite recent turbulence, Myrtle Beach area model airplane club still flying

As a boy in the 1940s, Bill Clontz became fascinated with airplanes, particularly those flown during World War II.

As a 78-year-old retired postal worker, Clontz remains enamored with aircraft, though now he’s mostly interested in the kind with 72-inch wingspans.

“Most of us don’t play golf,” said Clontz, president of the Long Bay Model Aircraft Society, which turned 50 this year. “We gather out here and we fly some. And we sit around and talk about airplanes, rudders, elevators and old women.”

The club, which meets in a field outside of Conway, provides a place for former pilots, U.S. Air Force veterans and just the aeronautically curious to try their hand at flying tiny, remote-controlled planes. But two months ago, the group lost its maintenance building and two lawnmowers in a fire. In recent years, older members have died and about half of the club left to fly gasoline-powered model planes at another location. An organization that once included more than 40 members has dwindled to 13.

“We’ve run into hard times lately,” Clontz said.

But the club is a resilient bunch. After the fire, one member donated a lawnmower. They pulled together $2,000 to cover their rent for the next year. They built another storage area for their equipment.

Yet they also know they need to attract more members — and younger ones — if they plan to continue. And they’d like to find a less expensive property to use.

Club members have been talking with Horry County officials about possibly flying their planes at recreation sites in Carolina Forest or North Myrtle Beach.

County Councilman Johnny Vaught said he’d like to see the group hold educational events to teach children about model airplanes in exchange for the club using public land. Although no plans have been finalized, Vaught remains optimistic the county and the organization can work out an arrangement.

“We feel like we’re going to be able to do some good for them,” he said.

For now, though, the group is just happy to have a place to fly.

On a good day, when the breezes don’t gust harder than 10 miles an hour, the skies aren’t threatening to release rain and enough of the guys feel up to driving down some backroads, club members head to an 11-acre field near Brown’s Way Shortcut Road, about 7 miles south of Conway.

The members, mostly retirees, fly battery-powered planes made of Styrofoam or balsa wood on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

Most of the time, the planes rise into the air and zip around for a few minutes before landing on the grass. They can travel up to a mile away, but those at the controls prefer to keep them within sight.

The colorful aircraft come in a variety of hues: red and white, yellow and purple, blue and green. Some resemble military planes.

Clontz, who joined the club in 1983, said he’s not sure how the group got started, though he knows it dates back to 1965. For years, the club flew small planes in Myrtle Beach off U.S. 17 Bypass near 21st Avenue North. When Broadway at the Beach was built, they had to move. They’ve been at the current location since 1998.

After the move, some of the neighbors complained about noise from the larger, gas-powered model planes. Many of the members switched to electric or battery-powered aircraft, but those loyal to the other style moved to another location.

The remaining members’ experience varies. Some of the guys have been flying model planes for decades. Others are newcomers.

All are laid back.

“Nice bunch of guys that we have,” said Fred Silvernail, a 79-year-old former IBM worker who joined the club 15 years ago. He’s been flying model planes since 1961.

“Back in the old days, I would build one plane every winter,” he said.

Bill Bellamy, a 75-year-old retired banker, joined the club a few years ago. He’s already amassed a fleet of eight planes.

“I hadn’t got a whole lot of money invested in it,” he said, adding that other members have given him planes and he’s bought others at discounted prices.

Most members agree the club is as much about camaraderie as it is a common passion.

“[It’s] like hunting,” Bellamy said. “You hunt, but then you sit around and eat and talk. That’s what we do.”

But there is plenty of flying time in addition to the conversation, said Jim Wynegar, who signed up with Long Bay in 1999. An 81-year-old retired truck driver, Wynegar spent 10 years as a mechanic in the U.S. Air Force. In the mid-1960s, he took flying lessons and eventually piloted his own plane. These days, he prefers model aircraft, a hobby that’s not nearly as expensive but still allows him to tinker with planes.

“Every day’s a different challenge,” he said. “Somebody has a problem that’s got to be fixed. We always manage to get it done.”

Like the other members in the club, Wynegar would like to see more faces in the field, especially younger ones.

“We don’t have any young guys in the club at all,” he said. “I wish we did. That’s what we need.”

Clontz said the startup costs deter some folks. It takes about $500 to buy a plane and the necessary equipment, but he said the transmitter and receiver can be reused if the plane ever crashes.

“The initial cost is what’s expensive,” he said. “But once you get by that, it’s no big deal.”

To ensure the novices don’t immediately wreck their new planes, the group has a training system that allows an experienced operator to fly with a beginner. Should the newbie start to struggle, the veteran flips a switch and takes over.

Today’s model airplanes are a far cry from the ones some of these guys have been tinkering with for decades. They remember buying kits, binding pieces with Elmer’s glue and waiting overnight for everything to dry. These days, most planes come with nearly everything in preassembled.

Purchasing a plane, however, is simply the starting point. Learning to fly the aircraft is another matter, though the club has no shortage of instructors.

“If you’ve ever had a yearning to fly model airplanes, then come on down,” Clontz said. “We’ll teach you.”

This story was originally published December 4, 2015 at 5:34 PM with the headline "Despite recent turbulence, Myrtle Beach area model airplane club still flying."