AQA stands for ‘any question answered’ and it’s a text service, similar to 118 118, where you can text a question to the number and receive an answer. With the financial climate in the state that it is, most of the questions being asked at the moment revolve around the credit crunch. The text service has actually seen a staggering 2,100% rise in credit crunch and financial related questions.

Director Paul Cockerton from AQA stated:

It’s clear from questions texted to AQA 63336 that people have been putting off Christmas for as long as possible,” said Communications Director Paul Cockerton.

Normally in November our customers typically start searching for the perfect gift for friends and family, but we’ve only just started seeing these questions come in.

In general people are being much more resourceful and watching their pennies - for example we have seen a 31 per cent rise in people asking about drinking and partying at home, rather than going out to increasingly expensive pubs and clubs.

The text service has just received, and answered, its 16,000,000th question, and rather than being about the credit crunch, question number 16 million was a question about a radio controlled helicopter!

Someone asked the question which was more fun to own, an RC helicopter or an RC plane? The answer, unsurprisingly enough, was a radio controlled helicopter. The answer read:

A radio controlled helicopter is more fun to fly than a plane. As it’s harder to master, the fun comes in the trying. Planes are too straightforward.

Showing that you should always purchase your RC helicopters from a reputable dealer, one model produced in China has been recalled by the US company ‘Soft Air USA’ after reports of the model catching fire emerged.

As a result, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has recalled the radio controlled helicopter in the interests of safety. Anyone who has this particular model of RC helicopter is advised to stop using it, and to contact the retailer that sold it.

The radio controlled helicopter in question is called the ‘Fun2Fly Microcopter’ and there are around 30,000 units of the helicopter on the market.

The problem with the RC model is that has caught fire while it was charging, causing nearby combustible materials to also catch fire. The company has received half a dozen reports of the radio controlled helicopter catching fire already. One of the incidents caused a minor injury.

The item number for the RC helicopter is 91001, and it features the brand name Fun2Fly Microcopter printed on the box.

Ed Hardy RC helicopters are a custom line of RC helicopters that have just been announced in the USA. The radio controlled helicopters have been designed by Ed Hardy, in addition to a range of other flying objects (such as UFOs) and RC boats.

The radio controlled helicopters from Ed Hardy, and the clothing designer Christian Audigier, are extremely well engineered and designed to look amazing.

According to reports the Ed Hardy helicopters work like no other RC helicopters currently on the market with their hovering ability. They have a unique 3-channel system that means they’re able to speed up and slow down while flying, and they can be landed in the palm of your hand.

One of the Ed Hardy RC models, the ‘Ed Hardy Special Edition Intelli Heli 3-channel Mini RC Helicopter’ comes equipped with four blades that counter rotate, making the flight of the RC helicopter very stable.

Ed Hardy has also released the SkyHawk RC Helicopter, which is more suited for newcomers to the sport as it’s a much easier RC helicopter to fly, and is very durable.

He may be the most famous chess player of all time, and a master of his game, but the chess grand master wasn’t prepared for the attack that came his way while he was giving a speech recently. The brilliant chess player was talking in front of an audience when his airspace was invaded by a unique form of protest, in the form of a radio controlled helicopter.

However, this RC helicopter wasn’t a shop bought chopper, or the kind you can buy online. No, this radio controlled helicopter was severely modified. In fact, the RC helicopter was modified to look like a piece of male genitalia.

The flying ‘manhood’ soared towards the famous chess player, to the hilarity of the audience. Gary Kasparov was naturally very embarrassed at the invasion of his speech, but he would no doubt be even more embarrassed had he known the extent to which the story would get out.

After the ‘attack’ the Internet was full of news about his encounter, and video sharing website YouTube actually carried film of the whole affair.

Maybe you can find the video on YouTube? It’s definitely worth a chuckle!

Radio controlled helicopter and plane enthusiasts flocked to an air show in Kansas this Saturday. The air show was held at the Century II Expo Hall and was full of RC models on show, and expert RC model flyers displaying their skills in the Central Plains E-Fly Spectacular.

The event was organised by Ken Stitt, an expert model maker and flyer, who said that 65 RC helicopter and plane pilots attended the event, together with 500 spectators.

I wanted to bring it to Wichita because it’s the Air Capital of the World, and we’ve never had anything like it.

One of the RC model experts displaying his flying skills was Curtis Youngblood, who is also a mechanical engineer (showing that flying RC models is something that experts do as well as amateurs). Youngblood owns his own business designing and making RC models.

I never had a real job. I went through high school, college, everything else. I had a choice to get a real job or do this. I did this.

Youngblood said that entering RC aircraft competitions doesn’t bring much in the way of prize money, but RC pilots can earn sponsorship. He also said that because the development of RC helicopters being able to fly indoors, the hobby has really grown.

It’s really exploded. The batteries made a huge difference.

The event is also planned for the same time next year.