Way back when, model airplane enthusiasts would build their aircraft from scratch or from comprehensive kits, stripping the motor out of the weed whacker and modifying it to be able to fit in the plane, fill it up with gas and heading to the nearest open field for some fun.

Nowadays model planes come ARF — almost ready to fly with fuselage, wings and tail parts all ready to put together and install the electronics — or RTF — ready to fly with the installation of the transmitter and charging of the battery. And with digital advances coming on strong, more and more hobbyists are flying electric powered crafts as opposed to internal combustion models.

“The whole thing has just gone crazy,” said Kitsap Aircraft Radio Control Society president Bud Arnold, noting not only electronics-wise and construction-wise but also radio-wise and power-wise. “The motors are absolutely fantastic these days.”

Newer crafts take off with more zip, flyer higher, longer and faster, Arnold said. There’s even a member of the club whose plane has been clocked at 200 mph. Most average scale RC or sport models fly between 50-70 mph.

Examples of all will be on parade in the Kitsap ARCS annual air show, starting at 10 a.m. Sept. 15 at Little Field in Coulter Creek Heritage Park off of Sunny Slope Road in Port Orchard.

For directions, go online to the county’s www.viewkitsap.com web page, select South Kitsap Parks on the “Parks by Location” button and select Coulter Creek Heritage Park.

“We’ll have all kinds of Corsairs, Mustangs and a lot of little sport model planes,” Arnold said. “(And) we have some really great flyers that can take these airplanes and do things called torque rolls, where the plane is upside down and the tail will be four to five feet off the runway.”

As a testament to the Kitsap ARCS flyers’ abilities, recently member Mike Carreiro won the freestyle and the advanced classes at the Nampa, Idaho Internation Miniature Aerobatic Club event, while Kyle Woyshnis came in second in the Unlimited class.

“When they compete around the country, they are competing against flyers from England, Germany, France, New Zealand and the Orient … and our kid comes first!” Arnold said.

Carreiro, Woyshnis and the rest of the Kitsap ARCS will be out Sept. 15 demonstrating their skills and offering a look for the masses into this hobby of many. The day will be complete with an air show from 10 a.m. to noon, followed by combat demonstrations and then the same air show again from 1-3 p.m.

“We’ll have aerobatic flyers … two or three out there flying in formation and odd planes, like the guy with the flying lawn mower,” Arnold said. “You see, the thing is, you can fly anything if you put enough horsepower on it.”

And for those interested in delving into remote controlled model airplane flight, the Kitsap ARCS has free introductory sessions, complete with club planes and an instructor to watch over.

For more information, visit www.kitsaparcs.org.