FT Otter

by FliteTest | May 16, 2016 | (10) Posted in Projects

The FT Otter is our first water plane made from water-resistant foam board! The Otter is designed to land in and take off from water, and it makes a great beginner sea plane. It has a single engine and is simple to build with a highly mounted power pod for ease of throttle management.

Water planes are heavy and require a lot of power to get airborne. If the plane is drifting, give it a shot of power and rudder command to get the plane where it needs to go.

If you’re flying in saltwater, be sure to waterproof everything in your plane beforehand. Check out our Waterproof Your Airplane and Waterproofing Electronics episodes for tips on waterproofing.

Stefan had never flown a sea plane before, so we had him test the Otter. He flew really well for a newbie flying a sea plane in gusty wind conditions…though his plane did end up in a tree. :)

This design does have some limitations. The Otter is meant for calm conditions and was prone to flipping over in the gusts off the lake. If you’re new to flying water planes, you’ll have a much better experience with this design in conditions with little wind and a calm water surface.

Stay tuned for the Otter Build Episode, and share the water planes you’ve come up with in the comments or in an article!

 

 

COMMENTS

Redstone Ballistics on May 16, 2016
No plans? Also, my dollar tree does not stock waterproof foam. What's the best way for getting ahold of some?
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Ron DuBray on May 16, 2016
If things run to form the Build video and plans will come out on Wednesday
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Yogenh on May 16, 2016
They sell the waterproof foam here,

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JoeCarpino on August 10, 2018
You can go to SP0NZ - Plans Index on flite test forums for plans, and dollar tree probably wont have waterproof foamboard. you can get it on the FT store.
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ftwingnut on May 16, 2016
Awesome! This is my next build, after I finish my current ones, of course.

Hilarious at 4:30 and 5:45 when you kept telling him to steer with the rudder, he was giving it full aileron input. Rudder was still straight.

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Ron DuBray on May 16, 2016
I saw that also, He needs more flight sim time with a 4 ch plane, or with the rudder on the left stick on a 3 ch. :) ( I always thought that its a bad Idea to put the rudder and elev. on the right stick on a 3 ch. Its sets up bad muscle memory for new pilots and makes them have to unlearn it when they move up to 4 ch.
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ftwingnut on May 16, 2016
Redstone Ballistics, the plans will be released when the build video comes out. As far as purchasing the waterproof foam board, you can get it directly from the FliteTest store, but as far as I can tell you have to buy it in a 50 sheet box. I'm waiting for FliteFest to buy my box, to save on shipping.

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longshot on May 16, 2016
Sweet plane Peter! Never thought I'd see planes of this caliber made from foam board! yep I did it... I made the pun....
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Ron DuBray on May 16, 2016
I hope you plan on doing the little dipper from Planes II, even if you just post the plans for it. I have a little girl who has wanted one since you did the Planes II show. Maybe a mod on this air frame?? High wing twin engine and a cox pit cover??
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Cooter3590 on May 16, 2016
They did!

http://flitetest.com/articles/planes-fire-rescue-challenge
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Ron DuBray on May 17, 2016
Thanks but sadly they did not do plans for the "little dipper" from that video. That is what I was talking about just a reminder that they never went back and did the "little dipper"

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andersona3ita on May 16, 2016
Tem previsão de quando terão a planta, gostei do modelo
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dgraviett on May 16, 2016
Love the plane it would be great for my camping trips to the river!!
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TurtlesThatFly on May 16, 2016
Can you post the plans? I'm finishing one plane and this is probably going to be my next build. Keep up the good work Flite Test!
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Larry Laitner on May 17, 2016
http://www.stonekap.net/ftplans/FT_Otter_v1.0_Tiled.pdf
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Battershell on May 16, 2016
Peter, when are you going to put that Flitetest tee on? How about at least a embroidered logo on that white button up you like wearing???????
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PropSpinner on May 16, 2016
George - George - George of the jungle. Watch out for that tree!
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Miracle Air on May 16, 2016
One of the things I love doing with my Bixler is grass slide touch and go's. Do you thing this thing could slide off the grass for takeoff?
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jordy123 on May 16, 2016
Please fix the other one.
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Cooter3590 on May 16, 2016
You're flying the Otter with a motor from the B power pack yet the store recommends the C power pack. What gives?
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PropSpinner on May 17, 2016
I believe he said either one was an option. The plane they were flying were different.
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ChopperChopper on May 17, 2016
What a sad finish to the smooth water flight - poor Peter. What happened to make the lovely red Otter drop from the sky into the still waters of the lake?
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PropSpinner on May 17, 2016
I believe he said the prop was backwards.
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Knotgood on May 17, 2016
Great video, model looks great. One question I have had about the WPFB, is how did the unpainted version Stefan "dunked" do after getting wet? Did the edges have any delamination problems, or was the cut edge sealed with hot glue? Ok, two questions. Thanks
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westbows on May 18, 2016
I do not understand the open cockpit. seem like you are just asking for problems.
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westbows on May 18, 2016
Seems like it would be pretty easy to make the explorer a sea plane. I will have to wait for any sea planes until my flying skills improve.
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FliteGreg on May 18, 2016
Great plane, I was looking forward to see it, you've been teasing for weeks!!!
And what's up with all the removed comments? People posting nasty stuff???
Let's keep the FT community light and happy. Trolls and other nasty can go on other forums! :)
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knifedge on May 19, 2016
The plans can be found from the link below
http://flitetest.com/articles/ft-sea-otter-build
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matjey on May 23, 2016
I believe this plane can even land on a grass giving the amount of belly available on it. Will it able without crunching the left and right boom?
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TriTriAgain on May 26, 2016
Loved this episode! Especially the last part on the glassy water!
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FT Otter