Skip to main content

Compass is offline while we prepare our new tools

Compass is offline while we prepare our new tools

Compass is now offline. Read more

Discover what this means

Control surface cargo

Get stuck in to this team game as you learn about aircraft control surfaces.

Back to Activities

You’ll need

  • Blindfolds
  • Bean bag or similar
  1. The person leading the game should mark out an area to be the playing area. They should put an item of cargo somewhere in the area – near the middle’s usually best.

It’s up to you what you use as cargo – you could use a tennis ball, beanbag, cone, or something else.

  1. Everyone should split into groups of three or four people.
  2. The person leading the activity should explain that aircraft can move freely in three directions:
    • Rotating around the axis that goes from the front to the back is a ‘roll’.
    • Moving around the axis that goes from one side to another is the ‘pitch’.
    • Moving around the vertical axis is the ‘yaw’.

You may want to use some images (or even a toy aeroplane) to help everyone understand the new words.

  1. The person leading the activity should introduce the basic actions, and everyone should practise following them.

Check out the ‘Actions’ below.

  1. Each group should choose one person to be the first aircraft. The aircraft should hold their arms out like aircraft wings.
  2. Everyone should help their aircraft put on a blindfold.
  3. The person leading the game should call ‘Go!’ The teams should begin to direct their aircraft to the cargo, using the words and actions they practised in step four. The people directing should stay outside the playing area at all times.

Hopefully the teams will direct their aircraft well and no one will bump into each other. The person leading the game should keep an eye on all the aircraft – they should step in to tell people to ‘roll’ if they need to avoid one another.

  1. The first aircraft to reach the cargo should pick it up. They should take it back to their team, who should wait outside the playing area.
  2. Everyone should repeat steps five to eight to play again, until everyone’s had a turn at being the aircraft. The person leading the game could move the cargo a bit each time.
  3. The person leading the activity should explain that there are three primary control surfaces on an aircraft. The elevators on the wings control the roll.
  4. Everyone should practise the new advanced actions.

You can find them in the ‘Actions’ below. 

  1. Everyone should repeat steps five to nine until everyone’s played using the advanced actions.

Basic actions

  • ‘Increase thrust’ – speed up.
  • ‘Decrease thrust’ – slow down.
  • ‘Pitch up’ – crouch.
  • ‘Pitch down’ – stand up tall.
  • ‘Yaw left’ – turn left.
  • ‘Yaw right’ – turn right.
  • ‘Roll left’ – learn to the left so your left arm’s lower.
  • ‘Roll right’ – lean to the right so your right arm’s lower.
  • ‘Collect the cargo’ – bend down and pick up the cargo.
  • ‘Drop the cargo’ – place the cargo on the floor.

Advanced actions

  • ‘Increase thrust’ – speed up.
  • ‘Decrease thrust’ – slow down.
  • ‘Elevators up’ – crouch.
  • ‘Elevators down’ – stand up tall.
  • ‘Rudder left’ – turn left.
  • ‘Rudder right’ – turn right.
  • ‘Ailerons left’ – learn to the left so your left arm’s lower.
  • ‘Ailerons right’ – lean to the right so your right arm’s lower.
  • ‘Collect the cargo’ – bend down and pick up the cargo.
  • ‘Drop the cargo’ – place the cargo on the floor.

Reflection

This activity was all about being a team player. Did everyone work well together? Did people find it easier to be the aircraft or the people giving directions? How did people feel when they couldn’t see where they were going and they had to rely on their teammates? Did it feel easier to trust them the second time?

This activity also needed everyone to communicate. Was it tricky to get used to the new words and terms? Which words were easiest to use? Did people try different techniques in the teams? Perhaps some people tried getting one person to speak at a time, for example. What made instructions easier to follow? People might think about speaking slowly and clearly (instead of shouting) or using names to get people’s attention.

Safety

All activities must be safely managed. You must complete a thorough risk assessment and take appropriate steps to reduce risk. Use the safety checklist to help you plan and risk assess your activity. Always get approval for the activity, and have suitable supervision and an InTouch process.

Active games

The game area should be free of hazards. Explain the rules of the game clearly and have a clear way to communicate that the game must stop when needed. Take a look at our guidance on running active games safely.

  • For an extra challenge, ask the aircraft to spin around after they’ve put their blindfolds on.
  • You could move the cargo once the aircraft have put their blindfolds on so none of them know where the cargo is – they’ll really have to rely on their team’s instructions.
  • You could add more than one piece of cargo if you’ve got a bigger team (or want to make the game last longer).
  • If anyone doesn’t want to be blindfolded, they could just close their eyes.
  • No one has to have a turn at being the aircraft if they don’t want to.
  • If you need to, adapt the instructions so everyone can take part. Maybe people could move their heads up and down instead of crouching, for example.
  • If you don’t want the game to be at all competitive, each aircraft could aim to collect their team’s piece of cargo – that way, there are no winners.

All Scout activities should be inclusive and accessible.

Air Activities Stage 4

Can people use what they’ve learned about control surfaces to make changes to a simple paper plane that control its flight? People could also try out an online simulator to see the aircraft control surfaces in action. You can find flight simulator suggestions in Artificial aviation.