, widely known as Sanwa, is a brand of wireless equipment best known for its high end radio-control gear for scale modelling use. The company have been a subsidiary of the SMC Group since 1965 and began to diversify into the manufacturing of radio-control equipment (transmitters and the devices which they control) in 1974 and remote control devices for home and industrial use since 1985.

In North America, Sanwa transmitters were marketed as Airtronics up until early 2016, which began as an independent company producing model airplanes.

History Sanwa, originally as part of Sansei Electric Industry, specialized in the research and development of remote control devices in 1959. It merged with Sanwa Denki Manufacturing in 1965 and then became part of the SMC Group. In January 1974, Sanwa entered production and sales of transmitters for radio-controlled models and in December, became a member of the Japan Radio Control Model Industrial Association (JRM).

In 1975, Sanwa became a division on its own, with an office in Tokyo. In August that year it launched its first radio-controlled transmitter, the Mini Propo, and in 1976, Sanwa became an independent company. Its M-sechs wheeled transmitter was the recipient of the Good Design Award in 1990. In 1985, Sanwa diversified into the production of remote controls for domestic and industrial purposes.

Due to its reputation in the radio-controlled modeling industry, its main competitor is Futaba. KO Propo and Spektrum.

Airtronics

F. Lee Renaud began his hobby in model aviation in 1942 with a Joe Ott kit; he began to fly competitively in 1947. While recovering from a heart attack in 1970, Renaud used his medical leave from his office-equipment company job to build radio-controlled airplanes. He formed Airtronics in 1971 to build and sell model airplanes and radio remote-control devices. In his first year, he turned over $40,000. Renaud earned a reputation with model aircraft such as the "Olympic", "Aquila", "Grand Esprit" and "Sagitta", amongst others. In 1980, he introduced the XL transmitter. Renaud died in January 1983, and his wife Barbara took over the company.

In 1982, realizing that his company wouldn't expand on its own without financial backing, Renaud took on a partnership with Sanwa, which bought an undisclosed large stake in the company while the family retained a controlling interest. Under the agreement, the Renauds built airplanes whilst Sanwa took charge of manufacturing radio-controlled transmitters for the Renauds to distribute. As a result, Airtronics increased its sales from less than $1 million in 1983 to $3 million in 1985, and to $8 million in 1989 with a staff of 18 employees.

The company continued as a family business until 2007 when Global Hobby Distributors took over distributorship. Following business restructuring in Japan, the distributor announced that their partnership came to an end in 2016 and the brand will itself be discontinued although still continuing under a new distributor, Serpent America, as Sanwa.

The library of Academy of Model Aeronautics's National Model Aviation Museum is named after Renaud. Sanwa's Aquila 6 is named after his airplane.

Accolades The Airtronics Caliber 3PS (known internationally as the Sanwa M-zechs) became the first of twelve consecutive Radio Control Car Action's Readers' Choice Award for Best Transmitter in 1996 by Airtronics; eight of those was achieved by its successor, the M8.

IFMAR World Championship winners Following is a list of users who won the IFMAR World Championships, a biennial world championship for radio-controlled cars, using Sanwa/Airtronics transmitters. Year Class Name Model Report19851/10 Off-Road Stock Jay HalseyAirtronics XL2PReport 1985 1/10 Off-Road Unlimited Gil Losi, Jr. Airtronics XL2P Report 1987 1/8 IC Track Pete Fusco Airtronics Report 1990 1/8 Off-Road Koji Sanada Sanwa Machine-1 Report 1991 1/10 Off-Road 4WD Cliff Lett Airtronics CS2PReport19921/12 On-RoadTony NeisingerAirtronics Caliber 3PReport 1992 PRO 10 Joel JohnsonAirtronics CS2P Report 1992 1/8 Off-Road Kunihiro Toge Sanwa M-zechs Report 1993 1/10 Off-Road 2WD Brian Kinwald Airtronics CS2P Report 1995 1/10 Off-Road 2WD Matt Francis Airtronics Caliber 3PS Report 1995 1/10 Off-Road 4WD Mark PavidisRadio Control Car Action, December 1995 Airtronics CS2P 1996 PRO 10 Mike SwaugerRadio Control Car Action, December 1996 Airtronics Caliber 3PS 1997 1/8 IC Track Lamberto Collari Sanwa 1997 1/10 Off-Road 2WD Brian Kinwald Airtronics Caliber 3PS Report 1999 1/10 Off-Road 4WD Jukka Steenari Sanwa M8 Report 2000 1/10 IC 235mm Touring Car Michael Salven Report 2001 1/8 IC Track Kenji Osaka Sanwa M8 2002 1/10 Off-Road 2WD Matt Francis Airtronics M8 Report 2002 1/10 Off-Road 4WD Jukka Steenari Sanwa M8 2002 1/10 IC 235mm Touring Car Brian Berry Airtronics M8 Report 2003 1/8 IC Track Lamberto Collari Sanwa 2003 1/10 Off-Road 2WD Billy Easton Airtronics M8 Report 2004 1:10 ISTC Marc Rheinard Sanwa M8 Report 2004 1/10 IC Touring Car Adrien Bertin 2003 1/10 Off-Road 4WD Ryan Cavalieri Airtronics M11 Report 2005 1/10 Off-Road 4WD Ryan Cavalieri Airtronics M11 Report 2005 1/8 IC Track Lamberto Collari Sanwa Super EXES 2006 1/10 IC Touring Car Keisuke Fukuda Report 2007 1/5 Touring Car Martin Lissau Sanwa M11 2007 1/8 IC Track Lamberto Collari 2008 1/10 IC Touring Car Daniele Ielasi Report 2008 1:10 ISTC Marc Rheinard Sanwa M11 Report 2009 1/8 IC Track Lamberto Collari Sanwa EXZES Plus 2009 1/10 Off-Road 2WD Martin Achter Sanwa M11X Report 2009 1/10 Off-Road 4WD Martin Achter Sanwa M11X 2010 1/12 On-Road Naoto Matsukura Sanwa M11X Report 2010 1:10 ISTC Marc Rheinard Sanwa M11X Report 2011 1/8 IC Track Robert Pietsch Sanwa EXZES-X 2011 1/10 Off-Road 2WD Ryan Cavalieri Airtronics M11X Report 2011 1/10 Off-Road 4WD Ryan Cavalieri Airtronics M11X 2012 1/12 On-Road Naoto Matsukura Sanwa M12 Report 2012 1:10 ISTC Jilles Groskamp Sanwa EXZES-X Report 2012 1/10 IC Touring Car Meen Vejrak Sanwa M12 Report 2013 1/8 IC Track Tadahiko Sahashi Sanwa M12 2014 1/8 Off-Road Ty Tessmann Airtronics M12 Report 2014 1/12 On-Road Marc Rheinard Sanwa M12 Report 2014 1:10 ISTC Naoto Matsukura Sanwa M12 Report 2014 1/10 IC Touring Car Alexander Hagberg Sanwa M12 Report 2015 1/10 Off-Road 2WD Spencer Rivkin Airtronics M12S Report 2015 1/10 Off-Road 4WD Bruno Coelho Sanwa M12S20161/10 IC Touring Car Dominic GreinerSanwa M1220161/12 On-Road Naoto MatsukuraSanwa M12S2016 1:10 ISTC Sanwa M12S20161/8 Off-Road David RonnefalkSanwa M12S 2017 1/8 IC Track Dario Balestri Sanwa EXZES-ZZ 2017 1/10 Off-Road 2WD Ryan Maifield Sanwa M12S Report 2017 1/10 Off-Road 4WD Ryan Maifield Sanwa M12S 2017 1/5 Touring Car Santiago Meirinhos Sanwa M1220181/12 On-Road Alexander HagbergSanwa M12S2018 1:10 ISTC Bruno CoelhoSanwa M12S20181/10 IC Touring Car Naoto MatsukuraSanwa M12S20181/8 Off-Road Davide OngaroSanwa EXZES-ZZ20191/10 Off-Road 4WD Bruno CoelhoSanwa M17 Report20191/8 IC Track Shoki TakahataSanwa M1720201/12 On-Road Stock Andy MurraySanwa EXZES-ZZ 2020 1/12 On-Road Marc RheinardSanwa M12SReport20201/8 IC GT Jörn NeumannSanwa M1720221/8 Off-Road Davide OngaroSanwa EXZES-ZZ20221:10 ISTC Bruno CoelhoSanwa M1720221/10 IC Touring Car Tadahiko SahashiSanwa M1720231/10 Off-Road 2WD Davide OngaroSanwa EXZES-ZZ20231/10 Off-Road 4WD Tater SontagSanwa M12S20231/8 IC Track Dario BalestriSanwa EXZES-ZZ

References

External links

English website Sanwa Electronic in Bloomberg