Introductory Model Aircraft Flying Session at MG Hinwil

Interest was particularly high this year, with 50 students signing up. To avoid having to turn anyone away, volunteers from MG Hinwil organized two course days, each with 25 participants. But we’re slowly reaching the limits of what’s feasible.

As early as 9 a.m., the students gathered in

the MG Hinwil airfield in beautiful weather. After the day’s objectives were announced—“Everyone will build a model airplane; everyone will fly a provided model in a teacher-student pairing; everyone will gain experience on the flight simulator”—they first headed to the clubroom for the theory session. Gerd Vollenweider, chairman of MG Hinwil, explained in a clear and simple way why an airplane that is heavier than air is able to fly at all.

Divided into three groups, they then got to work. While one group gathered around the flight simulator in the clubroom and made their first attempts at flying under Geri’s guidance, the—

Under Jürgen’s expert guidance, the second group set about building a simple “Slipper” glider. He had to make sure the students didn’t damage the delicate balsa wood even while unpacking it. The gluing tasks

had to be done in the correct order so that each component was attached in the right place. The students completed the construction phase by adjusting the center of gravity. Initial gliding tests quickly revealed whether they had worked carefully or had

had to use the repair service. Modellflug NOS, part of the Swiss Model Flying Association (SMV), provided the kits for this event as part of its youth development program.

The third group headed to the airfield, where three model airplanes were available for dual-control flying—that is, a student’s transmitter was linked to an instructor’s transmitter so that the flight instructor could relinquish or take control at any time. The students practiced diligently with the two electric motor gliders and the Pilatus Porter model airplane. Takeoff, climb, and landing were handled by the flight instructors; the students had to learn to fly with finesse. The strong Bise wind

the task any easier, so a second helper was useful for the student, someone who could guide them in operating the control stick on the transmitter. After just a short time, some students were able to control the models surprisingly well, whether they were gliders or motorized models. Even before lunch, the students had completed two of the three station tasks. As their hunger grew, their concentration began to wane. It was time to dig into the grilled sausages and drinks sponsored by MG Hinwil. Judging by the number of sausages, they seemed to be skimping on the bread. No sooner had they swallowed the last bite than some of them returned to the flight simulator or got back to working on their homemade model airplanes.

The final course work was also completed by around 3:00 p.m., so we were slowly approaching the highlight of the day: the competition with the small model. The task was to cover the greatest possible distance in a specific direction with three throws. Due to the wind, we didn’t hold this part on the grass runway, but on the gently sloping meadow behind the clubhouse—downhill with a tailwind, of course. Recording the distances and compiling the rankings took almost longer than the flying itself. At the awards ceremony, each pilot received a MG Hinwil badge along with a 20-franc gift certificate, donated by a model shop. Everyone was allowed to take their model

take the model home with them. At 4:00 p.m., Gerd concluded the event by saying goodbye to the students.

The group of 25 on Wednesday followed the same schedule as the one on Tuesday. Unlike the previous day, however, the morning began with rain showers, so the first group had to take a few breaks during their flights. As a result, some students in this group missed their turn to fly the two-seater.

Despite—or perhaps because of—the poorer weather, there was once again a big crowd gathering for sausages, bread, and drinks, with the difference that today the bread ran out before the sausages did.

*Hans Kiener*