To fly is to live

Memories of Hans Blank go way back. In the 1970s and 1980s, it was almost unimaginable to have a model aircraft airshow without the legendary Simprop squadron. Hans was a founding member and traveled with the aerobatic team throughout half of Europe, once even as far as Spain. Building and flying models was his passion, and he excelled at both. He himself didn’t know how many models he had built over his decades-long career—it must have been well over a hundred, and many of them are still flying today. Right up until last year, Hans flew his impressive models at meetings and air shows.

As a member of the Schöftland Model Flying Club for decades, “Housi” was a defining figure in the club’s life. Whether on Saturday afternoons at the airfield or on Friday evenings during social gatherings at our clubhouse, Hans was an indispensable part of the group. In the club, he flew just about anything with wings—except helicopters. But his greatest passion was for warbirds, which he built and flew to perfection. Hans even showed up at the last IG Warbird Meeting in Kulm, marked by his battle with cancer but filled with an unbridled will to live. He was aware of the poor prognosis but still hoped for a reprieve. That hope was not granted to him, his family, or us fellow pilots. Hans died after a brief but severe illness, surrounded by his family. We mourn the loss of a kind-hearted, cheerful comrade and friend. We miss you, Housi, and we will never forget you.

On behalf of the Schöftland Model Aircraft Club

Urs Holderegger