MG Riggisberg Team Meeting

Res Dauwalder

From the weather report on the morning of September 17, 2022: “Partly cloudy, with a chance of showers; snow line dropping to 1,400 meters; light to moderate westerly winds; gusts possible in the western Mittelland” – Flying in formation is hard enough as it is...! Would formation flights even be possible under these conditions...?!?

Seven formations lined up before the judges that morning: Models were evaluated according to various criteria, and pilots could even earn valuable points based on their outfits. It became clear right from the first conversations among the model pilots: These days, it’s no longer difficult to get a formation of identical models airborne; there’s simply too wide a selection of ARF models that would be suitable for participating in the formation competition—and at a reasonable

can be purchased for a modest amount.

It’s much harder to convince fellow model aviators to participate: committing to a date and actually showing up—even in somewhat unpleasant conditions—

seems to be the much bigger problem—which is actually a shame, as you’ll see from the concluding sentences below...!!

The fact that there was fierce competition among the various model aircraft clubs for the teams was evident from the sometimes somewhat “heavily—

"marked" models—it seems that during the training flights, there were a few model collisions with varying consequences and the corresponding use of glue...! And the composition of the squadrons was also somewhat adventurous at times: “Mergers” of model flying groups or model combinations like the Venom (impeller) and Pilatus PC-7 (propeller) pointed to a struggle to find solutions—people just wanted to participate...! And I think it’s worth mentioning that participation is also possible with self-built models, as demonstrated by the Munichbuchsee Model Flying Club.

The team pilots were able to enjoy welcome breather breaks between the three rounds, because in-between them, flight programs from the “Sportflyer” competition category were flown repeatedly. These pilots, too, had to contend with strong crosswinds at times!

It soon became clear that the winning team would have to come from either Riggisberg or Worb; their flight demonstrations were, at times, excellent—especially considering the rather rough wind conditions! The final standings confirmed this assumption; however, the point margin was incredibly narrow!

The fact that this event could take place at all is thanks to the tremendous effort of MG Riggisberg and the team of judges—thank you so much!

The food was especially appreciated given the damp, cool, and windy weather—a big thank you for that as well! We were treated to a wide variety of culinary delights...!

In the end, everyone took note of the results; for most, the ranking wasn’t the most important thing! But it’s certain that one or two relay teams have set their sights on this

or to improve on that next year—so the performance of the two top teams was certainly motivating!

And the most important thing—probably not just for me—is maintaining connections across the boundaries of model flying clubs: How many smiling faces did you see? How often did people say they’d love to see each other again at the next team event? So let’s get going—the building season is just around the corner...!

In any case, I hope that one or two pilots will find some extra motivation at the Münchenbuchsee Model Flying Club in 2023…! ■

Photos: Ueli Niederhäusern and Res Dauwalder