Highly Competitive Swiss Indoor Flying Championships in Balsthal

MFG Balsthal served as the event organizer; it is also the “hotspot” for indoor glider pilots in Switzerland. In addition to MFG Balsthal, thanks also go to the municipality of Balsthal, which makes the “Haulismatte” triple-purpose gymnasium available to indoor glider pilots. The “weather conditions” inside the gym were challenging, with occasional turbulence. This poses a particularly significant challenge in the class of large, yet very lightweight and high-performance F1D gliders. The field of participants reflects Christian Gugger’s indoor glider-building courses. In the demanding F1D category, three of the seven competitors were participants in the 2023 course. Six flights were flown, with the two longest flights determining the final score. In the F1D category, reigning Swiss champion Dieter Siebenmann (MG Dübendorf) took the lead right from the start with a flight of 10 minutes and 47 seconds. He then achieved the longest flight of the day in the fifth round with a time of 11:18. That was enough to defend his Swiss championship title in the F1D category with a total flight time of 22:05. Giancarlo Polla (MG Fehraltorf) held second place in the interim standings for a long time. With a flight of 10:43 in the fifth round, he was pushed into third place by Christian Gugger (MG Buchs). The top three competitors are separated by just 1 minute and 40 seconds in the total flight time of their two best flights. The gap to the

Andreas Koch (MG Huttwil), who placed fourth, has an even longer flight time of 4 minutes and 35 seconds. Due to the very slow flight speed and the very slow burn rate of the 0.4-gram rubber motor, the indoor flying area can be utilized effectively. A variable-pitch propeller is also often used here to make better use of the flying space.

In the F1M-L category, all competitors in the first round finished in under 4 minutes. In the second round, Armin Bader (MFG Balsthal) achieved the longest flight time in the category with 6 minutes and 24 seconds. He defended his lead until the very end and is the 2023 Swiss Champion with a total flight time of 12:20. Urs Muntwyler (MV Bern) finished 53 seconds behind with a time of 11:27, ahead of Rainer Saner (MFG Balsthal) with 10:45. Here, too, the top three finishers were separated by just 1:35 over the two qualifying flights. The indoor ceiling and steel beams pose a major challenge in this category. The models climb rapidly and repeatedly collide with the ceiling or the metal beams. Pilots can steer the aircraft from the front using rods. This requires a great deal of finesse and careful planning. The organizers and competition director Christian Gugger plan to hold the next Swiss Championship later this winter. This will give indoor flight pilots even more time to practice. For anyone who wants to take advantage of ideal indoor flying weather, Christian Gugger or one of the participants is sure to have a suitable suggestion.