Model Building at Its Finest: Fascination and Hard Work

The sun was already low in the sky and the shadows were correspondingly long when Lukas Schaub and Cornel Hasler assembled their Moswey 6 at the Schupfart airfield in early May. For the model’s maiden flight, they had to take advantage of off-peak hours so as not to disrupt regular flight operations. Thanks to the goodwill of the airfield management, this was possible on that beautiful spring evening. But it was also, to some extent, a race against time and the approaching darkness. Nevertheless, it was important not to let things get hectic. Every maiden flight has its pitfalls and should be approached with the utmost care. So, step by step, a huge model took shape from large individual parts at the edge of the runway. Lukas and Cornel remained calm during the assembly—even when one of the two ailerons on the right wing refused to move. Sure, a low-key curse could be heard, but once they began analyzing the problem, they immediately returned to a matter-of-fact approach. The loose connection was quickly identified and fixed. There was great relief—not only among the two designers and builders, but also among the group of model airplane enthusiasts who had gathered to witness the event. They marveled at the intricate wooden structure with its bright yellow fabric covering and various details such as the “shark-tooth flaps” and the off-center ailerons, known as “Frisian noses.”

The Moswey 6’s impressive dimensions—built on a 1:2.5 scale—were already evident when Lukas pulled the 350-cm-long fuselage out of the car. Once assembled, the vintage model was even more impressive. With a 780-cm wingspan on its voluminous fuselage, the model truly stood out; those in attendance whipped out their cell phones and cameras to capture the star of the evening. Soon the tow pilot was ready as well, and at 7:40 p.m., the moment had arrived. Weighing just under 30 kg, the Moswey 6 lifted off smoothly from the runway at Schupfart Airfield, towed by its tow rope. The pair climbed to about 500 m, then disengaged, and within seconds, a sense of fascination spread among the onlookers. The model flew calmly and confidently in circles over the Fricktal; it was indistinguishable from manned gliders. Pilot Lukas’s heart rate quickly returned to normal, and before long, he was simply enjoying the flight. The Gö-549 profile, which runs the entire length of the wing, not only provides lift but also delivers performance. Time and again, the pilot was able to gain altitude; a return to the airfield wasn’t really necessary. But after a good half hour, Lukas decided to gradually lose altitude and begin his landing. →

After about 40 minutes of flight, we touched down gently on the soft grass runway. Applause—that was it. After many years of brainstorming, tinkering, designing, and building, the idea had become reality. The starting point was the original plans from the Aero-Club archives, which had already served as the basis for Lukas and Cornel’s Moswey 2, 4, and 4a projects. The two could not shake their fascination with Swiss glider designs from the Zurich Oberland. Eventually, the time was right for a Moswey 6. “That was back in the day,” explained Cornel Hasler when asked about the project’s origins. Lukas Schaub does, however, manage to pinpoint the project’s milestones: “We probably first discussed the idea in 2011 and 2012. Things got serious starting in 2013 on Cornel’s CNC milling machine and in my workshop.” In any case, many years passed before the first flight, during which Cornel tried to meet Lukas’s expectations with the CNC milling machine, and Lukas gave it his all during the building process so that he could ultimately present a model that flew as well as it looked. Despite all their enthusiasm, it was backbreaking work time and again. It’s model building taken to the extreme—on the one hand because of the model’s size, and on the other, because the two longtime companions from the Unterburg Model Flying Club designed and built everything themselves from scratch.