The 50th R/C Model Boat Competition Was a Huge Success!

The 50th anniversary edition was eagerly anticipated, and the intensive preparations—which began shortly after last year’s event—have paid off. The event took place at the mouth of the Cassarate River, near the Lago di Lugano Sailing Club: For this edition, the organizers chose to return to the city to introduce the public to one of the longest-standing local clubs, the Lugano Model Aircraft Group, which celebrated its 70th anniversary three years ago.

Ideal weather conditions and a massive turnout of local, national, and international pilots made the 50th International Radio-Controlled Model Boat Competition a resounding success. Gathering on the shores of Lake Ceresio for this “three-day” event were 45 pilots from France, Germany, and the Czech Republic, as well as

Switzerland, to take part in the 2009 edition of the “European Cup,” an event that takes place annually in one of the countries belonging to the competitive hydro-model racing circuit, alongside the international races that also make up the seasonal calendar. The competition was divided into two distinct categories. In the “Semi-Scale Hydro” category,

Scale models are replicas of historic or modern aircraft; the main criterion for evaluation is therefore the model’s scale accuracy relative to its original. This category is among the most complex and fascinating in the entire field of

radio-controlled model aircraft world. In addition to the static evaluation of the model aircraft—which also contributes to the points tally for the final standings—the competition consisted of three launch rounds. The victory went to Rolf Breitinger of Friedrichshafen: the multiple winner of the Lugano competition presented a replica of a Dornier Do-24, a three-engine central-fuselage aircraft used by the Spanish military for search and rescue at sea. Second place went to Andreas Bischel (Weilheim, GER) with a Piper PA-18S, while the lowest step of the podium was claimed by Václav Janko of Prague, who presented his splendid Sikorsky S-38 for the first time outside the borders of the Czech Republic.

In the “F3A-I” category, model airplanes perform a series of aerobatic maneuvers selected from an international catalog. The precision and harmony of these maneuvers, evaluated by a panel of three judges, are decisive for the final standings. For the F3A-I category, two flights were held, followed by a final flight for the top ten pilots: with three masterful performances, the young Nils Brückner from Hamburg claimed victory in this category, finishing ahead of the 2008 champion, Philip Rannetshauser (Peissenberg), and Georg Thanner (Garmisch Partenkirchen). In addition to the two individual victories, the strong German team also dominated the team competition, managing to

placing no fewer than 7 pilots in the top 10 spots in the standings. Once again, the model airplane pilots from Ticino delivered outstanding performances: with Renato Buzzi in 4th place, Fabrizio Albonico in 6th, Guido Bianchi in 19th, and

Moreno Bernasconi, the home team formed the Swiss squad and thus secured 2nd place in the European Cup ahead of the teams from the Czech Republic and France. There was also a notable turnout of spectators who were able to visit the race village

competition village and admire the model airplanes and pilots in action up close. A report on the event and photos from the competition days are available on the Lugano Model Aircraft Group’s website at www.gal.ch.

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