Militky Cup 2023

The name “Militky Cup” honors the great electric flight pioneer Fred Militky. In the early 1970s, various model aircraft enthusiasts in Europe and the U.S. began developing remote-controlled electric model aircraft. Such initiatives often originated with companies in the model aircraft industry or their engineers. Examples include Astroflight in the U.S. and Multiplex and Graupner in Germany. Fred Militky helped popularize electric flight. His choice of name for the Pfäffikon meeting was also related to this. Originally, a limit on the number of participants had been planned. Who wants to turn away people who have already registered... After the 47th registration, the organizers started to feel a bit uneasy. But soon there were cancellations again. In the end, 40 pilots took off. The Pfäffikon flying field is anything but an ideal competition site. The strong Bise wind posed an additional challenge to the competitors, leading to low-altitude flying over the forest and numerous tree landings. After the fly-off, the rankings were as follows: four Italians (places 1 through 3), three Czechs, and one place each for Austria, the Netherlands, and Switzerland. The top Swiss competitor was Thomas Wäckerlin. The second-best Swiss competitor was junior Flavio Meier. Once again, it became clear: whoever can best handle a difficult situation during a test—or a competition—is the one who wins. ■

*Report: E. Giezendanner
; Photos: Hans Schmuki*