Model Airplane Workshop for Young Aviation Enthusiasts

Five boys between the ages of nine and eleven took part in this year’s model airplane workshop as part of the Elsau summer vacation program. The workshop began right on time at 9 a.m.—which, for some, was still a bit early in the morning during the fifth week of vacation. To warm up, they built a small hand-launched glider out of Depron. The pre-cut parts for the fuselage, wings, and tail surfaces just needed to be individually painted with felt-tip pens and glued together with UHUpor. After about an hour and a half, work began on the second, larger model. The “Quicker” from aeronaut had already proven itself to be an excellent choice for this project last year. The individual fuselage parts were glued together with quick-drying white glue and then sanded down. The glue tubes included in the kit were used to attach the tail surfaces. Before lunch, the wings and winglets still had to be sanded according to the instructions in the construction plan.

Unfortunately, the traditional grilled sausages couldn’t be served this year due to the fire ban. Instead, there was a choice of homemade hamburgers or hot dogs, which sparked no less enthusiasm among the children than the grilled sausages from previous years. After lunch, it was time to glue the tail surfaces and wings to the fuselage and balance the models. The boys’ excitement grew: Which model would fly the best and the farthest? As it does every year, the weather was at its best this year as well. So, with superglue, trim weights, and our models in tow, we moved the workshop to the nearby schoolyard for the competition portion. After a brief introduction to launch technique and finalizing the center of gravity, the models were test-flown and trimmed using the rudder. The flying competition could begin. Each participant had one attempt with each model. The scores from the two flights were added together. The victory went to a boy from the neighboring town, closely followed by four boys from Elsau. “A cool workshop that was a lot of fun,” the participants agreed. I’d like to thank everyone for participating and my wife Karoline for her support and the great hamburgers!

*Christoph Ulmann*