TalentWings 2010

MFS got started with its youth pages. Children and teenagers were able to showcase their model aircraft activities and were rewarded with servos. In addition, MFS provided the AeCS with several pages free of charge for the youth drawing contest. Switzerland’s first online model aviation youth site is currently under construction (www.mfs-newcomers.ch), and finally, in 2009, the major MFS youth award, TalentWings, was established.

People acquire 70 percent of their skills not through organized courses and training programs, but at work, within their families, and during their free time. In this context, education experts refer to “non-formal learning achievements.” For this reason, the MFS Youth Prize should not focus solely on academic performance and theoretical knowledge, but above all on practical action. In the foundation’s view, the Youth Award should be a genuine challenge and have both a practical and a theoretical connection to aviation. Among other things, the MFS Youth Award is also a response to consumerism and the path of least resistance. The motto is: a desire to do things yourself.

The first winner of the Youth Award is Tristan Kast, an apprentice polymechanic at a company in eastern Switzerland and a model airplane enthusiast. He has always been fascinated by engines. That is likely why he decided to fulfill his dream of building a radial engine all on his own. He built the 7-cylinder radial engine based on older blueprints, investing a tremendous amount of effort and overcoming several setbacks along the way. Particularly noteworthy are his choice of materials and the fact that he manufactured the engine using traditional machine tools. The expert jury rated his work “very good” and awarded him a prize of 3,000 francs. We would like to take this opportunity to once again extend our heartfelt congratulations to this young professional. What are his next plans? To build an airplane to match the engine and a 9-cylinder radial engine. Gz