GAMCY – 2019 Vacation Passport

The Courtelary Model Aircraft Club’s 2019 “Passeport Vacances” event took place on Wednesday, August 14.

Under the guidance of Jean-Pierre (aka Blim), young children and two chaperones from the region gathered under bright sunshine. A light southerly breeze blew over the guests at the Courtelary Airfield.

At 2:00 p.m., with eyes full of wonder, the children began with an explanation from José on how a helicopter works. Next came a demonstration of a quadcopter drone and an immersive flying experience.

A few minutes later, Sevan took off in his large Extra for an aerobatic routine... followed immediately by a large Piper—also electric—piloted by Laurent. Both pilots were

thanked with a round of applause.

Now it was time for each child to try their hand at actual flying. The young participants split into seven pairs and, accompanied by a flight instructor, practiced dual-control flying with Radians, EasyGliders, and even the electric Piper.

Around 4:00 p.m., two tow-in demonstrations captivated the participants. Maxime, the airplane pilot, and Laurent, the glider pilot, kicked off the flights. Then it was Alcide’s turn—the club’s oldest member—at the controls of his B4 to perform a demonstration with Maxime. Attendees also got to see Jean-Luc and his electric Extra in a spectacular flight. Keeping it in the family, Stéphane (his son and Sevan’s father) dazzled the spectators with his Leonardo Jet equipped with a smoke generator: a beast of a

22 kg fully fueled and a thrust of 21 kg… mind-blowing. By contrast, Kurt wowed us with a 35-gram Radian micro… a real fly… And to top it off, our secretary Pierre-Jean wowed everyone with his 3D helicopter. To wrap up this wonderful day, all the young participants received a small wooden glider to

as well as stickers and brochures provided by the AéCS showcasing all aspects of model aviation (another big thank you for their generosity).

Jean-Pierre wrapped up the day at 4:30 p.m. by thanking the participants and the two chaperones.

GAMCY: Blim and Christian Oppliger