The weather took its toll

October 20, 2018:
The rubber-powered model aircraft meet was held amid beautiful fall weather, with fog and low-lying fog in the morning, followed by plenty of sunshine and pleasant temperatures despite the haze.

The only spoilsport was the wind. Still moderate in the morning, it picked up rapidly as the morning wore on. As a result, many of the lighter models remained on the ground throughout the day—in their boxes or sheltered from the wind by the clubhouse or the tables.

But flying went on nonetheless—simply with models that could handle these conditions. This allowed for plenty of technical discussions—among ourselves and with the visitors. The article in *Modellflugsport* 4/18 drew quite a few spectators to Olten—

drew people in. One prospective participant even traveled all the way from Ticino! And among the participants, we spotted a new face. Twelve in all, with an average of four models each. Another nice fleet, but still... The weather also took its toll: long walks back to the launch site (pure model flying), and the use of ladders and rescue poles to retrieve models from the trees. We even had to accept the loss of a P30-class model due to a missing or deactivated thermal brake—

A simple model with top-notch performance.

Let's hope it was found and its owner was notified.

A highlight was the launch of RDF models in the nearly empty hangar. RDF? This abbreviation stands for “Rubber-powered Ducted Fan,” meaning rubber-powered ducted-fan models. Yes—those exist, too. PhamThanh showed us these fascinating little gems in model form—a MiG-17 and a Mirage III.

Other specialties included CO2-powered models and those with Jetex engines. There are always fellow modelers who bring models of these specialties to the gatherings, further enriching the experience.

Final verdict at the end of the day: thoroughly positive! A wonderful event among fellow modelers, superbly hosted and organized by the members of the “man-carrying” guild of SG Olten, led by their president, Oliver Bachmann. Dear friends from Olten,

heartfelt thanks for your hospitality. We’re already looking forward to this year’s event.

Interested in rubber-powered model aircraft or have questions about them? Email info@gummimotor.ch