Laois Scale Fly In July 11, 2010
Photos from this event can be viewed in the gallery -- click here.
Some terrific aircraft showed up for the Laois Scale Fly In, little to large, from a half scale Christian Eagle to a sixth scale Dornier, on what turned out to be a warm and dry July day : wonderful bit of luck in view of the constant driving rain on Saturday, which worried our organisers that the downpour might continue into Sunday.
Gordon Durham brought two very fine aircraft of the first and second world war era, a Sopwith Pup (or was that a Snipe?) and a Hellcat, both of which flew very well after some trimming out post the take off. The sight of a biplane in flight has a certain magic, the graduated run down the airstrip and presence on ascent has an allure that captivates the spectator.
Another first world war warbird was flown by the very welcome Jim Howard, an SE5A in one sixth scale, a robust fighter of the trenches and flown by Jim in a way which was truly convincing. It is a reminder that you don't always have to go large in scale for a realistic and representative example of the prototype.
Good to see our friends from Boora, Ger and Alan who brought their two Hangar 9 Yaks, magnificent flying machines which waste no time in spanning the sky with verve. Ger Carter put his Yak through its paces with fast inverted straight flight down the runway, prop hanging and a catalogue of manoeuvres that would undoubtedly put the wind up or out of your average pilot.
The hall of fame must certainly have a place in there for the Byrne duo, John and Paul Byrne, who flew two superb aircraft, a one half scale Christian Eagle powered by a 212cc twin petrol engine and a one third scale Jungmeister powered by a Zenoah 45cc single cylinder petrol engine. Both aircraft built from scratch are a testament to the knowledge and skill of John and Paul, either of whom will readily give you sound advice, hints and tips for faithful scale replication and realism.
The intrepid Joe O'Sullivan had all of us spellbound with his most mysterious looking aircraft, a black widow, which many feared wouldn't fly or fly a while before a bog landing. It did fly and very well, fast with twin engines on tune and a real head turner.
Other aircraft in what was a very good day for scale, included a twin engine Dornier by John Short, a smart yellow and black Yak flown by Mick Murphy.
A great day and great scale aircraft. Our next big calendar event is the Nationals and let's make it the week-end of the year for all in scale.