NatsNews

Good morning, Muncie! The final day of Altitude Limited Electric Soaring (ALES) is in the books. ALES is the everyman Thermal Duration event. You can fly everything from a foam Radian to a 4-figure carbon slipper.

Day two of F3K is in the books, and we have a new National Champion. Mengchen Li won the title, followed by Joe Dougherty and Contest Director (CD) Mickey Nowell on the podium.

Today was the third official day of flying at the 2024 AMA Outdoor Free Flight (FF) Nats, and numerous popular events were featured, including E-36, Catapult Glider, B Gas, and F1B.

What an exhilarating start to the 2024 AMA F3K Nats! After nearly two years away from F3K contests due to a shoulder injury, it feels fantastic to be back in the game.

F3RES at the 2024 AMA RC Soaring Nats has concluded. The five-man teams have dispersed, and their exploits have all been recorded, certified, and placed into the history books for all to see many, many generations from now.

The Bernard Mulvihill Trophy originated in 1923 and is the oldest continuously awarded aviation trophy in the US. Regardless of age, the trophy goes to the high time-scorer in the AMA Outdoor Free Flight (FF) Nats Mulvihill event.

Today was the first official day of flying at the 2024 AMA Outdoor Free Flight (FF) Nats. Some higher-entry events were flown today, including D Gas, AB Classic Gas, F1A, Electric B, 1/2A Nostalgia (NOS) Gas, and Moffett. Today’s weather was mild, not too hot, and there was strong rising air for many parts of the day.

The bungees were singing when 29 pilots showed up at Site 5 of AMA’s International Aeromodeling Center for two days of F3RES competition at the AMA Soaring Nats.

The Control Line (CL) Navy Carrier flying events start on Tuesday, August 6. While I was not involved with model airplanes when the Navy Carrier event came into being, this is what I have been told as to how the event came to be.

What has a 2-meter wingspan, is 99% wood, and gets shot into the sky on a big rubber band? If you said a glockenspiel, you might be correct, as I have no idea what the specs are … of course, it's an F3RES sailplane!