TOP GUN 2008

PHOTOGRAPHS BY DEBRA CLEGHORN GERRY YARRISH & RICH URAVITCH

Two Decades of Scale Modeling Excellence

The man with the dream, Frank Tiano, was constantly on the go making his 20th anniversary event a big success.

Flown in team scale by Dave Malchione Jr., this º-scale T-34B Mentor is the work of Mark Frankel. Powered by a Zenoah GT-80 twin-cylinder gas engine, the Mentor has a 99-inch span and weighs 42 pounds. The team placed seventh in the class.

The title of Mr. Top Gun 2008 went to David Hayes with his tried and true Rockwell Thrush agro crop duster. Flown in the masters class, David’s ?-scale Thrush earned a 96.833 static score and won the class by only 0.010 points. David’s piloting skills and very prototypical flights made the difference.

The winner of first-place team scale, Graeme Mears, built this amazing USAF Thunderbirds F-16 Falcon flown by David Shulman.

Flown in team scale by Raymond Johns, Mike Sibly’s A-10 really impressed the judges. The Warthog received the highest static score (99.667), in Top Gun history. Mike also took home trophies for Best Military Aircraft, Best Jet, Best Cockpit Interior, and the Critics’ Choice award for exceptional craftsmanship.

For the serious scale competitor, there are many excellent events worth traveling to. But by far, the pinnacle and gold standard for world-class scale action is the annual Top Gun Scale Invitational. This year, Top Gun marked its 20th anniversary. As always, the 2008 event, created and promoted by Frank Tiano, continued to set the highest standard of scale competition and excellence. Hosted by the Imperial RC Club at the Lakeland Linder Regional Airport in Lakeland, FL, this year’s event boasted some 113 registered participants and 40 hobby vendors. Even the weather cooperated and the pilots were treated to minimal crosswinds and moderate temperatures allowing their engines and airplanes to perform to their best possible limits. And with such favorable conditions, the scores were extraordinarily close.

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A HIGHER STANDARD

This ?-scale A-7D Skyraider was flown to 11th place in Pro Am by Kirby Cole. Powered by a Quadra 75cc gas engine turning a 24◊10 prop, the 101-inch-span Skyraider was built from Ziroli plans and is equipped with Robart retracts.

This rarely modeled Avro Vulcan jet bomber is the work of Sam Snyder and was flown in team scale by Steven Ellzey. Having a 111-inch span and weighing 53 pounds, the Vulcan features a pair of JetCat P120 turbines for power. The team placed 10th and Sam also earned the Grey Eagle award.

David Johnson placed second in masters with his beautifully done Albatros D.Va. Dave’s WW I German fighter has a span of 108 inches and is powered by a Fuji 64EI gas engine. Dave also won the Best Total Flight Score award.

90-year old turbine jet pilot/modeler Retired Col. Bob Thacker (left) takes it easy under the shade of the announcer’s tower umbrella. Announcer Sam Wright is on the right.

Greg Hahn flew his impressive Beech D-18 twin to first place in expert and also earned the Best Gas Engine Performance award. Built from Ziroli planes, the Beech is powered by twin Fuji 43cc engines.

In team scale, this Bae Hawk was the work of Henry Nguyen and was flown to 12th place by Sung Kim. Built from an Airworld kit, the huge jet is powered by a JetCat turbine and has an 83-inch span.

From the beginning, Top Gun has always been intended as both a serious competition as well as a great social event that draws the best scale modelers together to enjoy the sport, while also providing an excuse to get together and have some serious after-hours fun. Getting to know fellow competitors on a personal level cements relationships that often develop into lifelong friendships. Top Gun is definitely not only about the flying!

Another thing that makes Top Gun different from other events is its judging. Static judging is divided into three sections: outline, color and markings, and craftsmanship. Each category receives a maximum of 30 points for a total of 90 possible points. An additional 10 points is awarded for realism and for the model’s overall scale appearance. There are four rounds flown for flight judging. For masters, expert, and team classes, two flight rounds are flown on Saturday and two flown on Sunday. Each of the 10 flight maneuvers is awarded a maximum of 10 points for a maximum score of 100. The lowest scoring flight round is thrown out and the remaining three rounds are averaged together to determine the contestant’s final flight score.

Each contestant is required to fly four mandatory maneuvers: takeoff, slow flyby, fast flyby and landing). An additional five optional maneuvers are left up to the contestant’s discretion. Again, realism is judged and a maximum of 10 flight points are awarded during each round. For a maximum flight score, the contestant must perform the maneuvers prototypically of the full-scale subject airplane. The contestant’s final overall score is determined by combining the overall flight score and the model’s static score.

PAST, PRESENT & FUTURE

Being lucky enough to have been associated with Top Gun from its inception, I’ve had the unique vantage point to see it develop and mature into the world-class scale event it is today. I’ve viewed it from behind the camera as a magazine editor/writer, from the flightline as a competitor and in recent times from behind the judges ta
ble. After reviewing 20 years worth of coverage, some interesting points have emerged. Although the event has expanded dramatically, now requiring a five full days to complete, many of the same basic points remain. The static judging teams, for the most part, have remained intact for some years providing consistent judging. The overall quality of the models has remained about the same, which you would expect at this level of competition, but the influence of high levels of prefabrication (ARFs) has become clearly evident. It is now possible to buy composite airframes in most model types from Warbirds and Bizjets. Most, if not all, come with neat panel lines, access hatches, rivets and fasteners already molded into the surface. Do these models jump out of the box right onto the static judging table? Not by a long shot! There is a lot of systems integration and finishing to be performed. How much of that is modeling is a question that always has been, and will continue to be, debated.

The models, as part of their growing sophistication, continue to grow in size. A smallish, 60- to 70-inch P-47 for example, would no longer be a player in this arena. Some of the models in this year’s competition approached 10 feet or better in wingspan. The size, sophistication, and prefabrication do not come without a price tag, however. A quick tabulation shows that some of the models on hand could easily exceed $20,000, exclusive of labor (which you wouldn’t consider anyway because this is a hobby, right?) Now, before you jump on that number and proclaim, ìI wouldn’t spend that kind of money on an RC model to compete in any contest!î remember that this is Top Gun, not just any contest, and you still get there by invitation only.

Top Gun has also seen many RC scale firsts. Among these is the fact that it was the first Invitational Scale competition ever. It was also the first competition to feature a turbine-powered model: the propane-fired, JPX-powered F-16 brought all the way from France. Team scale, which combines the building/finishing talents of one modeler with the flying skills of another, was also pioneered here. To better evaluate and ultimately reward the modeler for his efforts, the craftsmanship judge was given free reign to get as up close and personal with the model as he chose. Top Gun was the first competition of its type to receive worldwide coverage on ESPN, a major factor in providing positive exposure of our hobby/sport to the general public.

So, in what direction is Frank Tiano likely to be taking this prestigious event and what will it look like in 20 years? Many things are conceivable. Regardless of the path the hobby and the event may take, Frank will undoubtedly make the necessary adjustments to ensure that Top Gun will further mature and adapt to the modeling climate to provide the competitive and entertainment value on which its reputation is based. Whatever turn it takes, I’m still prepared to hobble out to my mailbox, put on my reading glasses and be thrilled to receive my invitation.
óBy Rich Uravitch

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RULE CHANGES

Gerardo Galvez’s PT-17 shows off its colorful markings and craftsmanship that earned it High Static in the masters class. The closer you looked the better the model looked.

Michael Selby’s A-10 comes in for a landing after another successful flight in team scale. His static score was the highest ever for the event.

Richard Crapp brought his well-executed Fairey Swordfish biplane again and earned the High Static award in the expert class.

In preparation for the 20th anniversary of Top Gun, Frank consulted with his many judges and decided to make a few changes regarding jets and prop aircraft competing against each other. With many issues considered, the new final ruling states that all jet models, regardless of power system, will have a 1.5-percent deduction in their flight scores. Also, tricycle gear-equipped propeller-driven aircraft, regardless of powerplant, will receive no additions or deductions. Any tail-dragger aircraft (except jet examples) incorporating a tail-wheel will receive a 1-percent addition to their flight scores. All tail-dragger aircraft using a tailskid will receive a 2-percent addition to their flight scores.

Also, any model in any class that has been timed out by the three-year rule may return and compete. For all future Top Guns, the three-year rule has been amended so any model aircraft featuring an airframe that was scratch-built and is eligible to compete in the masters or designers class, regardless of what class it has flown in, can now compete for a total of four years in its original color scheme, and for a total of eight years if the color scheme has been dramatically changed from the original. This does not apply to models built from plans or enlarged plans, highly modified kits, or models that feature kit components along with some scratch-built components. And the new rule changes are retroactive to 1989.

In the end, what this all meant is that for 2008 we saw several old favorite models come out of retirement to compete. One such model was David Hayes’ ?-scale Rockwell Thrush agro crop-duster. Competing again in the masters class, Dave’s impressive piloting skills and low-level prototypical passes, complete with functional crop-dusting spray equipment, allowed him to capture the 2008 ìMr. Top Gunî title.

HEAVY METAL HIGHLIGHTS

Steve Thomas flew this º-scale Yak-11 in the Pro AM-Sport category and placed seventh. The Yak is powered by a 3W-85cc twin-cylinder gas engine and has a span of 98 inches.

This is a Saab J-35 Draken and is the work of Frank Alvarez who flew it in expert to an 18th finish. Powered by a SimJet 3600 turbine engine, the jet has a 77-inch span and is 121 inches long.

Roy Vaillancourt returned to Top Gun with his Hawker Typhoon and placed fourth in masters. The ?-scale Typhoon has a 97-inch span, is powered by a Quadra 75 and weighs in at 47 pounds. Roy also won the Best Military (Runner-up) award.

Placing eighth in the masters class, Stephen Sauger competed with this impressive Stinson Tri-motor. Powered by three O.S. .25 2-stroke glow engines, the º-scale Tri-Motor has a 90-inch span and uses Airtronics radio gear.

Dave Foster (13th in Masters) drops a torpedo with his Nakajima B6N2 Jill torpedo bomber right in front of the judges. Dave’s model was one of several 3-year rule retirees that came back to compete after the new rule changes. He also earned Best 2-Stroke.

This highly unusual entry is a North American F-107A and was flown in the masters class by Ron Schwarzkopf. The 29-pound jet uses a JetCat turbine for power, has a 59-inch span and is 98 inches long. Ron placed tenth in the class.

Placing sixth in the masters class, David Wigley flew his Westland Wyvern S4. The model has contra-rotating propellers (the rear set are driven by the engine), and the sound the airplane made during his high-speed passes was amazing! David also earned the Technical Achievement award.

Though past Top Gun events have been dominated by jets and other turbine-powered aircraft, this year seemed to be dominated by warbirds. Even though the title of ìMr. Top Gunî went to David Hayes with his colorful civilian crop duster, the majority of the competition field was decorated with war paint. Of special note was 6th place masters finisher David Wigley with his unusual Westland Wyvern S4. Complete with countra-rotating props, scale and functional Fairey Youngman flaps, homemade retracts and a torpedo drop, Dave’s impressive warbird earned the technical achievement award. Dave’s Wyvern was also featured in the May 2008 issue of Model Airplane News as a construction article.

If you have a soft spot for jets, Top Gun delivers. All the jets were equipped with turbine engines and were of the very highest caliber. From the unusual scratch-built examples like Sam Snyder’s 1/12-scale Avro Vulcan to Sung Kim’s incredible º-scale Bae Hawk built from an Airworld kit, all the jet jocks flew their aircraft to the edge of the performance envelope.

The winner of the team category was Graeme Mears with his USAF Thunderbirds F-16. Flown by David Shulman, the red, white and blue ?.8-scale Falcon was built from a Marijn Penninx kit and was powered by an AMT Olympus turbine. It had an 80-inch span, was 114 inches long and weighed in at 49 pounds. The F-16 also had a smoke system and David flew Graeme’s jet like he was performing with the rest of the Thunderbird team. From big cloud-busting loops to extremely low-level, high-G turns, all maneuvers were punctuated with a thick, white, lingering smoke trail.

The 2008 Top Gun event was an excellent blend of the new and old and there was a definite increase in the overall quality and skill shown by all pilots and builders. With such a wonderful blend of action, accuracy and inspiration, it makes you wonder what the next two decades have in store for scale modelers wanting to test themselves at the Top Gun level. If you’ve never attended this spectacular scale extravaganza then you owe it to yourself to make the effort. I guarantee, it will change your perception of what quality and craftsmanship is all about.

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