Opening Ceremony

Saturday was the perfect day to start the competition. Jan Bém, one of the senior Czech microlighters and very much one of the Richard Meredith-Hardy & Brian Milton set of microlighting heroes, orchestrated the opening ceremony and the twelve teams gathered behind their flags under a clear blue sky. At a few minutes after 10 am three parachutists dropped from the sky. One trailed the Czech flag and one the FAI flag while the third was flagless, presumably just out for a jolly. Then the band (or more accurately the recording of the band) started to play and the teams trooped on and lined up. Even though we are a relatively small team this year with only 8 aircraft we are still one of the largest here and twenty of us walked behind the Union Flag. All the teams wore some kind of national kit, which made a colourful spectacle. We Brits tend to be a bit low key in this respect, but we were all wearing BMAA baseball hats and, in case that looked too serious, we had our usual original Ben Ashman T-shirt creations. Everyone, particularly the Czechs from Jihlava, loved our T-shirts which feature the Jihlava hedgehog. I only hope Paul has brought enough. The competition was opened by the President of the Letecká Amatérská Asociace ČR (the Czech BMAA) and the speeches were short. Some competitors were disappointed that there wasn't more razzmatazz but the brevity suited me just fine. Within an hour it was over and the Jury President, Wolfgang Lintl, declared the World Championships open.

Behind the Statistics

Sadly they are all the competitors are from Europe, which is pretty much par for the course. We had hoped for a South African team and even an American entry but microlighting is not the sport of the wealthy and the costs of shipping the aircraft long distances are high. Also, many of the competitors are instructors who use the same aircraft for both their work and their sport; they can’t afford to be without them for the months it takes to ship aircraft around the world. Even from within Europe we might have hoped to see a few more of those who have competed in recent years. The French, of course, are absent, making a political protest because they had backed a bid from the Lebanon which the FAI rejected on security grounds. Austria, Portugal and the Netherlands have also entered small teams in recent years but not consistently and not this year. The fundamental requirement is usually a strong microlighting community in the country concerned and, with the exception of France, all the strong microlighting nations from Europe are here. In smaller microlighting nations what is particularly needed is someone to champion the sport. This is what Norway has in Tormod Veiby and it is thanks to him that Norway has this year doubled its entry to two aircraft.

Some Statistics

There are twelve Nations represented at this World Championship; Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, Russia, Slovakia, Spain, Ukraine and United Kingdom. Sixty aircraft will be fly in 4 categories; solo and dual weightshift and solo and dual 3-axis. 6 World Champions will be competing; Simon Baker (UK), Alojzy Dernbach (Poland), Paul Dewhurst (UK), Rob Grimwood (UK), Jan Lukes (Czech Republic) Endre Turoczy (Hungary). With pilots of this calibre here is no doubt that the quality of the competition will be high.

Friday - Practice Navigation Task

The practice task was flown on Friday, as much to test the marshalling and scoring systems as the crews. It was a simple navigation task, travelling from turnpoint to turnpoint, all at a ground speed predicted by the pilots before takeoff. At one turnpoint there were three ground markers, each uncovered at different times so that a pilot who hit the turnpoint on time saw all three. Neither orbiting nor backtracking were permitted. The tracks and times were recorded by GPS-loggers which were downloaded onto the scoring staff computers when the aircraft landed. This task was immediately followed by a powered precision landing, to test the deck marshals. The cold front, which had hung around for a few days, finally cleared to the east and the day started fine. However, with the wet ground and the hot sun the cumulus soon started to build up. The task was flown in showers and, given the need to fly accurately, the aircraft were obliged to fly through them. Some pilots were soaked while others missed them altogether. There were all the usual problems as people got used to the procedures but nothing terminal. One particular issue was that deck markings were unclear and it has been promised that this will improve. Jan Lukeš, the Czech single seat 3-axis World Champion blew all his points by writing "ahoy" in his track, which at least entertained the scorers.

Thursday - Weather & More Calibration

We had some pretty heavy rain during the practice week, mainly at night but also at other times. As always the campsite becomes a drab and rather miserable place when it rains. However, most practice days the team were able to get some flying in, often flying several times a day, practicing spot landings, finding local ground features and re-calibrating fuel consumption. You'd probably think that fuel calibration was something they would have sorted out before they left for Czech - and you'd be right. However, Jihlava is 1800 feet above sea level. That alone changes the fuel consumption. Also, takeoffs are harder because the air is less dense - the usual 100 metre deck has been extended to 110 metres to deal with this. Even so, on a hot day with nil wind or, worse still, thermic conditions where the wind direction changes so quickly that some aircraft may end up taking off downwind, lifting off before the end of the deck may be a challenge. As failure to clear the deck results in a 20% task penalty many pilots have adjusted the pitch of the propellers purely to make sure they don't run out of the box before leaving the ground. And, of course, once they have reset their propellers their historic fuel consumption data, vital for soaring, endurance and other tasks where fuel economy is an element, might as well be thrown in the bin.

Calibration & Alimentation

We've had a couple of days of intermittent rain, most of it at night. As a result a small pond appears from time to time just inside the entrance of the marquee. Most of us manage to step over it, at least early in the evening.

The ground is quite sandy so an hour or two after the rain most of the site is dry again and our pond becomes a patch of rather slippy mud, which is a good thing and a bad thing. The good drainage means that the main route road the campsites and the aircraft is still mud free and firm, which is certainly a good thing.

Neil, Alan and the two Eileens turned up yesterday afternoon and Simon & Anita arrived just after lunch so we have the full team of 8 aircraft and crews. All are weighed which is important because from tomorrow only weighed aircraft will be allowed to free fly.

The main activities of the day have been calibration of fuel tanks and orientation. Rob and Chris went out and measured up a landing deck using Vladimir's laser tool and they have been trying it for size. The free draining soil will be important here, of course, otherwise a bit of rain followed by mud and the brakes will cause as many problems as they solve.

Len and Malcolm continue to impress with their catering. Last night we had a curry with onion bhajis and Bombay aloo, followed by fresh fruit salad. Tonight will, I understand, be spaghetti carbonara. Simon, Anita, Neil, Alan and the Eileens fend for themselves but none of the remaining dozen will miss a meal!

The Team for 2009

David Hadley has spent most of the last year swapping the 2-stroke Rotax 447 engine on his Sluka for a 4-stroke 508 and the new combination sounds good on takeoff. However, the 508 has yet to be seriously tested pulling a 3-axis so we wait with interest to see how it lasts. David was particularly interested to see the Sluka of Lithuanian Kestutis Jurkenas, parked next door. It has a 2-stroke Simonini and, more useful, it has flaps! This is the aircraft that David will be competing with in the solo 3-axis class in which the hot favourite is Jan Lukeš in his composite Test motorglider.

Chris & Claire Wills will be flying their Escapade. Last year they came 4th, a great result for a traditional tail-dragger, and they are hopeful that this year will be better. The favourites in the dual 3-axis class are the Ukrainians Yuri Yakovlev & Igor Pugach in their Aeroprakt.

Rees Keene is flying the Rotax 508 powered Chaser S in the solo flexwing class. Even after some 20 years the Chaser remains very competitive but having arrived early we don't yet know what the competition in this category will look like. There is usually at least one Chaser look-alike in the field.

In the dual flexwing class we have entered 5 aircraft, 3 of which are flown by World Champions. I have brought 3 union flags along just in case.

Paul Dewhurst & Laurie Hurman are in the Air Creation Tanarg 912 ES/iXcess 13. There is no doubt that they will be the most comfortable in their class but will that be enough? Yesterday was the first time that they have flown together and Laurie seemed composed as he returned to camp, which is a good start.

Rob Grimwood & Andy Aiken, current British Champions, are flying the QuikR where comfort is certainly sacrificed for performance but with wet grass will the deck (110 metres at 1800 ft) be long enough? The QuikR is attracting a great deal of attention and its performance will be watched very closely.

Simon Baker & Anita Holmes, who have flown together for many years, will be in the Quik. Simon has always played his cards close to his chest so if he has any secrets up his sleeve we don't know them. Last year a dodgy starter switch dumped them in a field and blew the comp. Simon's hoping for fewer problems this year.

Frank Hodgson & Tim Keene are in the 912 Quantum, a good machine but not cutting edge. Their trick will have to be to fly a steady competition and wait for everyone else to make the mistakes. It's suprising how effective that strategy can be!

Finally, Neil King & Alan Weatherall with a combined age of 130 will be flying the 912 Blade with every probability of taking at least one record!

Early Reconnaisance

Monday dawned bright and still so we finished the marquee then a bunch of the team went with Len and Malcolm in search of a supermarket. They came back with all the ingredients for a decent breakfast and we brunched. This is the time when Len and Malcolm come into their own with perfect organisation delivering sausage, bacon, eggs and beans with fresh rolls.

After an early briefing from Vladimír Šilhan the British competitors went flying. We had free airspace to 6,000 ft and no local restrictions. The early flights were an opportunity for orientation, getting a feel for the landing deck and ensuring that the journey had not disturbed any aircraft settings. In the meantime Len and Malcolm went to find the ingredients for dinner.

Arrival at Jihlava

Nové Mesto nad Metují is in the east of the Czech Republic, near the Polish border. The journey to Jihlava towing the team trailer took me about 3 hours to the southwest, mainly along small country roads and through some pretty towns and villages. Having stayed for lunch with Richard Meredith-Hardy, Rob Hughes and José Luis Esteban I left mid-afternoon and arrived at the airfield early eveing shortly after most of the British early starters. Our campsite was already taking shape. A small German contingent had set up on one side of us and the Lithuanians led by our old friend Kestutis Zelnys on the other.


David Hadley had driven in towing his Sluka. Paul Dewhurst came in his van with Laurie Hurman and Rees Keene with and his Chaser, towing the Tanarg. The airborne crews were Rob Grimwood & Graham Coventry in the QuikR, Andy & Barbara Aiken in the non-competing Eurostar, Frank Hodgson & Tim Keene in the Quantum and the essential logistics team, Malcolm Finch & Len Tanner, in the Sky ranger. This gave us enough to erect the marquee, which is a simple enough task if you have seven people.

By the time we had the marquee roof up it was clear that the space we had been allocated was not going to be enough so the Germans, who have a small team this year, kindly shifted to one side of their space and allowed us to encroach.

As the light faded we started to feel hungry and the need for a beer. Unfortunately we had arrived a couple of days before the competition bar and restaurant so we had to venture out. It was a still evening promising a wind-free night so we abandoned the half-finished marquee and bundled into Paul's van and drove into Jihlava hunting for somewhere to eat. At 9 pm on a Sunday evening Jihlava is not particularly full of life, at least the parts we saw. Laurie was determined not to go to McDonalds and in the end we didn't need to. We found a pizza restaurant near the centre of town. The chef had left but the girls, reluctantly at first, turned on the chip pan and microwave and washed down with decent Czech beer a dozen of us had a meal that hit the spot perfectly.

2009 World Paramotor Championships

Before starting on the World Microlight Championships at Jihlava I must report on the World Paramotor Championships held at Nové Mesto nad Metují in the Czech Republic from 30th July to 9th August where I was a member of the FAI International Jury. This was a longer competition that usual with the opening ceremony held on the Thursday and the closing ceremony on the Sunday 11 days later. This meant that the thunderstorm and strong winds which arose mid-way through the event did not prevent more that a dozen good tasks being flown.

It was undoubtedly one of the most successful paramotor championships ever and certainly the largest World Paramotor Championship with over 100 entries from 18 nations. The Czech hosts did a great job in providing the facilities and the whole organising team, led by Richard Meredith-Hardy (Competition Director), worked tirelessly to make this an exceptional event.

From the British perspective it was a very successful competition with Michel Carnet taking the Gold Medal in the solo paramotor class and the British Team winning the Silver in that category. As an air sports event a spirit of sportsmanship prevailed and the combined bar and dining room became a place where people from the competing teams sat together and talked enthusiastically about the this fast developing sport.

Richard Meredith-Hardy, who introduced GPS loggers into paramotoring at Long Marston in 2003, this year produced an innovative almost paper-free system with all tasks, scores and even complaints dealt with online over the camp-wide WiFi system. This made briefings shorter and ensured that everyone, team leaders, competitors and organising staff had the same information at the same time. This approach has set the standard for future competitions.

Another innovation was the use of large inflatable pylons in the slalom tasks. These added a great visual element and will certainly be used in future.
The final Saturday was a leisure day which enabled the orgainising staff to finalise the results. The closing party, which started with a late afternoon pig-roast, lasted until the sun came up and the closing ceremony was exuberant and good-natured with most medallists and some of the officials liberally sprayed with champagne.

I drove away, towing the microlight trailer on the three hour journey to Jihlava feeling pretty good about the way the week had gone and looking forward to the change from Jury Member to Team Leader.

Venue Confirmed - Jihlava in the Czech Republic

At last the venue for the 2009 World Microlight Championships has been decided and the town of Jihlava in the Czech Republic will host the event from 10th to 23rd August. It is rumoured that the French will not enter a team but only time will tell. However, strong teams from Eastern Europe are guaranteed and hopefully the thought of flying in the Czech Republic will attract people from further afield.

Now the work starts!