Event/Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome WW I R/C Jamboree

The 53rd year of vintage aviation magic

When it comes to having a great time, RC modelers and pilots from all around the country know that the annual World War I R/C Jamboree held at the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome in Rhinebeck, New York is the place to be. Sponsored by the Mid-Hudson R/C Society (MHRCS), the Jamboree celebrated its 53rd anniversary this year. MHRCS contest director Warren Batson and the many club volunteers, as usual, did an outstanding job of keeping everything running smoothly. Even the weather cooperated—although it did threaten to storm the week before, the Jamboree weekend was perfect. Everyone on the flightline this year commented that 2019 was one of the best Jamborees ever!

ON THE FLIGHTLINE

With the runway freshly mowed, the flightline was packed with hundreds of WW I and vintage civilian model aircraft, and the pilots enjoyed almost nonstop flights. There was very little waiting for an open pilot station. As tradition dictates, the weekend’s flying days started off at 8:00 a.m. sharp with the Cole Palen Memorial mass launch of rubber-powered free flight models. Tom Polapink has been an active volunteer at the Aerodrome for several years, and he has promoted the free flight scale mass launch. Cole Palen, the Aerodrome’s founder, was an avid builder of rubberband-powered stick and tissue airplanes, and he flew his delicate models in the early morning and early evening at the Aerodrome.

On both Saturday and Sunday, RC flying goes until 1:30 p.m. and then the runway is handed over to the airshow crews. The first part of the show was made up of several amazing 1/3-scale RC models that represented the fighter aircraft from the Great War. Included were a pair of Fokker Dr.I Triplanes, three Fokker D.VIIs, a pair of Sopwith Pups, a French SPAD XIII, and a Fokker D.VIII Flying Razor. Coordinated by Ken Hall, all these impressive RC aircraft were flown in proper airshow fashion, several of which were equipped with smoke systems to help emphasize the dog fighting and flybys.

Then, the full-size aircraft from the Aerodrome’s collection took to the air with all the sights and sounds of a magical bygone time. Performed on Saturday and Sunday, one airshow highlights the early aviation pioneer era and the Golden Age of Flight, while another showcases WW I dogfights between Sir Percy Goodfellow and the dastardly Black Baron of Rhinebeck. The Aerodrome has many airworthy aircraft in its collection, and between the two shows you get to see almost all of them, including the oldest flying aircraft in the country, the original 1909 Bleriot XI. The show also features an original 1911 Curtiss Model D Pusher, a reproduction 1910 Hanriot, a Fokker Triplane, a SPAD VII, an original Curtiss Wright Junior CW-1, and a Curtiss Robin.

A special treat for all was the Aerodrome’s replica of the Ryan

Spirit of St. Louis. Built over many years, the aircraft is now a part of the airshow and is flown by Ken Cassen, the Aerodrome’s chief mechanic. Debuted to the public on May 21, 2016, the Ryan Spirit

of St. Louis is the most accurate replica of the 1927 aircraft flying today. If you want to see it fly, the full-size airshows are flown every weekend (weather permitting) from June until October.

BIG AND SMALL

Throughout the weekend, RC aircraft of all sizes and types were flown from dawn to dusk. A regular at the Aerodrome, Keith

Zimmerly flew the largest RC plane at the Jamboree. His impressive half-scale Nieuport 28-C1 was scratch-built from his own plans.

With a 160-inch span, the WW I fighter is covered with Solartex, decorated with postwar Swiss markings, and weighs in at 63 pounds. Zimmerly powered his Nieuport with a DA 170cc engine swinging a 36x10 prop. Commenting that he went through great pains to make sure his airplane had an extremely effective exhaust system and was very quiet, Zimmerly notes that people are always interested in his gigantic models, so he wants them always to be safe and neighborfriendly examples of how models should be built.

A new award category was an unexpected addition to the Jamboree this year. Sponsored by Daniel Brett of Williams Brothers, the award for Best 1/6-Scale and Smaller was introduced to help spur continued development and building of smaller-scale RC models. Back in the day, 1/6-scale was the size everyone built. And for many years since, Brett has wanted to acknowledge the modelers

The WW I R/C Jamboree is filled with amazing scale vintage aircraft. Here, Brian Perkins’s beautiful 35% scale Bristol Scout is impossible to tell from the full-size aircraft. Beyond this gate is the happiest RC scale event known to WW I modelers!

Coming in for a perfect landing is Bob Allen’s beautifully built 1/3-scale Fokker D.VII. Powered with a Zenoah G-62 coupled to a belt reduction drive, the big biplane, built from the Balsa USA kit, flies and sounds amazing.

A split second before Nick Ziroli busts the Mission balloon. Yes, it was on his first pass!

The DH-2 pusher was flown by Jack Buckley, who earned the new Best 1/6-Scale and Smaller award. Taken from midfield, this photo shows only a small portion of the models lined up along the Aerodrome’s flightline. Part of the Aerodrome’s fleet of show planes, the replica is flown regularly by pilot and head mechanic, Ken Cassen. Here’s a great shot of Bill Henschen’s newly built Fokker Triplane. Built from the 1/3-scale Balsa USA kit, Henschen was inspired to build his GT80-powered triplane after reading the review of the kit. He loves how it flies. Nick Ziroli Jr. preps his Mission-winning Taube while getting some pointers from fellow Long Island Skyhawks member Mike Gross Sr.