Jets over Pampa 2011
You can read a short report on Jets over Pampa 2011 on this page.
Pictures of all editions since 2003 are available in our photo album.
A success, despite the rain!
The weekend of the 23rd and 24rd of July, Jets over Pampe took place for already the 21st time. The participants were as international as always. The Umbria Jet Team traveled with around 1600km (1000 miles) the biggest distance from middle Italy.
Weather
The weather, and even more the weather forecasts, always seem to be an important factor in the emergence of both pilots and spectators. This year, the forecasts predicted very bad weather, but during the weekend it remained dry, apart from a heavy shower and some lost raindrops.
It for sure wasn’t summer at Pampa, but the pilots were able to fly the entire weekend. A certain moment, the queue was that long, the planes had to queue from half way the pits to the field. Several pilots succeeded in using their complete fuel supply during Jets over Pampa.
Models
We already saw planes equiped with a turboprop for several years, but this year Lucien Gerard brought the first turbofan jet ever to our meeting. He built the turbofan around a Wren turbine.
Frank Schroeder’s 1:3 scale Rafale was already present in 2010, but back then it was then covered in only a gray primer. A year later, the big Rafale was painted in a magnificent Tiger meet colour scheme. Next to the Rafale, you couldn’t have missed Ali Machinchy’s Messcherschmitt Me262 with its wingspan of 4,6 meter (36% scale).
These two planes stood out because they’re so big, but these for sure weren’t the only beautiful scale jets. If we compare to some years ago, we see the skills of both models and pilots increasing year after year. Next to the scale jets, a lot of sport jets sign present at Jets over Pampa. These sport jets won’t get it from their looks, but they sure make it up with speed and their pilot’s flying skills. This makes them a must-have at Jets over Pampa.
The Pampa Challenge Trophy
On Sunday, an independent jury judges the models and pilots. From this, they present on the end of the day a general pilot top 5 and several specific (skill based) cups are handed out. The pilot that is assessed to be on the first place in the top 5 not only gets a cup, but can also take home the ‘Pampa Challenge Trophy’.
Last year, Ali Machinchy could take our challenge trophy home definitely after winning it three times consecutively. Pampa Modelfighters had to find a new trophy. We gave that task to artist Boud Ceyssens, who also designed and built the previous trophy.
The new trophy looks great, and weighs no less than 35kg (77lbs)!
Mark Hinton got the cup for the best military model with his F-86 Sabre. When he also was assessed top 1 with his Cougar, and could take the Pampa Challenge Trophy home for the first year, he was moved. The loss of his Hawk on Friday due to a radio failure was made up a little.
Lastly
We’d like to thank all pilots, our devoted members and sympathizers who gave their best to make Jets over Pampa each year a new success. In 2012, Jets over Pampa will take place the 21st and 22nd of July.
See you then!
Uitgereikte trofeeën & piloten top 5
You can find the list of trophies and the top 5 of pilots and models this page.
This list was compiled by a jury that judged the models and flying skills of the pilots.
Foto's
Pictures of Jets over Pampa 2011 are available in our photo album.
Click here to open the album.
We didn’t shoot a movie in 2011, because the grey skies would not let the images come to their full.
Films of previous editions are still available on our Video-page.
