The 1992 Nats Footnotes
AMA's Executive Director guides a tour of the 1992 Nationals. Vince Mankowski
Memories of a military base
Like most people, you probably have a memory of a military base: long buildings with white wooden siding, shingled roofs, green grass, and streets named after yesterday's heroes and history's battlefields. Uniformed men and women are sprinkled in and about those plain white buildings, which are sometimes only differentiated by the T-numbers affixed to the street‑side corners.
In this age of peace dividends, military downsizing, and the end of the Cold War, our military installations seem to be losing a little of their squared‑away look; they are neat but appear a little worn and tired. The men and women in uniform are getting fewer and far between. You cannot help but get the feeling that you are in a borderline ghost town: a place that is nearly deserted but humming beneath its surface to stay alive. The din of activity and the movement of personnel seem to be replaced by the echo of thousands of lives and the rich history of the world's most powerful nation.
Westover Air Force Base and the NATS
Westover Air Force Base in Massachusetts is no different. One cannot help but think how the transformation from a sleepy military backwater into the hum and activity of a NATS, with all its color and excitement, is not only great for us modelers but also a welcome injection of activity for the military personnel on base and this honored ground.
There was a time when the NATS comprised less than half a dozen Free Flight events. Now there are over 90 events, including Free Flight, Control Line, Indoor Free Flight, and Radio Control.
At Westover, 300 volunteer officials and workers came on board. There was a mobilization of:
- concession stands
- chemical toilets
- trash cans
- electrical power
- voice and fax lines
- tons of equipment
There was nailing, painting, scoring, photocopying, computing, sweating, and worrying.
The scale and spirit of the NATS
You will read elsewhere about the competitions and the competitors. Here, we will ramble differently about the NATS and how it sometimes seems to be the world's largest scavenger hunt and sometimes seems to be an annual miracle. From empty fields to the world's largest aeromodeling meet within hours—no small trick!
The competitions and the competitors provide the stuff of legends and stories around campfires for years. But the NATS makes legends and heroes and heroines out of other AMA members as well. The Nationals is an endless string of giving and sacrifice—sweat and energy given unselfishly, happily, and with great pride. Our proudest possession at the NATS is a simple yellow banner with black letters that say, "Without You Nothing Happens."
If you went to the NATS to fly, if you went to the NATS to work, or if you just went to the NATS to walk around, here are some pictures and moments you may not see in the regular coverage.
Scenes and moments
A fellow down at a window yelled, "Are we right?" It just doesn't get better. This photo sums up the energy, excitement, and enthusiasm.
The NATS chair says Free Flight was every bit real. Free Flighters had a great time. Everyone enjoyed the opportunity to see launching and thermaling beauty.
Free Flight NATS worker Peg Viverito tends Scott Peterson, a junior sailplane contestant who got his fingers caught in a car door. The scene: the annual workers' party held at the Westover Air Force Base consolidated mess Saturday night. Nationals events seemed to draw good crowds; a gang gathered around the Control Line Combat area.
Because the weather was uncooperative, the RC hand‑launch sailplane event was flown in the hangar that had been used for indoor events.
It's raining and overcast, but the Control Line Stunt judges are carrying umbrellas, the models are flying, and one pilot in a bright yellow slicker looks like a small firefly against the dismal day.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
