Top Gun '91
At this year's prestigious, by-invitation-only Scale meet, civilian aircraft broke the fan jets' stranglehold on the top 10—and Mel Whitley's realistically detailed, great-flying Hawker Sea Fury took Top Gun.
Event overview
The Palm Beach Polo and Country Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, was the showcase location arranged by Frank Tiano and the Palm Beach Arrow Club for the Top Gun Invitational, held May 2–5, 1991. Herschel Worthy of Pacer Technology and Lewis DeFancesco Jr. of Model Airplane News were the main sponsors of this annual Scale competition.
The site was immense—a polo field is as large as four football fields. Palm trees at the north end of the field looked menacing; only one plane hit them on final approach, with disastrous results. The grandstand was filled both days, offering panoramic views of the pits and flight lines. Pit areas were opened for flight demonstrations during the noon break on both days, improving chances for close-up photos. Tents next to the stadium offered food, shops and manufacturers' booths.
All fuel cans and fuel pumps were donated by Orange Blossom Hobbies. Byron Originals donated the fuel. McDaniel R/C donated Ny-Starters for use by needy contestants.
Sponsors
In addition to Pacer Technology and Model Airplane News, the following sponsors donated kits and accessories (alphabetical order):
- Ace R/C
- Aeroloft
- Airtronics
- Bob Violett Models
- Cox Hobbies
- Dave Platt Models
- Eagle Editions
- Frank Tiano Enterprises
- Futaba
- Glenn Torrence Models
- Hangar One
- Hobbico
- House of Balsa
- Impact Engineering
- Innovative Design
- J-Tec
- MGA Pilots
- R/C Report
- R/C Kits
- Robart Mfg.
- Royal Products
- Tanzer Plans
Results and notable finishers
Overall winner
Mel Whitley (Lynn Haven, Florida) won Top Gun with a Hawker Sea Fury he designed, built and flew—the third Sea Fury he has made. The model weighed 26 lb with an 80½‑in wingspan, featured flaps and electric wing retracts, and used Airtronics sail‑winch servos for realistic eight‑second retract times. Mel's O.S. 300 backfired through the exhaust pipes, and the Fury whistled and roared like a full‑scale engine. He used Futaba equipment with a modified transmitter for scale operations.
Mel's scores (static 90.58 plus the average of his three best flight scores) gave a total of 181.37 points, edging runner‑up Terry Nitsch.
Top finishers
- Mel Whitley — Hawker Sea Fury — Total 181.37
- Terry Nitsch — F‑86F (Violet kit, drop tanks, over 20,000 rivets) — Total 179.62
- Ron Gilman — F‑86 — (1990 Top Gun winner)
- Diego Lopez — Skyraider (AccuScale Rick Lewis kit)
- Charley Chambers — "Big Beautiful Doll" P‑51 (Dave Platt kit; Moki engine) — also Best Markings and High Flight (93/100)
- Charley Nelson — Waco biplane — Highest static score in Expert class (92.43)
- Gene Barton — Skyraider (Webra Bully engine, 18x8 prop) — Total 177.26
- Bob Violett — (F-86F family) — Total 177.01
- Bob Fiorenze — F/A‑18 (Yellow Aircraft kit) — static 87.36
- (Remaining top‑10 entrants included other notable warbirds and fan‑jet models)
Notes: Ron Gilman's plane was totaled during demonstration flights after the meet. Bob Fiorenze, 1989 Top Gun, placed in the top 10 flying a large F/A‑18.
Team Scale and Giant Scale
Team Scale winners
- Geoff Combs (pilot) & Kim Foster (builder) — J4 Jenny (Proctor kit; engine detailing) — Total 178.56
- Nick Zirolli Sr. & Bill Steffes — Beech 18 twin (Grada 50s; 114‑in span, 35 lb) — Total 174.61
- Patti Violett & Paul Schuessler — VioJet F‑86F — Total 174.54
Giant Scale highlights
- A 40‑lb, scratch‑built Mosquito (122‑in span) was shipped from England and entered by Richard Rawle and Peter Guiver. Maneuverable but a bit underpowered.
- David Toyer’s 120‑in Hurricane scored 80.43 static and 50 flight points before landing damage removed it from competition.
Notable aircraft, builders and equipment
- Charley Chambers's "Big Beautiful Doll" P‑51 (81‑in span) featured screw‑together picture‑wheel hubs and lightweight all‑aluminum hubs that work with standard Du‑Bro tires (deflate, mount axle collar, screw hubs, reinflate). Chambers warned some tires have weak spots. The plane won the 1990 Scalemasters championship and earned Best Markings and High Flight at Top Gun '91.
- Gene Barton’s machine shop produced scale gear wheels and realistic P‑51 wheels. Barton's Skyraider, in gray, had prototypical tail‑high attitude and sound that pleased crowds.
- Corwin Miller’s fully aerobatic Globe Swift won Best Civilian Aircraft and the pilots' choice award. Miller chose the Swift because a full‑size example was nearby in Venice, Florida.
- Bill Steffes’s D18 Twin Beech was judged Best Military plane.
- Bob Fiorenze’s twin‑ducted‑fan F/A‑18 (Yellow Aircraft kit) features landing gear that mimics the prototype for soft landings. Fiorenze is a Yellow Aircraft dealer.
Awards and special recognitions
- Best Civilian Aircraft: Corwin Miller — Globe Swift
- Best Biplane: Richard Crapp — scratch‑built quarter‑scale DH‑89 Rapide
- Critics' Choice: Wayne Seiwert — Nakajima "Frank" Ki‑84 rendition
- Engineering Excellence: Mark Frankel & Dennis Crooks — twin ducted‑fan Lear 35 (overcame balky right fan to fly)
- Best Military Plane: Bill Steffes — D18 Twin Beech
- Best Markings & High Flight: Charley Chambers — P‑51 "Big Beautiful Doll" (High Flight: 93/100)
Demonstrations, stunts and entertainment
- David Hays entertained the crowd by crop‑dusting the field in his Rockwell Thrush with a powder/grits mixture.
- Chuck Fuller demonstrated the Russian aerobatic Sukhoi kit through low‑level inverted passes with smoke, sponsored by Byron Originals.
Crashes and incidents
Several models crashed during practice and the contest:
- Hal Parenti’s Ryan Fireball struck a palm tree on final after a wide turn caused by severe aileron flutter.
- Jeff Foley’s A6M3‑32 Zero and Scott Foster’s P‑47D both crashed; Foster’s crash was caused by a left flap servo failure.
- Shailesh Patel’s P‑47 suffered the most dramatic crash during a requested low pass: severe aileron flutter caused a violent barrel roll and the plane crashed into the exhibitors' parking lot. The P‑47 was a total loss; fortunately there were no injuries or property damage.
- A French team shipped a replacement Byron F‑20 in a large crate after losing their first choice to a crash two weeks earlier; crew members worked long hours reassembling the jet.
Judging and scoring
This year, judges discussed models individually before scoring. They pointed out observed strengths and weaknesses in craftsmanship, color and markings, and outline accuracy, then sat down to score all three phases. The process allowed judges to catch details others might miss and to share specialized knowledge. Scoresheets included a comments section so builders could see where to improve—termed "construction criticism." By the chief judge's ruling, photographs of the full‑size prototype could take priority over three‑view drawings as the judging standard.
Advice to Scale builders
- Verify three‑views before building. Many three‑views are available; some are incorrect. Build to the three‑view you plan to present.
- Example: Corwin Miller used three‑views for the Swift that showed an incorrect rudder angle; no full‑size Swift with that rudder has been found.
- Example: A P‑51D three‑view purchased at the contest differed from photos of the Miss America P‑51D used at Reno; the full‑size had a clipped wing with an angled tip not shown on some three‑views. If your three‑view differs from prototype photos, consider using full‑size photos as your presentation standard instead.
Final notes and next year
With civilian aircraft entering Top Gun in unprecedented numbers and placing well, WWII heavy metal and fan jets are no longer dominating the top 10. If you’ve never attended a big‑league Scale event, put Top Gun on your list for 1992 (scheduled for Arizona). Plans called for a return to Florida in 1993.
Bring your camera and video gear, and buy a Top Gun hat while you’re there—then come home and brag to your flying buddies.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
