Traveling By Airline to the Indoor FF Nats

Indoor Free Flight

By Don Slusarczyk | [email protected]

As seen in the January 2024 issue of Model Aviation.

IT HAS BEEN 34 YEARS since my last trip to the Kibbie Dome in Moscow, Idaho. I was only 17 years old then and rode along for three days with Larry Loucka in his station wagon, pulling a trailer for the combined 1989 Indoor Free Flight (FF) Nats and F1D Team Selection.

The Kibbie Dome, in Moscow ID, is an exceptional Indoor FF flying site with a 144-foot high ceiling.

The flying site is quite spectacular—a full-size football field with a 144-foot ceiling; however, its location made a return trip for me highly unlikely because of the long drive that was required. After the F1D rules change allowed for competitive unbraced models, flying by airline became common because the unbraced models could be packed in a box and taken onboard as carry-on luggage.

I have always flown many events and never thought I would be able to take enough airplanes on an airline. As I went to contests throughout the years, it became more common for competitors to fly instead of drive, so I took photos of travel boxes and how equipment was being packed. With the help of a longtime friend, Vladimir Linardic, I was able to build several model boxes specifically for airline travel. I finally decided to try it for the 2023 Indoor FF Nats.

This was to be a special occasion because Vladimir was flying in from Croatia for the contest, and I had not seen him in person for many years. The contest would be a combined AMA Indoor FF Nats, US Indoor Championships (USIC), F1D Team selection, and an F1D World Cup event. It would also be the first year of the Chuck Slusarczyk USIC No-Cal trophy, named in honor of my father, so I had a lot of motivation to go.

Because this was a five-day model contest, I wanted to make sure that I had enough events to fly. My overall plan was to have one carry-on model box and two special model boxes that fit in my two checked suitcases. This plan worked out quite well, with one half of each suitcase filled with a model box. It left space for my clothing in one suitcase and some model support equipment in the other.

The author’s model box was wrapped with a belt around it after it was damaged by an airport security scanner.

A cosmetics bag makes a great tool bag for holding Indoor items and can be carried onboard an aircraft.

Vladimir Linardic launches his Hossler Fury No-Cal.

Vladimir (L) and the author (R) hold the Chuck Slusarczyk Memorial USIC No-Cal trophy. There were 18 seconds between first and second places.

The next step was how to fit my existing model fleet into these new boxes. I started to work on packing them in; some models had to be reworked so that they could unplug and break down into smaller sections. I was amazed at how many models I was able to take with me. I had enough space to be able to fly F1D, F1L, Limited Pennyplane, Pennyplane, A-6, Mini-Stick, EZB, Manhattan Cabin, and Rise-Off-Ground (ROG) Cabin. I had plenty of models for a five-day contest.

The final piece of the travel puzzle was the "personal item" that airlines permit to be carried on. This consisted of a cosmetics case that was able to hold my winder, torque meter, pliers, steering balloon, and any other tools that I needed. It is really quite amazing how much can be packed into one of these cosmetic cases. Overall, I had two checked-in suitcases, one model box that counted as my carry on, and then the cosmetics bag that counted as my personal item. Because I flew Southwest Airlines, there were no extra fees for any of the luggage.

This was my first trip traveling to a contest on an airline. I decided to travel with John Kagan, since we would both be flying out of the same airport and he had flown out to the Kibbie Dome many times before. Having a travel buddy relieved me of some of the anxiety I had about flying with models and support equipment to a contest.

The entire experience was not as bad as I had envisioned. I did enjoy the looks of people trying to guess what was in my model box as I carried it through the airport. The only real issue I had was going through security in Cleveland. John was ahead of me in the line. I saw him put his model box on the conveyer and it went through the scanners with no issue. My box, however, made a loud "klunk" as it went through. The conveyor stopped and they had to manually remove it from the scanner. They tried it again and it jammed again. The box was then taken to a table, where several people looked it over and finally handed it to me.

As they did so, I could see that one of the epoxied seams on the carbon fiber was now broken. I was in a bit of a panic—I had no way to repair it properly because my Super Glue was in my checked baggage. I ended up taking my belt off and wrapping it around the box for the rest of the trip there.

The contest at the Kibbie Dome was great, and it was nice to compete at the Indoor FF Nats again. Being able to meet up and fly with Vladimir after so many years was a highlight for me, and, of course, winning that trophy in my dad’s honor was a great finishing touch. The effort I put into the boxes and packing all paid off. I feel that flying to a contest is no longer a barrier, so I encourage those who might be hesitant to give it try.

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