2026 FAI F4 World Championships for Scale Model Aircraft

BMFA National Centre, Sewstern, Leicestershire, United Kingdom

Thursday 9th July to Saturday 18th July

 

GENERAL INFORMATION

 

 

ORGANISER AND LOCATION

The organiser of the Championships is the British Model Flying Association www.bmfa.org and in particular its Scale Technical Committee.

The location is the BMFA National Centre, which is located on the Leicestershire/Lincolnshire border, close to the towns of Melton Mowbray and Grantham. The site occupies 43 acres of open and largely unobstructed countryside, set within a traditional farming estate. It presents an ideal location for the sport of model flying to take place. https://nationalcentre.bmfa.uk/

Postal Address:                         BMFA Buckminster, Sewstern, Grantham. Leicestershire NG33 5RW
Co-ordinates of Entrance:       Lat 52.777138, Lon -0.704075
What Three Words:                 Growth, Expensive, Furniture

The average weather for July is as follows:

Max temperature 21C
Min temperature 10C
Rain days 8
Humidity 80%
Wind Speed 12.7km/hr
The average length of the day is 16 hours and 19 minutes, with sunrise at approximately 0500 BST and sunset at 2100 BST

The venue is situated in Leicestershire, approximately 170km from both London and Manchester.

COMPETITION CLASSES

The following classes shall be flown

  1. F4B Control Line Scale Aeroplanes

  2. F4C Radio Control Scale Aeroplanes

  3. F4H Radio Control Stand-Off Scale Aeroplanes

RULES

FAI Sporting Rules
The championships will be run according to editions effective at the date of the event.
– CIAM F4 Scale Volume

In addition, the following documents will be applicable by consulting the edition effective at the date of the event:
– FAI Sporting Code Section 4 Aeromodelling CIAM General Rules Volume.
– FAI Sporting Code General Section Volume.
– FAI Code of Ethics.
– FAI Disciplinary Code.

The current editions can be found at https://www.fai.org/page/ciam-code

Junior
According to CIAM General Rules Volume C.5.1, a competitor is considered to be a junior up to and including the calendar year in which they attains the age of 18. So, a competitor will be considered for the championship(s) as being a junior as long they are born from the 1st January 2008.

PARTICIPANTS

Every NAC may enter a team consisting of:

– Team manager (The team manager is mandatory but may be a dedicated person or one of the competitors of the national team).
– Assistant Team manager (not mandatory).
– Maximum of three competitors per class (without age and gender requirements).

Optionally, one additional Junior competitor (without gender requirement) and/or one additional Female competitor (without age requirement).

Note: A national team must, at least, include one competitor and may include a maximum of five competitors with the two optionally additional competitors.

– Official helpers.
– Supporters.

The reigning Champion(s) and, where appropriate, the reigning Junior Champion(s) have the right (subject to the approval of their NAC) to participate in the class concerned. If they are not a member of their national team, they will not be considered for the national team classification. When a reigning Junior Champion is no longer a junior, they cannot be considered for the individual Junior classification.
The reigning champions are:
F4B Peter Bauer (USA)
F4C David Law (AUS)
F4H Reto Senn (SUI)

ORGANISER OPERATIONAL OFFICIALS 

Contest Manager                    Graham Kennedy
Contest Director                      Mark Benns
RC Flightline Controller          Paul Blakeborough
CL Flightline Controller          TBD
Administration & Scoring      Stephen Kessel
Registration                             Brian West

CLASSIFICATIONS AND AWARDS

Individual overall classification
FAI gold, silver and bronze medals and FAI diplomas will be awarded to the competitors placed first, second and third in the individual overall classification for the class concerned.

Individual Junior classification
FAI gold, silver and bronze medals and FAI diplomas will be awarded to the first, second and third placed juniors subject to at least six juniors competing in the class concerned. If the number of competitors is less than six, then only FAI diplomas will be awarded. The best placed junior earns the title of Junior World or Continental Champion subject to at least six juniors from four different nations are competing.

Individual Female classification
FAI gold, silver and bronze medals and FAI diplomas will be awarded to the first, second and third placed females subject to at least six females competing in the class concerned. If the number of competitors is less than six, then only FAI diplomas will be awarded. The best placed female earns the title of Women World or Continental Champion subject to at least six females from four different nations are competing.

National team classification
FAI gold, silver and bronze medals and FAI diplomas will be awarded to the first, second and third placed national team for the class concerned.

A medal and a diploma will be awarded to the team manager and to all competitors of each national team concerned.

CIAM Perpetual Trophies
F4C Individual -Dennis Thumpston (British Scale Trophy)
F4C Team – Keil Trophy
F4H Individual – KLM Trophy
F4H Team – FAI Challenge Cup

PRELIMINARY SCHEDULE

Monday 6th July Team Arrivals
Tuesday 7th – Thursday 9th July Team Practice
Thursday 9th Opening Ceremony
Friday 10th July – Saturday 18th July Static and Flight Judging
Saturday 18th July Closing and Awards Dinner
Sunday 19th July Departures

LODGING AND FOOD

Accommodation and camping options shall be listed on the website. Competitor camping shall also be available on-site and the fees will be detailed on the FEF.
There is an on-site cafe at the competition venue which will be open daily from breakfast till mid afternoon.
Banquet tickets can be booked as part of the FEF.

VISA

It the responsibility of all overseas visitors to have an appropriate visa (if applicable) for the duration of their stay in the UK.

Please refer to Check if you need a UK visa – GOV.UK

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Ticketing for day and camping visitors to the Championships will be released late January.

Medical service

Qualified first aiders shall be available on site for the duration of the Championships.
There are 2 Automated External Defibrillators permanently on site by the Reception Building and by the main flightline.

Local currency

The local currency is GBP. All items sold on site will be priced in GBP. Card payments are possible.
Rates are approximate at the time of publication (August 2025)

GBP = 1.15 EUR

GBP = 1.35 USD

GBP = 1.08 CHF

Electricity

The plug type used in the United Kingdom is G, which has three rectangular pins in a triangular pattern. The UK operates on a 230V supply voltage and 50Hz.

Communication

Free WiFi will be available throughout the site

Tourist information

Details of various aviation and non-aviation attractions will be detailed on the website https://worldscale26.bmfa.uk under the Supporters drop down.