Upper Austria was from 12.08. up to and including August 15.08.2022, XNUMX to the center of the Messerschmitt-Bölkow Blohm aircraft and friendly pilots.

Forty aircraft and other guest aircraft, mostly from the former Messerschmitt Bölkow Blohm works, answered Andrea & Thomas' call to come to Schärding / Suben in Upper Austria for the long weekend. It was supposed to be a meeting of historic German aircraft from the 60s, 70s and 40s (such as the Bücker Bestmann by Wolfgang & Regina Niebch) by aviators for aviators.

After Tom Strohmeier's aircraft, his Bölkow BO209RV Monsun, was voted the most beautiful of the event at the last meeting in Hildesheim, it was his honor and duty to organize the 2022 meeting. Normally based in Jesenwang in Upper Bavaria (EDMJ - west of Munich), discussions were held on how and where the meeting could be held. Because Jesenwang, with its slightly shorter runway, would have been a challenge for many guest planes if they had been loaded accordingly. Safety comes first, so the organizers decided not to hold the meeting at their home airport, but at another airport.

Tom Strohmeier contacted the Flieger-Union Schärding (LOLS) and found a more than cooperative association, which without hesitation offered the Bölkow & Friends their area and infrastructure (such as the "Villa Patrick" with its four double rooms and the best possibility for camping on site). Beautifully situated, close to the three-river city of Passau, easy to reach and worth flying to and seeing from a tourist point of view, the decision was quickly made. The cross-border basis was thus laid. The local gastronomy, which was voted one of the most popular places in Upper Austria by its guests this year, could also be integrated perfectly. The breakfast, barbecue and general catering on site was thus secured. And as everyone knows... good food keeps body and soul together. Dear Ritchi – it was delicious!

The distance to the place of action made it more difficult, because the two are well connected in Jesenwang, but not at the venue, which is a good 200km away from their home ground. Tom, as vice president of the association Pro Luftfahrt Jesenwang eV, was able to activate members of the association and with their help manage the organisation. Where there's a will - there's a way. And thanks to their active support and not to forget the help of his "better half" Andrea (which became a "running gag"), everything went smoothly. What would aviators do without their wives...

On Friday the first rarities flew into LOLS Schärding / Suben, and on Saturday it filled up noticeably until the space on the east side of the flight operations was completely occupied by Bölkow & Friends. Forty planes and one or two guests (such as an Extreme, YAK52 and a VANS RV6 and others) insisted on being there. There was also a lot on the program….

Around noon on Saturday, we flew partly flying, partly driving to the Gerhard Neumann Museum in Niederalteich – better known as the F104 Starfighter Museum by Josef Voggenreiter. An enthusiast for decades, with the expertise recognized by the former "Cactus Staffel pilots". The half-hour plane trip to the museum led along the Bavarian Forest, past Vilshofen to Deggendorf (EDMW). From there, after they had landed there, we continued by bus to Niederalteich, where Josef Voggenreiter explained aviation history to us in an entertaining and informative manner for two hours. Coincidentally, a descendant of Willy Messerschmitt was also in the museum. He had found out about the meeting and greeted the MBB pilots with anecdotes from the family history.

Back in Schärding, a "fun competition" awaited the guests and many saw themselves confronted with the challenge of precisely parking planes. When taxiing on the ground, the task was to slow down at a defined point, roll a 180° turn and then come to a standstill as precisely as possible in the middle of two small pylons. Then it was measured...

Handicraft skills were also required. Building paper planes and the longest flight, a little paper plane that looked similar to the Starfighter, reached an impressive 15m. "Ginne", his former nickname from his time as a flight instructor on the Phantom, almost topped that, but our Swiss newcomer Dominic made it a few centimeters further.

After evaluating the results of the competitions, a little hungry we went to the barbecue, the award ceremony and a social evening with the band "Schagganack" from Lower Bavaria. During one of the breaks, the winners were honored and then the music continued until late into the night...

Placed in the competition:

1. HB-UXN Dominic F. on BO208 from LSZF (CH)
2. D-EGNY Günter R. on BO208 from EDRK
3. D-EBOW Armin F. on BO209RV from EDMJ

All rested, after a nice, sometimes long Saturday evening with award ceremony and party, on Sunday around noon we went by land transport to Passau for the "Three River Tour" and city tour. Whether the world's largest church organ, the historic old town with the imposing town hall and the river tip, the guests had the opportunity for sightseeing and culture.

That's how the Sunday ended comfortably, some of the participants had to leave in the afternoon because August 15th is a public holiday only in Bavaria and Saarland. A few stayed until Monday and then went home in the best flying weather - just as the aviators were allowed to do over the whole weekend. According to the pilots, they liked it and everyone is already looking forward to the next meeting. Next year we will go a little further north. We will probably meet in Paderborn am Haxterberg in 2023.