2026 FAI F4 World Championships for Scale Model Aircraft WINNERS

By FAI - World Air Sports Federation

World champions have been crowned in three classes at the 2026 FAI F4 World Championships for Scale Model Aircraft, following ten days of competition that brought together a record field of competitors from 23 nations. Czechia emerged as the most successful nation overall, while France, Switzerland and the USA also claimed world titles in a championship marked by exceptionally high standards.

The event took place from 9-18 July hosted by the British Model Flying Association (BMFA) at their headquarters, the National Centre for Aeromodelling in Buckminster. Individual and team titles were contested in three F4 Scale Model classes: F4B, F4C and F4H.

Czechia performed consistently across the championships, winning team gold in F4B and F4H, team silver in F4C, and individual medals in all three classes. France claimed the F4C team title, with Marc Levy also winning individual gold.

In F4H, Switzerland’s Reto Senn successfully defended his 2024 world champion title, helping the Swiss team secure bronze behind Czechia and France. The USA impressed in F4B, where Mike McHenry won gold and 2024 champion Pete Bauer took bronze.

Competitors were judged both on the authenticity of their models and on how accurately they reproduced the flight characteristics of the full-size aircraft. From the tiny cockpit instruments to the intricate panel signage, the attention to detail witnessed in the static judging was exceptionally impressive and evidenced the thousands of hours that competitors invest into researching and building their models. 

During the flight rounds, pilots took on some blustery winds to demonstrate their scale models making manoeuvres similar to the full-scale originals in either Control Line or Radio Control flight, depending on their class.

Jury member and President of the FAI Aeromodelling Commission (CIAM), Antonis Papadopoulos, hailed the event a success, saying, “Congratulations to all the participants at the FAI F4 World Championships for Scale Model Aircraft; it has been an exceptional competition with a record number of participants and extremely high standards. On behalf of the CIAM, thank you to the organisers at BMFA who have hosted an excellent competition.”

Results

F4B Control Line Scale Aeroplanes

Individual

1. Mike McHenry (USA)
2. Václav Štastný (CZE)
3. Pete Bauer (USA)

Team

1. Czechia
2. USA
3. Poland

F4C Radio Control Scale Aeroplanes

Individual

1. Marc Levy (FRA)
2. David Law (AUS)
3. Jan Doubrava (CZE)

Team

1. France
2. Czechia
3. Germany

F4H Radio Control Stand-off Scale Aeroplanes

Individual

1. Reto Senn (SUI)
2. Vladimír Ryneš Jr. (CZE)
3. Gianluca De Marchi (SMR)

Team

1. Czechia
2. France
3. Switzerland