Transcribed by JS (09/2006), Reformatted by JS (02/2010)
Robert Sifleet
Robert Sifleet, 60, has spent 54 years as an aeromodeler. For more than 47 years, he has been an active Free Flight competitor, accumulating more than 1,300 first- through third-place finishes. Among these are five National Open and Grand Champion awards.
On four occasions, Bob served as a member of the United States FAI Free Flight team in F1A or F1C. He has also served as the team manager for three of the United States Junior Free Flight FAI teams. Bob directed eight Free Flight team selections from 1964 through 1976, and served on the team selection committee since 1974.
Free Flight competition actually made his college education possible! At the 1959 King Orange event, Bob won the Senior Championship, which included a college scholarship. He went on to win the Open Championship six times between 1960 and 1998.
Bob has been an active supporter of Free Flight activity. This has been accomplished by investing his time, money, and more important, his competitive expertise. Living in the East where Free Flight has struggled because of the lack of flying site, Bob has been at the forefront of efforts to locate and secure sites.
As an experimenter, Bob developed tuned pipes, as well as the two-finger auto-stab system for F1C Free Flight. He was also the first to fly and win competition with a high aspect ratio (22:1) F1C model. He has several designs published, including the Maximus and Centaur models. Bob was elected to the National Free Flight Society Hall of Fame in 1995. He served as president of Baltimore Aerocraftsmen from 1970 through 1974 and has been a club contest director from 1964 to the present.
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