Today, I would like to introduce you to the aerobatic model of the 1972 German F3A Aerobatic Champion Wolfgang Kosche. The model was called ‘KOGI’. KOGI stands for ‘Kosche-Gilik’, the abbreviations of Wolfgang Kosche and Erich Gilik.
At the end of the 1960s, F3A aerobatics was very popular in Germany. There were several outstanding aerobatic pilots, and Munich in particular, with its ‘Helmut Kermeß’ club, was the stronghold of model aerobatics in Germany. Bavarian aerobatics enthusiasts gathered around Hans Schumacher (manufacturer of the Graupner Bellaphon).
Karl Blauhorn, Harald Neckar, Wolfgang Kosche, Peter Holzapfel and Robert Kaufmann were the aerobatic heroes of Munich at that time.
Wolfgang Kosche was one of Germany’s best pilots at the time. In his early competitions, he mainly flew the Charly series (Charly 13 and Charly 14) designed by Karl Blauhorn.
After being nominated as Germany’s best aerobatic pilot for the Aerobatic World Championships in Gorizia, Italy, in 1972, he needed to build his own aerobatic aircraft.
He teamed up with his friend Erich Gilik from Rosenheim. Together, they designed and built the KOGI aerobatic model.
Erich was way ahead of his time back then. A brilliant model builder, he was a master car painter by profession. His knowledge of fibreglass technology was phenomenal at the time, not to mention his painting skills.
In the years that followed, he was the painter of Günter Hoppe’s, Harald Neckar’s and Werner Schweiker’s model aeroplanes.
His paintwork was simply world class! Almost as good as the paintworks of the top Japanese pilots at the time.
But back to Wolfgang Kosche. As the reigning German champion at the time, he was actively supported by Hans Graupner, and Graupner Modellbau provided him with a latest-generation Varioprop remote control and an HB61 two-stroke engine for his participation in the World Championships.
Wolfgang achieved an outstanding 18th place overall in the World Championships with his KOGI.
During our research on Erich Gilik a few years ago, I stumbled upon the original molds of the KOGI by chance.
During further research on the KOGI, I discovered two KOGIs by Wolfgang Kosche. One painted red and the original yellow Kogi from the Gorizia World Championship.
The red Kogi is now in Urs Leodolter’s museum in Switzerland, while the yellow World Cup Kogi is still in my possession.
Technical data:
Wingspan 1.62 metres
Fuselage length 1.38 metres
Flying weight 3.6 kg
Now that I also have the GRP moulds, I am sure that at some point I will be able to present an electric KOGI at a vintage meeting.
Images: Erich Gilik, Johanna Huang
Here is my original World Championship KOGI
