Midrand’s young talent has passion for flying

MIDRAND – Tsepo Molefe is pursuing his dream of flying planes.

August 25, 2016

Nokuthula Sonile 2 minutes read

Photo: Jan Sime. Tsepo Molefe with his remote-controlled glider that he loves flying.

A young man from Beaulieu in Midrand is making a name for himself in a unique sport – the radio-controlled thermal duration gliders, Class F3J, with a wing span of 3.5m to 4m, and weighing less than 5 kilogrammes.

Tsepo Molefe (19), who is the youngest in a family of four, said he loves flying the remote-controlled glider. “It keeps me busy and it’s a fun sport. I am trying to get more kids involved.”

Molefe attended Midrand Primary School and now attends Poplar Academy and started flying at the age of 12, and even flew in a competition for Team South Africa Juniors in Slovakia in 2014.

As part of the Junior South African team, Molefe’s team finished second while he finished eighth in the individual competition. He has also been to France and Holland to pursue his passion for flying.

“I have won four Springbok awards and was invited to the seniors’ competition earlier this year. Ninety people competed and I made the top 10. I qualified in the fly-offs.

“My mom thought I was playing with toys, but she likes it now and is proud of me. I want to fly drones and teach children in schools to fly as well.”

Moelefe said he would like to thank all his sponsors, the South Africa F3J team members and people who have helped him.

Steve Harcourt-Cooke – whose family took in Molefe, the son of their employee, and co-sponsor of his sport – said many of the young pilots in the sport end up choosing a career in aviation. He added, “Molefe can see things in three-dimensions, and from an early age, we realised he could see the plane and he has great hand-eye coordination. The idea is to keep the plane in the air for 10 minutes, utilising up-draughts or thermals, then land it very accurately on a 20-cm spot. It takes a unique skill to achieve this consistently.”

Team manager, Jan Sime said, “The sport is small and specialised, and a bit expensive but we would like to see young South Africans try it out and make it an even greater success.”

He added that they have enough older planes to use for anyone interested, to try it out. “Come and try the sport first for free and see if you have the knack for it. Demonstrations are often flown across Gauteng, for example at Zwartkops Airforce Base for anyone who is interested in seeing more of the planes,” said Sime.

Details: For more information email jansime@rpmtv.co.za or www.facebook.com/saf3jteam/

Watch video plane being flown here