Kits are getting rare. Balsa/composite arf selections are shrinking. YES, there are options currently, but I am speaking in terms of the future. The trend is not looking good.
I have a few large foam jets that I glass, mod, and paint. Its quite a bit of work, more so than most basla arfs. I think that the issue of "skill" (flying) is not what I am really after here.
I go to warbird flies and watch numerous models crash due to pilot error, some people cant even hit the runway. yet they spend hundreds of hours building something. The risk of losing your precious work is already there with or without foam.
I do agree that the small 1m foamies you can buy are probably NOT what we want filling the skies. But I am talking about the larger ones, especially if they are modified/bashed.
We are also seeing foam turbine models now.
My prediction is eventually most everything will be foam, with people glassing/painting them when more strength or better looks are needed.
In terms of "eliteness", the market is already flooded with arfs. I do envy those people with enough time to build something amazing, but they are also a dying off. Warbird flies are already flooded with run of the mill (literally) arfs.
It sounds like some events are already starting to accept foamies. I
do agree foam is easier to fly. I have a foam me-262 and it has 0 stall or snap, which is insane for a 262. Same with a big foam mustang I have.
Basically I am in the market for a new war bird and just noticed choices are slim. Seagull has several new models but they are all "sport scale". So if I can have that, why not foam? neither one flies like a war bird.
I am looking at the top flight stuff as well. But noticing lots of large foamies that I could make it hard to tell are foam, like the gent above my post.
PS. I am NOT advocating for foam models, I am just curious what the direction is with warbird flies. Eventually attendance is going to drop off if you don't start embracing the trends.