05 JUN – UNLIMITED WORLD AEROBATIC CHAMPIONSHIPS MEDALS & PROGRAMMES

As the new Unlimited World Aerobatic Championships (WAC) are approaching and as the World Grand Prix solo pilots are selected from top WAC pilots, we thought it would be interesting to provide the list of medals won at WAC by competitors over the last ten years. The overall and 4-minute freestyle results are considered as the most significant for the individuals, men and women.

You will also find a listing detailing all medals, as each programme is also awarded a world champion title, which could be a little bit confusing to the reader (it is as if figure ice skating compulsory programmes were awarding world champion titles).

For information, due to adverse weather conditions the only result for WAC 1992 was the known programme

Some precisions…
Overall = known + unknown + free programmes.

All the aerobatic figures performed in the overall are traditional figures detailed in the FAI catalogue, also called the Aresti Catalogue.
Known and unknown are compulsory programmes composed of catalogue figures which are selected by a commission.
Free programme is a programme composed of catalogue figures which are selected by each pilot.

4-minute freestyle programme

This programme is created by each pilot, with original figures which are not necessarily part of the catalogue. The main constraint for the pilot is to fly the programme in the time frame of 4 minutes.

Main Differences FAI World Grand Prix – WAC

In the FAI World Grand Prix, pilots fly freestyle programmes to music where they underline trajectories with smoke systems. Due to the necessary harmony to the music, the time frame of each flight can vary between 3min30 and 4minutes.

While the FAI Grand Prix is a series of events every year hosted in different countries, WAC is one event every two years.

While the FAI Grand Prix is a 2-hour competition open to 9 solo pilots and formation teams flying to music, WAC is a massive 10-day event with 80 to 100 solo pilots flying technical programmes and is not open to formation teams and music.

In both WAC and the FAI Grand Prix, pilots are graded by CIVA Judges (International Commission for Aerobatics).

 

23 JUN – JOHN LILLBERG

Farewell, John Lillberg... John was an unlimited aerobatic pilot and a good friend who joined our competitions between 1991 and 1995... He was killed in a mid-air collision between his Extra 300S and a Learjet during a ferry flight. 

 

01 JUL – E-SHOP

Our first e-shop is online... To be tested in English language in a first step, then it will be developed in French and in German.

 

07 JUL – 15TH FAI WORLD GRAND PRIX

The 15th Grand Prix competition to be held at Motegi, Japan (20-22 October) is definitely confirmed...
Twin Ring Motegi, a temple for motor sports...

 

14 JUL – 14TH FAI WORLD GRAND PRIX

The 14th Grand Prix competition to be held at Wuxian, near Shanghai, P.R. China (03-06 October) is definitely confirmed.

 

27 JUL – WELCOME

The Asian Grand Prix welcome the Apache and Sukhoi Duo formation teams!

 

20 AUG – WORLD AEROBATIC CHAMPIONSHIPS

Grand Prix pilots Peter BESENYEI and Svetlana KAPANINA are the 2000 Freestyle World Aerobatic Champions!

 

29 AUG – LAKE TAIHU UPDATE

On a message dated 8/24/00 5:51:27 AM Eastern Daylight Time, AVflash@avweb.com writes:

<< DON'T TRY THIS AT HOME: In more news from China, the Xinhua news agency announced that the festivities at the 2000 Taihu World Grand Prix of Aviation will include a flying-under-bridges contest. Scheduled for October 3-6 in East China's Jiangsu Province, the first under the No. 1 Taihu Lake Bridge will be a Chinese pilot flying an unspecified Chinese- made light plane. The bridge opening is described as about 80 feet by 18 feet. The "big prize" for the winner was not specified, but there is little doubt what will happen to an unsuccessful participant. >>

As the founder and responsible person for the FAI World Grand Prix of Aviation, Jean-Louis Monnet gives the following statement:
"The flying-under-bridges contest is not part of the FAI World Grand Prix competition at Wuxian (Taihu Lake)."
"Although we have serious professional pilots involved in the FAI Grand Prix who, individually and with the permission of the Civil Aviation Authorities of the country where they perform, love to make a show of flying under bridges with aerobatic aircraft, this kind of activity is not part of our FAI Grand Prix competition programme."
"I just heard about the Chinese "bridges contest" to be held in October at the same time as our FAI China Grand Prix but I understand it is an airshow act, a public entertainment to be performed by small ultralight planes (for small bridges!), initiated by the Chinese organiser for Chinese ULM pilots and placed under the responsibility of the Chinese aviation authorities."
"Of course the International Air Sports Federation (FAI) cannot approve or undertake any responsibility in the "bridges contest" as it is not a sporting event."
Talking then under the cap of the Aviators Studio CEO, Monnet added:
"Although I am more attracted by the development of artistic displays, I am not against our pilots (Aviators Studio's) participating in this type of "stunt performance", provided that the operation has received all legal authorisations and we can obtain enough elements in advance to carefully study the necessary conditions for such "precision flights" to be safely performed by our most competent pilots. Otherwise we say no. There is no glory in hitting the walls of a mouse hole with an aircraft!"

 

22 SEP – AIRSHOW CHINA IN ZHUHAI

Aviators Studio will produce a show with seven aircraft and ten pilots every day during Airshow China 2000 at Zhuhai, between 06 – 12 November.
The show will feature an original Air Ballet to music with two formation teams, Sky Box (4xZlin50) from Czech Republic and Apache from France.
The French team will share 3xSU26 with three Grand Prix aerobatic champions: Svetlana Kapanina, Viktor Tchmal and Martin Stahalik.

 

06 OCT – WUXIAN 2000 RESULTS

Jurgis Kairys (LIT) and Apache (FRA) win gold at Wuxian, China.
See results.
Kairys is now well established in the lead, but there is still one leg to go, Besenyei and Tchmal are ready to take the seat and nobody can be protected from any mistake.
Just ask Martin Stahalik, Klaus Schrodt, Sky Box and Sukhoi Duo who all marked a zero because they infringed the deadline, due to a sudden gust of wind produced by a nearby storm during their flight slot.
So, for their first participation in Asia (and with 3 Sukhoi 26), the Apache team won the leg.
This contest, held over Lake Taihu, was a great success for sports aerobatics and the organisers. More than 160,000 tickets were sold at prices ranging between USD10 and USD100 depending on the location of the seat.

On October 6, CCTV1 (domestic network) and CCTV4 (international) jointly produced a live broadcast (100 min.) of our Air Ballet and of the first flight by Chinese pilots under the Lake Taihu Bridge.
This TV broadcast was so successful that it was put on air again several times in the following days. The total TV audience could very well reach a billion!
The public attendance on site was estimated at 200,000 people and it took hours for everybody to return home.
Next year, join us in China, you will be amazed! 

 

22 OCT – AEROBATICS HONDA GRAND PRIX 2000 RESULTS

After a fantastic flight, graded by the judges at 91.20% perfection, solo pilot Peter Besenyei (HUN) and formation team Sukhoi Duo (GBR) win gold at Motegi, Japan, in the Aerobatics Honda Grand Prix 2000.
 

GP No° 015 FAI WORLD GRAND PRIX
	Twin Ring Motegi, Japan
	20 - 22 October 2000
FAI WORLD GRAND PRIXCOMPETITION RESULTS
	Category: Solo Pilots & Formation Teams
FINAL RANKING
Solo Pilots
1	BESENYEI Peter	HUN	5'472	91.20%	Extra 300S	12
2	KAIRYS Jurgis	LTU	5'384	89.73%	Sukhoi 31	10
3	CHMAL Viktor	RUS	5'200	86.66%	Sukhoi 31	8
4	SCHRODT Klaus	GER	5'196	86.60%	Extra 300S	6
5	STAHALIK Martin	CZE	5'142	85.70%	Sukhoi 31	4
6	RAKHMANIN Sergey	RUS	5'140	85.66%	Sukhoi 31	2
7	TIMOFEEV Nikolay	RUS	5'124	85.40%	Sukhoi 26	1
8	KAPANINA Svetlana	RUS	5'088	84.80%	Sukhoi 31	0
9	MAMISTOV Mikhail	RUS	5'032	83.86%	Sukhoi 31	0
10	KROTOV Alexandre	RUS	4'988	79.46%	Sukhoi 26	0
Formation Teams
1	SUKHOI DUO	GBR			Sukhoi 26	12
2	APACHE	FRA			Sukhoi 26	10
3	SPACE KNIGHTS	FRA			Acroeze	8
Aircraft Manufacturer
1	EXTRA	GER				12
2	SUKHOI	RUS				10

All competitors results were exceptionally high and demonstrate the level required to participate in the Grand Prix, for solos and formation teams.
An enthusiastic public (first estimation around 45'000) warmly responded to the spectacular flights displayed in the exceptional arena of Motegi race track.

After this last leg of the Second Series (1999-2000), Jurgis Kairys (LIT) becomes the new Grand Prix World Champion title in the solo category with 46 points, ahead of Peter Besenyei (HUN) and Viktor Tchmal (RUS) who finish equal second with 36 points.
In the formation team category, Apache takes advantage of the absence of Sky Box to win the Grand Prix World Champion title.
Sukhoi reaffirms its success and wins the Grand Prix World Champion title for sports aircraft manufacturer. 

 

27 OCT – LAKE TAIHU & MOTEGI HONDA GRAND PRIX

The final two legs of the Grand Prix 2nd Series were successfully completed in 2000, one in P.R. China (Lake Taihu, Wuxian) and the other in Japan (Motegi).

Wuxian Grand Prix - October 3-6
Organising events in foreign countries is not always easy, especially when you are not familiar with local habits… The Grand Prix aircraft were scheduled to depart around 20 August so they would arrive Shanghai seaport on 27 September, ensuring ample time for customs clearance and reassembly before the first public flying day. Or at least, that's what we thought…

Of course, once you realise that customs closes at midnight 30 September for one week of national holidays, you regret that aircraft did not depart a little earlier and you just live on your nerves and race against time in last-minute operations.

A trip to Asia with 12 aircraft and 17 pilots is not a simple logistic operation, but curiously, everything worked very well in the end thanks to the efforts of Trans-Link, our freight forwarder, and a good co-operation by the Chinese authorities.

The competition took place over Lake Taihu, a famous tourist region close to Suzhou. Needless to say, aircraft flying over the lake with a flotilla of Chinese junks in the background was visually spectacular and a show in itself.

The Chinese people also appreciated the displays, with around 150,000 spectators attending the competition and over 120,000 coming for the final show which was, in addition, broadcast live during 2 hours by the National TV in mainland China (CCTV-1) and also abroad (CCTV-4)…
Just a billion potential viewers…

Results - Formation Teams
SKY BOX, second to none with their 4-ship formation flying inverted, were unfortunately disqualified as their solo pilot infringed the public deadline. A stupid mistake that cost them the final title because, as they were not participating in Japan they had no opportunity to make additional points.
 
The SUKHOI DUO, featuring Paul Bonhomme and Steve Jones, did exactly the same in their first loop face to the public misjudging a strong turning wind due to a storm passing nearby.
These two disqualifications gave the advantage to the French formation team APACHE who were performing for the first time with SU26 and they just loved it… Not the disqualification of their competitors, of course, but this aircraft in close formation.

Results - Solo Pilots
Jurgis KAIRYS took the lead, ahead of Peter BESENYEI and Viktor TCHMAL.
(link to event photos)

2000 Honda Aerobatics Grand Prix, Twin Ring Motegi, October 19 - 22

We were back again in Japan, on this fabulous Motegi racetrack where the spectators, pilots and organisers, feel part of the same family, sharing intense moments of extraordinary flying in a spectacular arena.

The public know that Twin Ring Motegi is a very special location, and each year the number of spectators grow (50,000 this year although our aircraft could not, for this time, use the pit area).  Very well organised as usual, with a fantastic demonstration of live broadcast on a giant screen with several inboard cameras in each aircraft, controlled from the ground. This Grand Prix is certainly setting up the technical standards for future aerobatic contests.

Results - Formation Teams
SUKHOI DUO were brilliant and won the gold ahead of APACHE who came with only two pilots and SPACE KNIGHTS who, with their 3 AcroEze, have a nice aircraft for a show but perhaps too limited for competition.

Results - Solo pilots
Peter BESENYEI made a demonstration that was nearly rated the perfect flight (91,2%) and won ahead of Jurgis KAIRYS and Viktor TCHMAL who were very close behind.

 

12 DEC – 2000 AWARD CEREMONY

The award ceremony for the 2000 Champions will be held at the Olympic Museum, Lausanne (Switzerland) on Saturday 27th January 2001 at 16:00.

Solo pilots:                    Jurgis Kairys (LIT)
Formation teams:           Apache (FRA)
Constructor:                  Sukhoi

 

31 DEC – SPORTING REGULATIONS ONLINE

The Sporting Regulations for 2001 are online for solo pilots and formation teams, propellers and jet engines...
Pilots, technicians, staff, sponsors, constructors, organisers and promoters, apply for a Grand Prix licence! It's a new condition to participate in the Grand Prix Series and the first step to achieve for competitors who would like to secure financial assistance.
Potential Organisers and Promoters please evaluate the technical requirements of the Agreement online and contact us for any further details.