Pilot Terminal Blog

I am so excited to be able to attend this years RED BULL AIR RACE WORLD SERIES.  If you ever have the oppurtunity to attend - it is a MUST!

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HISTORY

The Red Bull Air Race World Series, established in 2003 and created by Red Bull, is an international series of air races in which competitors have to navigate a challenging obstacle course in the sky in the fastest possible time. Pilots fly individually against the clock and have to complete tight turns through a slalom course consisting of specially designed pylons, known as “air gates”.

The races are held mainly over water near cities, but also at airfields or natural wonders. They are accompanied by a supporting program of show flights. Races are usually flown on weekends with the first day for qualification then finals the day after. The events generally attract large crowds and are broadcast, both live and taped, in many nations.

At each venue, the top nine places earn World Series points. The air racer with the most points at the end of the series becomes Red Bull Air Race world champion. The 2005, 2006 and 2007 series were won respectively by the American pilots Mike Mangold, Kirby Chambliss and Mangold again.

Format

In earlier seasons, 2005 and 2006, pilots first ran two qualifying rounds to determine starting order, with the fastest time starting last. The race was then run over two rounds, and the combined time of both rounds determines the winner. Starting in 2007, a new knock-out format was introduced which was modified for 2008.

During the first day, pilots run two training rounds then two qualification rounds. The times of the last training session determine flight order for both qualifying rounds, slowest racing first. The best time from either qualifying run counts. Twelve pilots with the fastest times continue on to race the second day. The lowest four who made it through qualifying race for ninth place and one World Series point in the aptly named “Point One” round. The top eight, or “Super Eights” are seeded based on qualification times then race head-to-head. Winners from the Super Eight round race again in the semifinals while losers are ranked 5th through 8th based on their time. From the semifinals, the pilots either head to the final to determine the winner and runner-up, or to the consolation final to settle third and fourth places.

Based on the pilot’s place at each event, World Series points are awarded. First place receives nine points, second place receives eight, on through ninth who receives one. The pilot with the most points after the final event in the season is the Red Bull Air Race World Series Champion.

The rules are simple, pilots must pass through each of the air gates correctly while completing the required aerobatic manoeuvre. Three different gate types require a specific manner of crossing. Blue gates must be crossed in level flight, red gates must be crossed in “knife-edge” or vertical flight, and the slalom gates as their name implies.

Penalties are incurred for violations of the rules.

3 seconds penalty

• Incorrect passing of a gate
  • Too high
  • Incorrect level (horizontal) crossing or knife (vertical) angle
  • Incorrect knife direction
• Incorrect turning manoeuvre

A plane slices through a pylon, resulting in a penalty

10 seconds penalty

• Touching a gate

Disqualification

• Dangerous flying
  • Any form of dangerous flying
  • Flying too low
  • Crossing the crowd line
• Not flying the course
  • Course deviation
  • Not executing prescribed aerobatic manoeuvre

Aircraft

The competitors use high-end aerobatic planes such as the Zivko Edge 540X, the MXR Technologies MX2, and the Extra 300, all of which are equipped with Lycoming engines.

The series has begun to see competitors develop enhanced versions of their aircraft to better performance, and thus times. For example, Michael Goulian is flying a modified Extra which uses lighter composites and a more highly tuned Lycoming engine. However, the safety implications of engine or airframe failures mean that performance tuning by individual teams, as is commonly done in other motorsport events, is limited in scope in the series.

Red Bull Air Race ONLINE Game!

“The U.S. aviation industry has produced an admirable safety record in recent years,” NTSB Chairman Mark Rosenker said. “However, we must not become complacent. We must continue to take the lessons learned from our investigations and use them to create even safer skies for all aircraft operators and their passengers.”

The NTSB has just issued their latest numbers on the fatalities of General Aviation.  It is always good to see these numbers decline.  General aviation saw its accident fatalities plummet from 703 in 2006 to 491 in 2007. But during 23.8 million hours of private flights in 2007, the number of accidents rose to 1,631 from 1,518 in 2006.  There has been a marginal increase of accidents, but the fatality number has shown a sharp decline.  This is a testimony to some of the new safety standards that have been put in place.  Hopefully over the next few years there is a continual decline in aviation fatalities. 

With the increase of moving map GPS displays, terrain avoidance systems, more detailed approaches, and most importantly better education of pilots, the tragedies of aviation is going down. 

When we read these types of reports, I hope that we all will continue to further our education and to continue being the best pilots in the world.

Happy trails and Godspeed!

Book Description

I recently had the pleasure of reading the story of Alaskan Bush Pilot Don Sheldon.  This is a remarkable book on the beginnings of Alaskan flying.  Don Sheldon was truly one of the best back-country pilots ever to have lived.  Any man that can willing land on a glacier at an altitude of 12,000 feet in heavy winds has to be a remarkable pilot.  This is a must read for any pilot or wannabe pilot.  (see exerpt below)

Excerpt

The mountain, 60 miles northwest of where he stood on his dirt airstrip in Talkeetna, always gave him a clue to the approaching weather.  On this Christmas day of 1958, he could see from the cloud layers building up around the mountain that a storm was brewing.  More than any other man alive, Donald Edward Sheldon know Mount McKinley - its soul-inspiring beauty and its basic savagery.  He understand the lure of the mountain, called “Denali” by the Athabascan Indians, and respects the almost unparalleled mental and physical stamina needed to meet the challenge of this forbidding giant.  Sheldon’s love affair with this monolith of a forgotten Ice Age began with his first sight of North America’s tallest mountain, rising 20,320 feet above Alaska’s spruce-cloaked interior.  She has been his mistress ever since.

The brisk wind tugged at his clothes and banged the sliding hangar doors.  Snow blown off the roof swirled around.  Sheldon was glad…

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