Aerobatic

This MedLibrary.org supplementary page on Aerobatic is provided directly from the open source Wikipedia as a service to our readers. Please see the note below on authorship of this content, as well as the Wikipedia usage guidelines. To search for other content from our encyclopedia supplement, please use the form below:

Related Sponsors

BM Pharmacy Generic pharmaceuticals at unbeatable prices. Insomnia, men's health, hair health, pain control. bmpharmacy.com
Online Pharmacy Carisoprodol, tadalafil, sildenafil, vardenafil and more... xlpharmacy.com
MedBasket.com Discreet. Inexpensive. Fast shipping. Great selection. What more can we say? medbasket.com
Frugalmed 2000 reasons to shop with us first. frugalmed.com
Ads by Tiva

The UK Utterly Butterly display team perform an aerobatic maneuvre with their Boeing Stearmans
Red Arrows Hawks in Concorde formation
Aerobatic glider DFS Habicht

Aerobatics is the demonstration of flying maneuvers for training, recreation or entertainment.

Many aerobatic maneuvers involve rotation of the aircraft about its longtitudinal axis (rolling) or the pitch axis (looping). Some complex maneuvers, such as a spin, also require that the aircraft be displaced around a vertical axis, known as yawing. Maneuvers are often combined which demands a higher level of skill from the pilot, but greatly increases the spectacle of an aerobatic flight sequence.

Aerobatics is also practiced as a sport. Some pilots fly solely for recreation, while a smaller number (several hundred world wide) choose to compete in aerobatic competitions. Competitions start at Primary, or Graduate level and proceed in complexity through Sportsman, Intermediate and Advanced, with Unlimited being the top competition level. Unlimited pilots perform much more complex figures and sustain higher g levels (+/-10g's).

Contents

Overview

In the early days of flying, some pilots used their aircraft as part of a flying circus to entertain. Maneuvers that had no practical purpose were flown for artistic reasons or to draw gasps from onlookers. In due course some of these maneuvers were found to allow aircraft to gain tactical advantage during aerial combat or dogfights between fighter aircraft.

Aerobatic aircraft usually fall into two categories—specialist aerobatic, and aerobatic capable. Specialist designs such as the Pitts Special, the Extra 200 and 300, and the Sukhoi Su-29 aim for ultimate aerobatic performance. This comes at the expense of general purpose use such as touring, or ease of non aerobatic handling such as landing. At a more basic level, aerobatic capable aircraft, such as the Cessna 152 Aerobat model, can be dual purpose—equipped to carrying passengers and luggage, easy to land, as well as being capable of basic aerobatic figures.

Flight formation aerobatics are flown by teams of up to sixteen aircraft, although most teams fly between four and ten aircraft. Some are state funded to reflect pride in the armed forces whilst others are commercially sponsored. Coloured smoke trails may be emitted to emphasise the patterns flown and/or the colours of a national flag. Usually each team will use aircraft similar to one another finished in a special and dramatic colour scheme, thus emphasising their entertainment function. Teams often fly V-formations—they will not fly directly behind another aircraft because of danger from wake vortices or engine exhaust. Aircraft will always fly slightly below the aircraft in front, if they have to follow in line.

Aerobatic maneuvers flown in a jet powered aircraft are limited in scope as they cannot take advantage of the gyroscopic forces that a propeller driven aircraft can exploit. Jet powered aircraft also tend to fly much faster which increases the size of the figures and the length of time which the pilot has to withstand increased g-forces. Jet aerobatic teams often fly in formations which further restricts the maneuvers that can be safely flown.

Training

Aerobatics are taught to military fighter pilots as a means of developing precise flying skills and for tactical use in combat. Aerobatics and formation flying is not limited solely to fixed wing aircraft, helicopters are also used—the British Army, Royal Navy, Spanish Air Force and the Indian Air Force, among others, have helicopter display teams. All aerobatic maneuvers demand training and practice to avoid accidents. Such accidents are rare but can result in fatalities; safety regulations are such that there has not been an airshow spectator fatality in the USA since the 1950s. Low-level aerobatics are extremely demanding and airshow pilots must demonstrate their ability before being allowed to gradually reduce the height at which they may fly their show.

There are many aerobatic training schools in the U.S. and other countries. A detailed list is available at http://www.iac.org/begin/schools.html

Patty Wagstaff show at JeffCo Airport

Performance

Aerobatics are most likely to be seen at a public airshows. Famous teams include:

Former teams

Stunt flyer flying low in a Curtiss Pusher plane, California, circa 1927
Martin B-57B-MA Serial 52-1560 of the 71st Light Bomber Squadron - 1957. This aircraft was also one of the "Black Knights" aerial acrobatic team. After its withdrawal from France in 1958, this aircraft was eventually assigned to the 8th Tactical Bomb Squadron at Phan Rang Air Base South Vietnam and flew combat bombing missions into the late 1960s.

See also

Sister project Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Aerobatics

External links

v • d • e
Modern Aerobatic Teams
Military

AAC Blue Eagles • CF Snowbirds • FAA Escuadrón Cruz del Sur • FACh Halcones • FAF Patrouille de France • IAF Frecce Tricolori • CroAF Wings of Storm • FAB Esquadrilha da Fumaça • IAF Sarang • IAF Surya Kiran • IN Sagar Pawan • IAC Silver Swallows • JASDF Blue Impulse • PAF Sherdils • PAF Team Iskry • PAF Orlik Aerobatic Team • PAF Scorpion aerobatic team • PoAF Asas de Portugal, Rotores de Portugal • PLAAF August 1st • RAAF Roulettes • RAF Red Arrows • RJ Royal Jordanian Falcons • RMAF Marche Verte • RN Black Cats • RNZAF Red Checkers • RSAF Black Knights • ROKAF Black Eagle team • SAAF Silver Falcons • SAF Patrulla Aguila • SAF Team 60 • SAF Patrouille Suisse • SAF PC-7 Team • TUAF Turkish Stars • UAF Ukrainian Falcons • USAF Thunderbirds • USN/USMC Blue Angels • VVS Russian Knights • VVS Strizhi
Civilian


v • d • e
Lists relating to aviation
General
Military
Accidents/incidents
Records

Wikipedia content modification information:

  • This page was last modified on 2 December 2008, at 14:49.

Wikipedia Authorship and Review

Wikipedia content provided here is not reviewed directly by MedLibrary.org. Wikipedia content is authored by an open community of volunteers and is not produced by or in any way affiliated with MedLibrary.org.

Wikipedia Usage Guidelines

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article on "Aerobatic".

The URL for this specific entry is:

All Wikipedia text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. (See Copyrights for details). Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.