January 2014 •Jason Flood •Five Sequential Steps •Nonflying Awards Aerobatic Journey It’s the planes that bring you here. It’s the people that bring you back. Reignite your passion. Oshkosh–you gotta be here! BUY NOW AND SAVE Visit AirVenture.org/tickets today The World’s Greatest Aviation Celebration Advance ticketing made possible by Copyright © 2014 EAA OFFICIAL MAGAZINE of the INTERNATIONAL AEROBATIC CLUB OFFICIAL MAGAZINE of the INTERNATIONAL AEROBATIC CLUB OFFICIAL MAGAZINE of the INTERNATIONAL AEROBATIC CLUB Vol. 43 No.1 January 2014 A PUBLICATION OF THE INTERNATIONAL AEROBATIC CLUB CONTENTSOFFICIAL MAGAZINE of the INTERNATIONAL AEROBATIC CLUB “I did the Wildwoods Acro Blast in Cape May and came in second. That was my first contest since the accident.” –Jason Flood FEATURES 6 Back in the Saddle by Reggie Paulk 18 The Five Sequential Steps to Competition Aerobatics by John Morrissey 20 An Aerobatic Journey by Mark Nowosielski 24 2012 Nonflying Awards by Lorrie Penner DEPARTMENTS 2 / Letter From the Editor 3 / President’s Page THE COVER 26 / Ask Allen Mark Nowosielski sweeps the late afternoon sun with his 28 / Yellow Pages propeller in this striking shot of his Edge 540. Photo Credit: 32 / FlyMart & Classifieds Mark St. Pierre. OFFICIAL MAGAZINE of the INTERNATIONAL AEROBATIC CLUB REGGIE PAULK COMMENTARY / EDITOR’S LOG OFFICIAL MAGAZINE of the INTERNATIONAL AEROBATIC CLUB PubliSher: Doug Sowder iAC MANAger: Trish Deimer-Steineke editor: Reggie Paulk OFFICIAL MAGAZINE of the INTERNATIONAL AEROBATIC CLUB EDITITOR iN ChieF: J. Mac McClellan SeNior ART direCTOR: Olivia P. Trabbold Looking ahead CoNtributiNg AuthorS: and trigonometry is not dead in aerobatics! John Morrissey Lorrie Penner Mark Nowosielski Allen Silver Reggie PaulkOFFICIAL MAGAZINE of the INTERNATIONALDoug Sowder AEROBATIC CLUB Happy New Year! We are Steps” this month. I think it’s a iAC CorrespoNdeNCe officially past the shortest day of wonderful guide, and it distills his International Aerobatic Club, P.O. Box 3086 the year, which means every day decades of aerobatic flying, coaching Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086 tel: 920.426.6574 • Fax: 920.426.6579 from now on is just that much and judging into a form that’s e-mail: [email protected] longer. As we continue our swing concise and to the point. I think it around the sun, I look forward would be worth tearing out of the AdVERTISiNg to putting the chill behind and magazine and keeping in a pocket or Sue Anderson [email protected] Larry Phillip [email protected] welcoming the warmth of spring. flight bag as an occasional reference Until then, though, we may to stay on track throughout MAiliNg: Change of address, lost or damaged content ourselves with thoughts aerobatic flight training. magazines, back issues. of flying in shirtsleeves . You’ll notice we have a eAA-iAC Membership Services contribution from the IAC’s tel: 800.843.3612 Fax: 920.426.6761 president and resident weather e-mail: [email protected] You’ll notice we balloon expert this month. I, the international Aerobatic Club is a division of the eAA. have a contribution for one, am glad to see his voice in the magazine after a long from the IAC’s absence. Doug had the thankless job of being the official wind EAA® and SPORT AVIATION®, the EAA Logo® and Aeronautica™ are president and resident recorder at the World Aerobatic registered trademarks and service marks of the Experimental Aircraft Championship in Texas this year. Association, Inc. The use of these trademarks and service marks without As you may know, the weather at the permission of the Experimental Aircraft Association, Inc. is strictly weather balloon prohibited. Copyright © 2014 by the International Aerobatic Club, Inc. the Worlds was less than ideal and All rights reserved. expert this month. gave Mr. Sowder a considerable The International Aerobatic Club, Inc. is a division of EAA and of the workout at his lonely station way NAA. We’re running an update on out at the north end of the field. Jason Flood. You may remember He gives a detailed description of A STATEMENT OF POLICY The International Aerobatic Club, Inc. cannot assume responsibility for the accuracy of the material Jason from the story of his near- the procedures and equipment presented by the authors of the articles in the magazine. The pages fatal airplane crash two years used in his column. Trigonometry of Sport Aerobatics are offered as a clearing house of information ago. I spoke with him in Oshkosh definitely is not dead in aerobatics! and a forum for the exchange of opinions and ideas. The individual reader must evaluate this material for himself and use it as he sees this year and have to admit that I I promised Joy McKinney I’d fit. Every effort is made to present materials of wide interest that will think he’s come a long way during send the following message: be of help to the majority. Likewise we cannot guarantee nor endorse his journey of recovery. To see the On behalf of WAC 2013, I would any product offered through our advertising. We invite constructive criticism and welcome any report of inferior merchandise obtained photos taken at the scene of the like to express my thanks to everyone through our advertising so that corrective measures can be taken. accident is to wonder at the fact who volunteered. It was my pleasure Sport Aerobatics (USPS 953-560) is owned by the International that he can walk—let alone fly. He to meet and work with all of you. Aerobatic Club, Inc., and is published monthly at EAA Aviation Center, Editorial Department, P.O. Box 3086, 3000 Poberezny Rd., Oshkosh, even won the Northeast Regional Joy McKinney, WI 54903-3086. Periodical Postage is paid at Oshkosh Post Office, Championship flying Intermediate Volunteer Coordinator, Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54901 and other post offices. Membership rate for this year. After witnessing his WAC 2013 IAC the International Aerobatic Club, Inc., is $45.00 per 12-month period of which $18.00 is for the subscription to Sport Aerobatics. Manuscripts dogged determination first-hand, submitted for publication become the property of the International I think the future holds good Aerobatic Club, Inc. Photographs will be returned upon request of things for Jason Flood. the author. High-resolution images are requested to assure the best quality reproduction. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Sport John Morrissey gives us his “Five Aerobatics, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. CPC 40612608 2 Sport Aerobatics January 2014 Please submit news, comments, articles, or suggestions to: [email protected] DOUG SOWDER COMMENTARY / PRESIDENT’S PAGE WAC Is Different Clarification of the variables Those of us who attended WAC 2013 at North ures afterward, Texas Regional Airport (KGYI) this past October, or using up those 10 followed WAC on the Internet and other social me- minutes. If a pilot dia, are aware that WAC does not operate in quite the takes an interrup- same way as either a typical IAC regional aerobatic tion during the contest or the U.S. Nationals. I think that many will sequence for any find the differences to be very interesting. reason, the clock World air sports are governed by rules set forth by is stopped until the pilot signals resumption of the the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale, or FAI, flight. The international jury and the board of judges based in Lausanne, Switzerland. The world champion- may disqualify from any further flight programs any ship contests with which most of us are most familiar pilot(s) judged not capable of safely flying the re- are the World Aerobatic Championships for Unlim- maining programs. ited power aircraft and the World Advanced Aero- Program 2 is the pilot’s own Free program. Only batic Championships for power aircraft. While IAC the two or three practice figures prescribed by the contests are run according to IAC rules, world cham- rules may be flown prior to beginning the program, pionships use FAI rules, also referred to CIVA rules; but the pilot has 15 minutes from ground launch to CIVA is the aerobatics commission of FAI. While IAC complete the Free. Following the Free, the interna- and FAI/CIVA rules are very similar, the differences tional (“contest”) jury will disqualify from participa- in procedures can be interesting, or confusing, de- tion in Programs 3, 4, and 5 any pilot(s) who score pending on your perspective. While IAC contestants less than 60 percent of possible in the Known and are individual pilots, pilots at a world champion- less than 60 percent of possible in the Free, calcu- ships compete as individuals and, for most, as part of lated separately. a team. Additionally, the organizers may also allow Program 3 is the first Free Unknown program. hors concours (“HC,” or non-competing) individual Teams and/or individual pilots create “Free Un- pilots to fly. These pilots’ flights are graded and their knowns” using 10 figures submitted by the teams, results tabulated, but their standings are not an offi- plus up to four connector figures. Submitted Free cial part of the contest. Unknowns are made available to all pilots, who Flight programs are much the same as you’ll see may choose the best one to fly. The same 15-minute in an IAC contest, but with some differences in pro- time frame used in the Free also applies to both cedures. The first flight, Program 1, is always the Free Unknowns. Known Compulsory, or just “Known,” program. It’s Program 4 is the second Free Unknown, prepared the same sequence that Unlimited and Advanced and flown in the same manner as the First Un- pilots fly in every IAC or international contest in a known.