The Seward Municipal Airport hosted an aerobatics show on June 25 and 26. The competition featured many different pilots from across the country. The Seward airport has been holding these competitions ever since the runway was expanded.
John Morrissey, instructor for Great Plains Aerobatics, described aerobatics.
“There are many things to consider when it comes to aerobatics,” Morrissey said.
“There’s usually five judges at the events and they will grade you based on the routine you do and the way you present it. There are a lot of fine lines to the judging.”
Linda Morrissey, also an instructor for Great Plains Aerobatics and runner up at the aerobatics world championship, talked about a recent competition.
“We usually have the aerobatics competition in Seward the weekend before the Fourth of July,” Linda said. “There are normal competitions like these, and there are also national and world levels.”
Dick Fennell, a competitor out of Wyoming, said a lot of work goes into aerobatics.
“I practice twice a day and compete around three to four times a year,” Fennell said. “You can’t just come in and expect to get it down on the first go. It will take some practice. The sport is evolving though, not everyone wants to put in the time for it.”
When it comes to competition, there are a few things to know.
“There are three different stages when it comes to the competition phase,” Fennell said. “The first is compulsory, where each pilot has a certain pattern they have to follow when flying. The next is freestyle, where you go up and do any sort of maneuvers that you want. The final is unknown, where you aren’t given the flying pattern until 12 hours before the competition.”
Some might be wondering why anyone would want to do aerobatics.
“There are a lot of reasons why I do aerobatics. It’s a great sport,” Fennell said. “For one, the sport takes a lot of hard work. It’s not about buying your way to the top with fancy planes; it’s about putting in the time and the effort to be where you are. The sport gives back what you put in.”
“Another reason is that people from all walks of life can do it,” Fennell said. “It doesn’t matter whether you’re young or old, you can learn. Aerobatics is also a great way to make you a safer pilot. For example, one of the training sessions that we do is upset training. Upset training is where you train to get out or recover from bad situations. The skills you learn from aerobatics is great and it really teaches you how to treat a plane.”
After flying for many years, Fennell has advice.
“If you have something that you love to do, I’ve found that it’s a great distraction that will take things off of your mind,” Fennell said. “Flying has given me that distraction. After all, God gave me a gift, and I’m going to use it.”
