Some of the best aerobatic pilots in the world are headed to Salina this week to compete in the U.S. National Aerobatic Championships.  The premier event for the International Aerobatic Club, the U.S. National Aerobatic Championships, returns to Salina October 2nd –   October 7th.

According to the International Aerobatic Club, during the championships pilots compete in five categories– Primary, Sportsman, Intermediate, Advanced, and Unlimited in both power and glider aerobatics. Pilots in each category fly at least three routines:

• Known: where all competitors fly a pre-published set of maneuvers.
• Unknown: the sequences of aerobatic figures are presented to the pilot 12 hours before.
• Free Program: pilots create their own routine based on maneuvers allowed in their category.

Some of the best aerobatic pilots in the nation will be flying their airplanes in loops, rolls, dives, stalls and turns. Each flight is thoroughly planned to ensure the highest levels of safety while testing the abilities of both pilot and airplane.

The flights are judged for precision and excellence. Top finishers in the advanced category will earn berths on the U.S. Advanced Aerobatic Team that will compete in the 2023 World Aerobatic Championships to be held in Las Vegas, Nevada on October and November of 2023.

A separate championship for the Four Minute Freestyle takes place on Friday, October 7. Only the top 10 competitors in the Unlimited and Advanced category are invited to fly in this event. Music and smoke are part of this event and the public can attend this and any other flights during the week as observers at no cost. Public viewing for the event will be near Fossett Plaza located off of Beechcraft Road.

Details for the championships can be found at: www.iac.org/nationals