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EAA and the International Aerobatic Club are mourning the tragic loss of IAC President Vicki Cruse, who perished in a plane crash while participating at the World Aerobatic Championships in England earlier today. She was 41.

Cruse was flying as a member of the USA Unlimited Aerobatic Team in the biennial world meet held at Silverstone, Buckingham, England. A local police spokeswoman said that authorities were notified early Saturday afternoon (U.K. time) that a single aircraft taking part in the competition had come down on the circuit.

Cruse was…

The World Aerobatic Championships are held every two years and bring together the best aerobatic pilots in the world. The Championships last 10 days as pilots battle it out for the top titles in air sports. Silverstone Circuit in Britain will host the 25th FAI World Aerobatic Championship. 

The newest directors were announced at the annual member meeting held at EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Returning as president is Vicki Cruse of Santa Paula, California. Vice president-elect is Doug Sowder of Spokane, Washington. The returning director is Tom Adams of Springfield, Tennessee. Doug Lovell of Fishkill, New York and Klein Gilhousen of Bozeman, Montana, are the newest directors to join the IAC board. The membership also passed both by-law changes allowing limited electronic voting by the board of directors and changes to the officer election process.

EAA and IAC are mourning the tragic loss of Chandy Clanton, aerobatic performer, who perished in a plane crash on Friday, July 10. She was 36.

Clanton, a member of EAA and IAC (Chapter 80) had been practicing about 75 miles southwest of Omaha, Nebraska, in preparation for a performance at the next day’s “Wing Nuts Flying Circus Fly-In” in Tarkio, Missouri. According to reports, her Edge 540 went down in a bean field. The FAA is investigating what caused the plane crash.

Clanton, who had two sons ages 7 and 10, became…

Is there somebody in your Chapter who is the "go to" person when something needs to be done?  Do you know a judge who is the first person you call and ask to serve as a Chief Judge before you make any other Contest plans?  When you make a mistake in one of your flights and hope you don't get caught, is there one judge who you KNOW would have caught it if he/she had been on the line?  Is there a person in your club who promotes our sport and mentors new members better than anyone else you've seen?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, then please read on...

Each year…

Recognizing the importance of aerobatic flight schools, IAC is making a concerted effort to offer its support to the nation’s aerobatic flight schools and flight instructors. Miriam Levin of Suffern, New York was recently named the IAC Aerobatic Fight Schools Manager. She has contacted each flight school currently listed on the IAC web site to update contact and service information. In addition, a resource page is available for flight schools and students, including teaching aids and instructional articles from previous issues of Sport Aerobatics. For more information click…

The national championship Aerobatic Team at Southern Illinois University-Carbondale has been on a temporary hiatus since early 2008 due to a lack of aircraft sponsorship for the last year. Since 2001, the team earned the national championship collegiate title six times. Coach Charley Rodriguez and team Captain Scott Marquardt have been trying to find a way to get the team its wings again. Southern Illinois Aerobatics, a not-for-profit corporation, has been formed to secure sponsorships from businesses and individuals in order to purchase an aerobatic aircraft. 

Team members not…

To avoid any confusion, or possible misinterpretation of the rules, regarding competition by Light Sport Aircraft (LSA) please note the following: A pilot holding a Sport Pilot certificate, or higher (e.g., Private, Commercial, etc.), does NOT require a FAA medical certificate IF they are flying a LSA. Those pilots may compete with only a U.S. driver’s license which complies with the restrictions set forth in the applicable sections of the FAR’s. If any question arises as to whether an aircraft (primarily T-craft and Cubs in IAC competition) is classified as a LSA, a complete list of LSA’s…

The 2009 IAC Official Contest Rule Book is now available for downloading from the Members Only section of the IAC Web Site in the "Contest Information" section. Once you have the Rule Book, use the time before those first contests fire up to flip through the pages and look for the change bars in the margin. These bars mark sections of the Rule Book which have received a substantive change from the 2008 edition. Advanced and Unlimited pilots take special note of the new figures in Appendix 3 which you might encounter in your Unknowns this…

After months of searching, IAC has hired Patricia (Trish) Deimer of Omro, Wisconsin to be the IAC Manager, taking the place of Lisa Popp in the Oshkosh office, who has been part-time with IAC since October. Trish will begin working for IAC on February 16th. She was formerly the National Association of Flight Instructors (NAFI) Program Manager. Trish is part owner of a clipped-wing cub and is working toward her Private Pilot Certificate. She will introduce herself in an upcoming issue of Sport Aerobatics and will be at Sun 'n Fun. IAC welcomes Trish to the club and we look forward to…