Unique Type-Specific Aerobatic Meet Starts July 9th

Our good friends at the International Aerobatic Club tell us that an American team is preparing to participate in the 5th FAI World Yak-52 Aerobatic Championships in Tula, Russia for the first time.

IAC reports (via Facebook) that the historic military airfield Klokovo in Tula, Russia will host the 5th FAI World Yak-52 Aerobatic Championships on July 9-16, 2017. This year, pilots from 15 countries will participate in the international competition. Participants will compete in aircraft supplied by the sponsoring club -- Federation of Aerobatics Sports of Tula Region. The American team consists of three IAC members and pilots from Caifornia -- Marian Harris, Ross Ferguson, and Brian Branscomb.

Tula is located south of Moscow. The airfield was built in the 1930s and during World War II was the base where the famous Free French airmen squadron Normandie-Niemen were trained on the Yak-1 and fought with the Soviet forces until the end of the war in Europe.

“We are really excited to bring the first American team to this competition where the Normandie-Niemen trained during the Second World War," said Ross Ferguson, USA Team pilot. “I really hope our participation this year will encourage more American aerobatic pilots to compete in the next World Yak-52 competition in Belarus.”

During the competition there will be an exhibition of Soviet, American, and German armored vehicles as well as other vehicles from the World War II period. The 8-day competition will conclude with a dramatic airshow, a parachute demonstration, model aircraft demonstrations, and a concert organized by the Federation of the Aerobatics Sports of the Tula Region with the support of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation; the Administration of the Tula Region, and the Governor of the Tula Region; the committee of International and Non-Olympic Sports of Russia; and, the Federation of Aerobatics Sports of Russia.

“We are very proud to be able to represent the USA in this competition," said Marian Harris, Team pilot, “we would also like to thank the organizers of the event for coordinating the competition in this historic location and for helping us with the logistics involved in participating.”

As of this writing, IAC reports that the team is enroute to the airport for their long journey to Moscow.

FMI: www.iac.org