"Krone" report
“Flying Bulls” can hardly wait
At Airpower on September 6 & 7, the pilots of the "Flying Bulls" will be showing off their skills alongside military squadrons. The "Krone" was the only medium to be present during the preparations.
Around 300,000 visitors are already in the starting blocks for Airpower24 in Zeltweg - and so are the Flying Bulls: "This year we're not showing one highlight - we're showing five highlights," laughs Simon Pircher, one of the coordinators behind this year's Flying Bulls program. He is currently in the middle of the air show season, with the planes of the legendary Red Bull fleet flying their program somewhere else practically every weekend. But Zeltweg? Zeltweg is a highlight even for the "Flying Bulls".
Huge effort for a few hours of flying
"We will be there with almost our entire fleet, including aircraft technicians and pilots, around 50 of us will be on duty over the weekend," explains Pircher during a local inspection of the "Krone" in Hangar 8 of the "Flying Bulls".
Tools, power units and towing vehicles are brought to Zeltweg in a 40-ton truck in the days leading up to the event. They get their fuel on site. Pircher himself has been organizing the major event for months, holding meetings with the army and looking for accommodation for the pilots. A huge effort for a handful of flying hours in front of an audience.
But the program of the "Flying Bulls" has it all:
- Part: Fast and loud
After the official opening of Airpower 24, the first aerobatic demonstration from the Red Bull House begins: four XA 42s, which are among the most maneuverable propeller aircraft in the world, show off their skills together with a Saab Gripen fighter jet from the Czech Air Force. - Part: Fast and slow
The next odd couple is: Dario Costa, world-famous for his 300 km/h "tunnel flight" in Turkey, will fly together with Luke Czepielas. Unlike Dario, Luke will be flying a Cub Crafter - an aircraft built for extremely slow flight speeds and short take-off distances. - Part: Fast and quiet
Towards lunchtime, it becomes quiet as the "silent block" of gliders begins: two Blanik aircraft will fly silently over the airbase and demonstrate how to divide altitude and speed in such a way that an impressive aerobatic program can be completed even without an engine. - Part 2: Now come the helicopters
The two fully aerobatic BO-105 helicopters, one of which is piloted by all-rounder Felix Baumgartner, will perform their spectacular 12-minute program together with the Bell Cobra, a demilitarized combat helicopter. - Part: Fast and colorful
Towards the end of the two days of aerobatics, the "Warbirds" formation of the "Flying Bulls" with a total of seven planes will mix it up for the "Grande Finale". "Warbirds" are old fighter planes from the Second World War era, such as the legendary P-38 Lightning or the F4U Corsair.
Impressions from the Airpower24 rehearsals:
Red Bull alone will have more than a dozen aircraft in the air over the two days, plus a number of military aerobatic teams and solo demonstrations from abroad.
The amount of maintenance required between flights is particularly high for older aircraft, explains Walter Möslinger, senior aircraft technician: "We invest around ten hours of maintenance in each aircraft between flights, including topping up the oil, checking the oxygen for the pilots and maintaining the smoke systems." His recommendation to the Airpower audience? "Don't miss the P-51 Mustang!"
For all those who can't be there: ServusTV will be showing Europe's biggest airshow live from Zeltweg on Saturday, Sept. 7.
ServusTV On will be broadcasting live online from 11.45 am. On television there will be two live feeds at 11.45 am and 3.45 pm - and the highlights from 6.10 pm.
The day before, on Friday, September 6, the afternoon magazine show "Servus um 2" will be all about the spectacular Airpower.
This article has been automatically translated,
read the original article here.
Kommentare
Willkommen in unserer Community! Eingehende Beiträge werden geprüft und anschließend veröffentlicht. Bitte achten Sie auf Einhaltung unserer Netiquette und AGB. Für ausführliche Diskussionen steht Ihnen ebenso das krone.at-Forum zur Verfügung. Hier können Sie das Community-Team via unserer Melde- und Abhilfestelle kontaktieren.
User-Beiträge geben nicht notwendigerweise die Meinung des Betreibers/der Redaktion bzw. von Krone Multimedia (KMM) wieder. In diesem Sinne distanziert sich die Redaktion/der Betreiber von den Inhalten in diesem Diskussionsforum. KMM behält sich insbesondere vor, gegen geltendes Recht verstoßende, den guten Sitten oder der Netiquette widersprechende bzw. dem Ansehen von KMM zuwiderlaufende Beiträge zu löschen, diesbezüglichen Schadenersatz gegenüber dem betreffenden User geltend zu machen, die Nutzer-Daten zu Zwecken der Rechtsverfolgung zu verwenden und strafrechtlich relevante Beiträge zur Anzeige zu bringen (siehe auch AGB). Hier können Sie das Community-Team via unserer Melde- und Abhilfestelle kontaktieren.