Competition Director’s Report — Saltby Open Aerobatic Championship

This was my first time writing a report as Competition Director, which is not a role I naturally gravitate towards. My natural home is very much inside the cockpit rather than standing on the ground trying to make the competition run smoothly. However, with no one else available and able to take on the role for this event, I agreed to stand in. As it happened, waking up on the first day with a worsening head cold that would have stopped me flying anyway made that decision rather easier.

Saltby usually provides good competition weather — eventually. We are used to the familiar pattern of rushing to get gliders ready, pilots briefed and the operation set up, only then to spend several hours waiting for cloudbase to lift. Not so this time. The forecast promised four days of excellent weather and, unusually, that is exactly what we got.

Friday started with the Sports pilots, both flying Buckminster Gliding Club’s Perkoz. Simon was first away and flew a nice, clean sequence to set the standard. Chris followed, but a small mistake — missing the chandelle at Figure 3 — meant that every figure after that was flown in the wrong direction. It was a classic first-competition error, but also a very valuable learning experience. Those are exactly the sort of mistakes that competition flying exposes, and they are often the lessons that stay with pilots the longest.

After lunch we moved on to the Advanced Known. By this point, club activity had increased, with several pilots accepting the challenge of going cross-country on a blue day. We alternated aerobatic flights with club launches, which slowed the pace slightly, but the atmosphere remained relaxed and cooperative throughout. It soon became clear that we were going to achieve an unusually early finish for day one. All the Advanced pilots got through cleanly and, once the scores were tallied, it was clear that the competition was very close. Day two was going to be the decider.

Saturday arrived exactly as forecast, with beautiful clear blue skies. After a thorough combined club and aerobatics briefing, we got underway. By this point my head cold had improved and, with the agreement of the pilots, judges and the Directors of British Aerobatics, my name appeared on the flying order. Having not flown the previous day, I first had a catch-up flight to complete, before we moved on to the Sports Unknown and then the Advanced Unknown.

Chris redeemed himself with a very clean Sports Unknown sequence, showing exactly the right response to the learning point from his first flight. In Advanced, the Unknown sequence proved more challenging. Both Laura and Neil were caught out by their tailslides, each scoring zeros, which unfortunately took them out of medal contention.

Overall, the standard of flying was excellent. For four of the six Advanced pilots, this was their first Advanced competition — something that would not have been obvious from the quality of the flying or the closeness of the scores. It was a very encouraging sign for the depth and future of Advanced glider aerobatics in the UK.

Congratulations to Simon for taking gold in Sports, and to Dan for taking gold in Advanced. Dan also takes home the beautiful Saltby Open plaque for the highest overall percentage score across both sequences. Very well deserved.

As always, these competitions do not just happen. They rely on a large group of dedicated volunteers working hard in the background, often well in advance of the event itself. A huge thank you to Buckminster Gliding Club for hosting us again and for providing such excellent facilities and catering. Special thanks must go to Keith, Rob and Dave for their support throughout the weekend with logistics and towing.

And, of course, our judges who are the keystone of any competition. Thank you to Graham Saw, Charles Baker, Andy and Sue Cunningham for giving up their time, expertise and energy to make the competition possible.

Lastly, Toby Jones, the Aerobatic Team manager for stepping up to the CD role on Saturday.

Looking ahead, the Saltby Nationals are now just around the corner. The recent licensing changes for glider pilots have, I suspect, made it more difficult for newcomers to enter the sport at Club level. Hopefully we will soon start to see more new pilots coming through, so they too can experience the challenge, learning and enjoyment of competition aerobatics for themselves.