Here I fly! Extra 330 Extreme Aerobatics

Extreme aerobatics… Soon, this year is over and looking back at Agenda 2014 from the late Autumn gym setting, the most demanding extreme venture was undoubtedly my aerobatic flight in Germany. Ten years ago, I still had my reservations against flying, as there are way more joyful ways of getting from A to B than that. But ever since Red Bull Air Race was on, I’ve been contemplating to go for some aerobatics – the weird way of getting from A to B.

The German brand Extra is one of the greatest names among aerobatic aircraft manufacturers and I had the opportunity to fly with the factory instructor, of which we took this video:

Right after the take-off, we made our way to the aerobatic airfield – an air cube above an abandoned mine. The take-off was already an experience in itself, but after all, I’d rather call it a ‘straightforward foreshadowing’.

The real show consisted of three major sessions. The first one included all major figures flown one-by-one. My instructor, Walter, told me in advance that he would ask me if I was fine after every move. During the mission, I did not really wait for the questions, but rather confirmed my health status by pro-actively shouting out loud things like “That was fuckin’ cool!”.

The second part was more silent from my side, indeed, I had to concentrate on breathing, with respect to the increased G load. This session was a competition grade aerobatic flight, without any pause, going straight from one figure to the other.

The third part would be called ultimate. And I could pass that, thanks to the fact that I tolerated the fun so well (e.g. I did not faint, etc.) It was Walter’s opportunity to demonstrate what the aircraft can do at its fullest capacity. The emphasis – in this latter case – is no longer on the classic controls but instead, the power of the engine is used to force the plane into the above recorded situations.

My conclusion at the time of landing “That was killer” is quite descriptive to the situation. During these fantastic moments, I had 6.5 G peak acceleration load, the personal “best”, so far.