Aerobatic competition will return in June

Pilots get in a final practice for the world championships.

The Southeast Bear Creek Bash aerobatic competition is returning to Richard B. Russell Regional Airport in June. The event is free and open to the public June 7-9.

Mark Fuller, the event organizer said he believes this is the 10th time the competition has been held here.

“The event was moved to Rome from Tara Field in Hampton. That’s where the name Bear Creek comes from,” Fuller said. The event outgrew the capacity of that airport so Fuller said they made the decision to come to Rome.

Many of the top aerobatic pilots in the United States will be at the event, which is a tune-up for the World Aerobatic competition which will take place in Strejnic, Romania, in August.

Fuller expects about 30 flyers to be in Rome for most of the week including at least eight of the members of the U.S. Advanced World Aerobatic team that will compete in Romania. A.J. Wilder, the U.S. Advanced National Champion from California, will be here along with U.S. team captain Aaron McCartan.

McCartan, from Iowa, has compared aerobatics to air shows as like ballet to breakdancing. Pilots will compete in five different categories including primary, sportsmen, intermediate, advanced and unlimited. The judging in each category is similar to the way figure skaters are judged. The pilots file a trick plan and then are judged on how well they complete their planned performance. Each of the judges gives the pilot a score between 0 and 10.

“The average of those 10 becomes the score,” Fuller said.

Most of the aircraft are 10 years old or younger, though some styles go back as far as the 1960s. Once the event is over many of the aircraft will be broken down and prepared for shipping across the Atlantic Ocean to Europe.