IAC3 was proud to have not one but two members representing the USA at the 2023 WAAC in Nevada. Marty Flournoy has competed on a world stage previously but for Kyle Collins, this was is first and hopefully not last time. Kyle has written about the experience below:
I recently completed an incredible adventure: representing Team USA at the 2023 FAI World Advanced Aerobatic Championships (WAAC) in Jean, NV, just south of Las Vegas. While that was the culmination of the adventure, the experience can’t be described by that event alone. It was so much more. It started with training for and making the U.S. Team at the 2022 U.S. National Aerobatic Championships in Salina, Kansas, in September of 2022. After making the team with such a great and talented group of pilots, we trained together at a number of camps in Florida, Tennessee, and Nevada over the months leading up to the WAAC in late October 2023.
During this time, I continued learning how to fly at an advanced level on the world stage. I learned a lot and had such a great time on this journey with my now life-long friends: Our team Captain, Matthew Dunfee, and teammates Maro Bouw, Michael Ciliberti, Marty Flournoy, Don Hartman, Michael Lents, and while last alphabetically, she is certainly not least, the highest-scoring U.S. Team member at the WAAC, Brittanee Lincoln! The team flew well, and we secured 3rd place behind talented Romanian (2nd) and French (1st) pilots.
I’m going to remember our time in Nevada where there was no true horizon line in any direction, winds caused delays, and some of the best advanced pilots in the world kept searching for the perfect flight. That’s really why most of us do this…striving for perfection. But most of all, I’ll really remember the journey, the friends I’ve made along the way, and the experiences we shared: going after a common goal, being roommates, playing board games, competing together, long cross-country flights, racing cars, Top Golf, Escape Room, and oh…yeah, getting better at aerobatics.
I am so thankful to so many people who helped me get to this point. First off, my wife, Jen, and sons Riley and Noah are my biggest supporters. They sacrificed so much by my absences while training or maintaining my aircraft. They also know – more than anyone – that I have a passion for being in the air and a need to take on new challenges.
I’m thankful for our coach Jim Bourke. Jim gave me a lot of focused instruction that really helped my flying. He worked hard to make all of us better pilots. The team was able to concentrate on getting better at flying due in a very large part to the fact that we had the best team manager on the planet, Alice Johnson. Alice’s husband, Steve, became the DeFacto team videographer and helped me fix my airplane too. Most in this sport know that Steve is a very talented Advanced pilot as well, which was certainly value-added for the team.
I’m also very thankful for Craig Gifford. Craig lent his Staudacher to Michael Lents, which not only alleviated the stress and risk of sharing an airplane at the WAAC but also provided us both with a redundant solution should something happen to one of our birds. Craig is very generous and also orchestrated and delivered our WAAC 2023 coins.
I love the supportive friends I have in my home chapter, IAC3, and I’m always thankful for Chapter 3 member, Marty Flournoy, my 2023 WAAC teammate. Marty has been a mentor and coach to me since coming into the sport, and he and his wife Cindy treat me like family when I visit them. Hector and Laurie Ramirez, and Chapter 89 gave our team incredible support during the year. Ken Kopp and Chapter 23 were super supportive as well.
My teammate, Don Hartman, and his wife Monique from Chapter 138 have become my close friends this past year or so. They opened their home and treated me like family on many occasions while I trained with Don at their home on Willis Glider Park. Don’s coach and Unlimited World Competitor, Alan Bush, has provided me with a ton of information while critiquing my flights at Willis. He knows his stuff and is a wonderful human being.
And finally, I have to thank my employer, Embry-Riddle, and everyone on my team there. My team at the Eagle Flight Research Center were extremely supportive and helped me as I worked around a crazy schedule of training camps and competitions.
