Competition aerobatics

An aerobatic competition is sanctioned by a national aero club, its designee, or in the case of international competitions, by CIVA, the Commission Internationale de Voltige Aerienne, which is a constituent body of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI).

[1] The sanctioning body establishes the rules that apply to the competition, including entry qualifications for all participants, operating procedures, and judging criteria.

A pilot enters a competition in a category of his or her choice, which defines the level of difficulty of the aerobatic sequences to be flown.

Its height varies based on whether FAI, national aero club or local rules apply to the competition.

White ground markers at each corner of the box make it visible to the pilot from the air.

The competitor can extend or shorten maneuvers flown along the Y-Axis to obtain the desired positioning.

They are positioned between 150 and 250 metres (490 and 820 ft) back from the edge of the box, at the center of the X-Axis and facing that axis.

A grading judge assesses the quality of each figure flown according to well-defined criteria and assigns it a numerical mark in steps of 0.5 between 0 and 10.

At the conclusion of each flight, the grading judge assigns a Presentation or Positioning mark based on the competitor's placement of figures within the aerobatic box throughout the sequence.

Here is a précis of the principal "faults" that you should look for and the number of marks to deduct whilst you are applying standard CIVA rules of critique to sequence programmes at all levels.

Its Commission Internationale de Voltige Aerienne (CIVA) governs competition aerobatics.

A national aero club often delegates this responsibility to an affiliate organization focused on aerobatics.

In the UK, the Royal Aero Club designates the British Aerobatic Association (BAeA) to fill this role.