Pilots bored of flying starboard may be inspired to take a lesson from Harv’s Air’s chief flight instructor Luke Penner.
Pilot Steinbach was the top Canadian at the 15th World Advanced Aerobatic Championships in Las Vegas. He was also captain of Team Canada at his first worlds.
Canada came in fourth place behind France, Romania and the United States.
It was the first time Canadians had flown in front of these judges, seven out of eight of whom were from Europe, according to Benner. He said the different grading system may have affected the results, with what he described as “poor judgment” on his penalty for flying too low dropping him 10 points and leaving him 20th overall out of 49 flyers.
“I’ve been competing for eight years now and I’ve never had a low penalty ever,” he confirmed, adding that he’s learned a few things for future events.
There is also government-funded training in France and Romania, which have hosted the world championships before.
“Here in North America, it’s more like a free-for-all. Everyone tends to have their own private planes. It’s much more difficult to get training,” Benner explained.
“All the things we took into consideration we did as I expected.”
And while Penner was used to flying against his fellow Canadians, a sense of camaraderie came to the fore in Vegas.
“I’ve known these guys for a very long time, as long as I’ve been playing this sport,” Penner said.
“It was great last year that we had a team mentality, which in previous years I was trying to get over these guys and trying to beat them,” he explained. “It’s different because the information exchange is now much more so.”
The sport is largely collaborative, but joining Team Canada took it to a whole new level, according to Penner. He said a bond emerged between the teams.
These pilots from 17 other countries got to know them well in their tent.
“Team Canada seemed to be the place people wanted to spend time the most. We had a more fun, open, inclusive kind of tent. That was kind of the vibe we were trying to ignite there, just relaxed, friendly and welcoming,” Penner said.
Benner was able to enjoy the experience overall. He visited the new Sphere attraction and flew over stunning vistas, getting a unique perspective over the Grand Canyon and Monument Valley on his way to the competition.
Coming back was a bit of a different story. Needing to return to Steinbach’s day job as a trainer, Penner encountered some bad weather and left his prized aircraft in Thief River Falls, Minnesota. His wife drove to pick him up, but he planned to ride with his pilot brother to retrieve it.
Penner plans to take the next step onto the world stage, reaching the highest level of acrobatic competition: Unlimited. He said it would be the first Canadian team ever at this level.
