MiG29 aerial ballet over Zhuhai Air Show

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 26-05-02 AT 01:35 AM (GMT)]
‘AERO-BALLET’ SENDS AIRSHOW INTEREST SKY HIGH.

By XIAO FU, China Daily staff.

24 May 2002
China Daily
English
(c) 2002 by China Daily

A Russian acrobatic team of five MIG-29s that has gained global renown for its thrilling “aero-ballet” is expected to rule the skies of Airshow China 2002. The performance by the team under the Russian Air Force will be staged during the fourth China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition between November 4 and 11 in Zhuhai, South China’s Guangdong Province. “Different from other acrobatic teams that fly sports aircraft or jet trainers specially designed for acrobatics, the team of the ‘swifts,’ established in 1990, flies real MIG-29s,” said Viktor Bichkov, a senior Russian air force officer. He said the MIG-29 is a world accredited interception fighter with air superiority and advanced aerodynamic configurations. The performance, which lasts 28 minutes, features difficult formations including the pyramid, hammer, Polaris, arrow and cross.

Sources with the organizing committee said a display of full-scale products, trade talks, technological exchanges and flight demonstrations will form part of the biennial Airshow China. The exhibition is co-organized by the Guangdong provincial government, the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defence and national aviation authorities and industry corporations. “To further expand the influence and scope of Airshow China 2002, we will extensively use the experiences of major international aviation exhibitions,” said Yu Binglin, deputy secretary-general of the organizing committee. More than 40 famous foreign companies, including Boeing and Airbus, will attend the exhibition.

(Copyright 2001 by China Daily).