LOOP News

9 AUG 06: BONHOMME EDGES IT

BRITISH pilot Paul Bonhomme blew apart the elite group in the Red Bull World Air Race Series with an emphatic second place in the Istanbul round on 29 July.

Flying a new Edge 540 - which has proved to be the winning aircraft for the past two seasons - Bonhomme beat both current champion Mike Mangold and Hungarian Peter Besenyei, and was less than 0.5 of second behind winner Kirby Chambliss.

The race was held in the spectacular Golden Horn estuary in Istanbul, Turkey with an estimated 1.5 million spectators lining the banks.

Paul's second place moves him up to equal 4th in the championship. American aerobatic champion Chambliss currently has the overall lead with a total of 22 points, followed closely by Besenyei and then Mangold.

The results of the Istanbul race were the narrowest in the history of the Red Bull Air Race. Mangold missed out on a top spot after hitting one of the air gate which shape the circuit, and incurring a 10 second penalty.
Chambliss was thrilled with his win, exclaiming, "I am a very lucky man today!" He added, "You have to be consistent. I go out there and always fly aggressively. To me second place is nothing but the first loser."

This was the fifth round of the nine race series. The next race takes place on the River Danube in Budapest, Hungary on 20 August and the British round will be held at Longleat on 2 September (see FlightPlans for a preview, page 61). The final race of the series will be in Perth, Western Australia on 19 November.

W: www.redbullairrace.com

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LOOP News

9 AUG 06: BONHOMME EDGES IT