The high acrobatic maneuvers are performed in the repowered biplane Pits S-2S “Prometheus”
The renowned aerobatic pilot William Lewis “Skip” Stewart will be present at the International Air and Space Fair, FIDAE 2024, to be held from April 9 to 14 on the north side of the Arturo Merino Benitez Airport, in Santiago, Chile.
The 56-year-old U.S. native, who is also an airline pilot and flight instructor, has received important awards, becoming a world referent of high aerobatics. Currently, he carries out high intensity maneuvers which include very low altitude flies and sharp turns, which amaze the public in each of his presentations.
These aerobatics imply extreme positive and negative G maneuvers, pushing the capabilities of his biplane Pitss S-2S “Prometheus” biplane, specially fitted for these demonstrations, to the maximum. His first aircraft was a 1976 Pitts S-2A that he subsequently sold in 2000 to buy a 1979 Pitts S-2S. He spent several seasons modifying this aircraft into the Prometheus version. Then, in 2011, he bought a second airplane, another 1979 Pitts S-2S, and then he used a fuselage to build a second exhibition aircraft which he named Prometheus 2 or “P2” (the original Pitts is now known as “P1”).
The aircraft are conditioned for superior aerobatic performance. Both aircraft have custom wings, tails, cowlings, engines, propellers, landing gear, instrument panels, fuel tanks and even seat belts, with the horizontal stabilizers remaining as the only original components. The engines produce 394 HP (compared to the 256 HP for the original S-2S), and the aircraft can reach +12 y -7 G, more than double the G limit of the original variant.
Skip has proven to be one of the most entertaining airshow pilots in the world, and he performed for the first time in Chile at FIDAE 2018, so this will be the second opportunity for the public to appreciate this first-class show at FIDAE 2024, the exhibition with the longest trajectory and recognition in Latin America.
(Oscar Aránguiz, Communications and Marketing Management of FIDAE 2024)
