As a longtime contributor to Flying, I have been blessed with the good fortune of attending many events, including airshows. Having spent a career mostly mastering the art of straight-and-level flight in the stratosphere, I have tremendous admiration for the aviators that perform physics-defying maneuvers at stepladder altitudes. I am awed by the skills involved.
That being said, it was refreshing to observe a new type of event that didn’t involve a smoke-infused outside loop or an eardrum-shattering fly-by. On Friday, December 4, 2020, at the Sun ‘n Fun Holiday Flying Festival and Car Show in Lakeland, Florida, I was introduced to the National STOL Competition. It is an event that only reaffirms what pilots already know: Takeoffs and landings are a spectator sport.
