Blog

Hartzell is proud to make performance aviation technology available to pilots everywhere. We took that mission a step further at Sun n’ Fun by giving our followers on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest the opportunity to experience the pinnacle of precision aviation: a formation flight with Team AeroDynamix. To enter, our friends on social media tagged pictures of themselves preparing for Sun n’ Fun with #FlyWithHartzell. The results were excellent (you can check out the winning photos in the gallery below) but we also want to share a firsthand account of the experience. After all, it is not every day you get to fly in an eleven plane formation.

Ken Mist, one of our winners, is a talented aviation photographer. Ken did a beautiful job capturing his ride alongside the world’s largest formation flying team. His photo (left) says more about the experience than words ever could, but read on because the details are pretty amazing.

It was a foggy day in Lakeland, Florida when the winners arrived for their early morning flight. Were greeted by Mike “Kahuna” Stewart and the rest of Team AeroDynamix as they waited for the fog to lift and the morning’s first activity, hot air balloons, to come to an end.

“The whole Team AeroDynamix group were great, from Kahuna all the way down,” said Ken. “They made me feel extremely welcome.”

After an extended safety briefing, it was time to strap into the colorful fleet of RV-8s and take to the skies. Team AeroDynamix can’t take riders through their most ambitious aerobatic techniques, but, according to Ken, they were treated to the most aggressive flying possible without having to wear a parachute. By his best guess, the plane’s wingtips were only about six feet apart.

“It was one of the best times I have ever had,” said Ken. “They put us through some pretty awesome maneuvers.”

The entire Hartzell team is proud to facilitate moments like these, and even more proud to support Team AeroDynamix with our composite propellers. Check back for more opportunities like this in the future, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest to stay up to date with everything going on at Hartzell.