Participants
Civilian Acts
Gene Soucy – Mr. Airshow
Gene Soucy is one of the most well-respected and proficient airshow pilots in American aviation. He is a former member of the record-setting Eagles Aerobatic Flight Team, he has been a member of two World Champion U.S. Aerobatic Teams, and he has won more awards than any other active airshow pilot. Innovation and versatility are Gene Soucy’s style. It is no wonder as to why he has rightfully been nicknamed “Mr. Airshow.” At the age of twenty-two, Gene earned a position on the U.S. Aerobatic Team, making him the youngest competitor flying at the World Contest in England held that year. He finished strongly in his Pitts Special and placed 6th overall, which helped the U.S. Team to win its first World Championship. Since that very auspicious beginning, Gene has gone on to gather an impressive competition record. He became a three-time U.S. National Champion and a three-time Canadian National Champion, and he has been an active pilot in the unlimited category since 1969.
Whether Gene is performing in his Extra 300S, flying his wingwalking act with Teresa Stokes, performing a spectacular night aerial pyrotechnic display in the Showcat, flying jets, or setting records with his formation aerobatic flying, there is no doubt that he can do it all. And Gene Soucy definitely has done it all!
John Klatt
John’s inspiration for flying came from his father, Robert. Robert retired after a forty-year career with Republic/Northwest Airlines as an Aviation Mechanic. When John was a young boy, Robert took him to the convention in Oshkosh, Wisconsin (the Experimental Aircraft Association AirVenture annual convention). This implanted a spark for flying in John. His parents, Robert and Phyllis, consistently aided and encouraged John to pursue a career in aviation.
John graduated from the Academy of Holy Angels in Richfield, Minnesota. While in high school, he began his flight training at Dagnon Aviation in Lakeville, Minnesota. John had the ideal instructor and mentor in Paul Dagnon, a decorated Viet Nam Veteran. John earned his certifications as a Certified Flight Instructor-Instruments (CFII) and Multi-Engine Instructor (“MEI”) at Dagnon Aviation. John paid for his training by pumping gas and cleaning airplanes.
John graduated from the University of Minnesota-Duluth with a Bachelor of Arts in Communications. While a student there, John was accepted into the Minnesota Air National Guard. John attended Pilot training in 1990 and began flying C-130 cargo airplanes in 1992. He piloted C-130 missions into Bosnia, Africa, Egypt, Italy, Germany, South America, and many other locations. In 1996, John transferred to the Duluth Air National Guard and trained on the F-16 Fighting Falcon. John remains a current and qualified F-16 fighter Pilot with the Duluth Air National Guard. John has been on Active Duty since 2001. He has flown Combat Air Patrols over many United States cities, including Washington, D.C. in that time.
John also is a Pilot for United Airlines where he has been employed since 1997.
Aside from his beautiful wife Deborah, John’s true love is aerobatics. He has been flying in aerobatic competitions since 1995. He has experienced consistent and growing success. He has been the winner of several contests in the Unlimited Category. He finished in the top 10 in the nation at the United States Aerobatic contest held in Denison, Texas in 2001 and in 2003. John also has finished in the top three in the Mid-America series in 2001, 2002 and 2003. In the 2003 competition season, John earned the #1 ranking in the nation in the Unlimited Category.
John is proud to bring you some fast-paced, hard-core, high-energy aerobatics. He looks forward to meeting you at the Indianapolis Air Show.
Aldridge Airshows
Greg Aldridge began flying aerobatics in 1988 and is presently performing an exciting act in a Super Chipmunk which is a highly modified 1956 DeHavilland Chipmunk trainer. The Super Chipmunk conversion includes clipped and metallized wings, double the horsepower of the original engine, inceasing the rudder and elevator size for more control, adding inverted fuel and oil systems and making several airframe modifications to increase strength. The Super Chipmunk with its custom red, white and blue paint scheme along with lots of noise and smoke provides the ultimate in airshow excitement.
Greg Koontz
Greg Koontz learned to fly in 1969 getting his Private Pilot Certificate when he turned 17 years old. In his senior year in high school, Greg restored a 1946 Piper J-3 Cub in his mother’s garage and flew the antique plane for 300 hours to gain experience for a flying career. Before turning 18, he sold his Piper Cub, using the money to take lessons for his commercial pilot certificate and all the pilot ratings he would need to pursue the pilot profession.Well before that birthday, Greg was working as a flight instructor and attending Business College at the University of Montevallo in Alabama.
At age 20, Greg got his start in the airshow business when he bought another Piper Cub from Ernie Moser in St. Augustine, Florida. Soon Ernie was calling Greg wanting to borrow back the Cub to use it in his traveling airshow called Ernie Moser’s Flying Circus. Greg agreed to lend Ernie the use of the Cub if he could perform in the airshow doing a comedy act. Ernie agreed and after the first show Greg was hired to perform in all the shows the flying circus did. Greg soon was working full time for Ernie Moser and his son Jim Moser living in St. Augustine, FL. As the years went by he learned more aerobatics and other airshow skills. Ernie let Greg perform his famous “World’s Smallest Airport” stunt where he lands on a moving pickup truck. Jim Moser taught him to perform low level aerobatics in the Great Lakes Bi-Plane and later in the Super Decathlon. Greg stayed with the flying circus until deciding it was time to “get serious work” and persue a corporate flying career in 1981.
Until 2002 Greg flew jet aircraft for a corporation in Alabama and performed airshows in his spare time. Greg is known throughout the USA and parts of Latin America as the foremost authority on the Super Decathlon aircraft. Besides doing an inverted ribbon cut 15 feet above the ground in airshows, Greg specializes in teaching pilots how to fly aerobatics in his Super Decathlon.
Today Greg is a full time airshow and aerobatics professional. Greg and his wife Cora run a Bed & Breakfast on a private grass strip in Ashville, AL. The B&B is home for Greg’s busy aerobatic school and airshow business. Since 2003 he has been sponsored by American Champion Aircraft which supplies him with new Super Decathlons to demonstrate in front of millions of people each year.
You can find out more about Greg Koontz Airshows and how you might learn aerobatics at his B&B, the Sky Country Lodge, by checking out http://www.gkairshows.com/.
Greg Poe
Greg is a native of Boise, Idaho and has spent most of his life there. He started his flying career at an early age and earned his pilots license while still a teenager, flying out of the old Strawberry Glen airport along side the Boise River. His flight instructor, John Chambers, introduced him to aerobatics early on and it quickly turned into a passion that continues to this day.
Greg’s love of aerobatics led him to enter competitions around the country, which enhanced his skills and understanding of high performance aircraft and eventually led to his first airshow performance in 1992. Shortly after, he became a full time airshow pilot and a main stay on the circuit, performing at 15 to 25 airshow events each year.
Greg considers one of the highlights of his career to be the time he spent as the production test pilot for Aviat Aircraft in Afton, Wyoming. During that time he was responsible for test flying all the Pitts and Husky aircraft that rolled out the factory doors.
Greg has been chosen for several nationally televised airshow freestyle competitions, placing 2nd in the World Free Style Sport Flying Championships in 1999, and 3rd in the World Aerobatic Federation contest in 2000. Greg has been featured in such television programs as Modern Marvels, Ripley’s Believe it or Not, The Discovery Channel, CBS news, FOX sports, ESPN and others.
Greg’s life has taken a major turn recently following the drug related death of his son Ryan. He now visits schools and youth groups discussing the incredible opportunities aviation has afforded him and telling his son’s story as a reminder to young people about the importance of making the right choices and following their dreams.
Michael Wiskus – Lucas Oil
New to the Indianapolis Air Show — but not new to the airshow industry — Mike as been performing competition aerobatics and airshows for many years. The Pitts S-1-11B has been highly modified by Michael for crisp aerobatic performances to please the air show spectator.
Mike found his passion for aviation at the age of 10 after his Dad took him to his first Air Show. At 14, Mike took a job at the Mason City Iowa airport washing airplanes and cleaning hangars just to be around airplanes. Later, he traded his work for flying lessons and received his Pilots License on his 17th birthday.
Thirty years later, Mike has accumulated more than 20,000 hours of flight time managing aircraft and flying for Corporate America. 3,500 hours of that flight time has been piloting some of the highest performance air show and competition aircraft in the world.
Mike’s air show has been described as aggressive, high performance aerobatics smothered in smoke and noise. Mike can climb and tumble his plane end over end, seemingly out of control, only to dive in for his next outrageous maneuver. At a youthful and somewhat mischievous age of 47, Mike has the experience and personality fitting of an air show pilot.
Below are just a few of Mike’s aerobatic accomplishments:
2002 – First Place – North Central Regional Aerobatic Competitions
2002 – United States Aerobatic Champion (Intermediate Category)
2003 – First Place – North Central Regional Aerobatic Competitions
2003 – Qualified (one of six) for the United States Advanced Aerobatic Team.
2004 – Traveled to Sweden and competed in the World Aerobatic Competitions as a Member of the United States Aerobatic Team. Mike finished with a Silver Medal for one of his flights.
2005 – Winner of the Fred Leidig Trophy and Sword for Aerobatic Excellence.
Very happily married to Tammy, they have four children and two golden retrievers. Learn more about Michael Wiskus Airshows.
Rob Reider – Air Show Announcer
Rob is “The Voice” of the Indianapolis Air Show! Rob Reider has been an important fixture at the Indianapolis Air Show since its beginning in 1996 and is the person that has the very important and demanding task of keeping the air show attendee informed of who is flying and what the actual maneuvers are that are taking place in the air. Rob is currently one of the premier announcers in the country today and in 2007 will do 21 air shows and aviation events that will take him all over the country for ten months of the year.
Starting early in the morning, and working through the heat of the day until the gates have closed, Rob is always striving to keep the audience engaged and informed of all matters that pertain to the pilots in the air and the aircraft they are flying. However, the most important thing he will say at the 2007 Indianapolis Air Show, as he has every year in the past, is the following and is from the words of Marine Corps Chaplain Father Dennis O’Brien and applies not only to the Soldier, but the Airman, the Marine, the Sailor and the Coastguardsman:
“It is the soldier, not the poet who has given us freedom of speech.
It is the soldier, not the reporter who has given us freedom of the press.
It is the soldier, not the campus organizer who has given us the freedom to demonstrate,
And it is the soldier who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag, and whose coffin is draped by the flag, who gives the protester the right to burn the flag.”
Learn more about Rob Reider.
Rich’s Incredible Pyro
When Rich was eight years old, he asked his mother if there was anything in the medicine cabinet that could blow up. She told him, “Of course not!” Within 30 minutes, he proved she was wrong. This inquisitiveness has grown over the years, and Rich is still trying new and different ideas with explosives, marking Rich’s Incredible Pyro as the leader in air show pyrotechnics.
Rich Gibson and his wife, Dee, travel all over the world “blowing things up.” Both pyrotechnicians received formal training with explosives in the United States Army. Rich served a tour in Viet Nam, putting his skills to work with the 101st Airborne Division. Dee, a retired Major, helped blast rock in Honduras while building roads between small villages. Both state that safety is the main element in their setup. After 25 years, no spectator, crewmember, or volunteer has been hurt or injured. This could be a very dangerous business, but Rich and Dee continually eliminate as many risks as possible with their knowledge and training.
Using a carefully controlled mixture of dynamite, gasoline, and other explosives, Rich & Dee and their crew will create special effects to simulate an air attack on the airfield. They work closely with the pilots, airfield officials, and the announcer to choreograph a truly realistic bombing display, where you, the spectator, will surely “Feel the Heat.”
For more information, visit Rich’s Incredible Pyro.
