Editor's note:
The 2017 World Fly-in Expo is set to take off in Central China's leading economic and technological development zone - the Wuhan Economic and Technological Development Zone (Hannan) in Hubei province on Nov 4.
With the theme “The vast sky we fly together”, the four-day world-class aviation event will draw more than 1,000 participants, including pilots, athletes, coaches and judges, from 37 countries and regions, as well as 300,000 spectators. Let’s explore some of their legendary stories.
Spain's legendary pilots
Ramon Alonso and Jorge Macias Alonso (uncle and nephew) will offer a 20-minute aerial aerobatics display at the World Fly-in Expo.
Jorge Alonso and his uncle Ramon Alonso check their aircraft in a hangar. [Photo/WeChat account of WHDZ]
Their origins can be traced all the way back to the Spanish aviation pioneers in Spain, some of the earliest in the world.
Ramon will operate a Sukhoi Su-31 and Jorge will fly a Laser Z-300 in their aerobatic flight.
Ramon said he has been European and world champion.
Sixty-year-old Ramon Alonso was born in a family where aviation was deeply ingrained. He has logged more than 25,000 hours in aircraft in the past 40 plus years and is considered a legendary figure in aerial aerobatics circles.
He started flying gliders at the age of 16 and worked in civil aviation for 33 years. He was once the captain of an A340 plane for Iberia Airlines of Spain.
He said his grandfather and father were pilots and he got interested in planes on his first flight.
“I know it will be my life-long career. Flying makes me happy,” he said, adding that “aerial acrobatics is like doing magic; it requires accuracy and perfection.”
His nephew, Jorge Alonso, who has more than 13,000 flight hours, is the 4th generation in a family of pilots -- his wife, mother and several aunts have all been flight stewards.
He has been attending the most influential air shows in both Spain and Portugal since 2003, and in 2005 was the first pilot to represent Spain at the European Aerobatic Championships.
