Sean Tucker question

[RJP]

Patty and Sean are good friends....whats your point?

Patty was a Hell of a COMPETITION pilot and really not into the Airshow gig as hard as others, but I am sure she could FLY circles around your C-152!

My c-152? Uh....yeah.

She has the personality of a lawn chair. That's the point. :beer:

 

[Ill Mitch]

My c-152? Uh....yeah.

She has the personality of a lawn chair. That's the point. :beer:

She also likes to ground loop Super Cubs (the absolute easiest tailwheel airplane in the freakin world to land).

Her airshow routine is actually very good from a technical perspective, but boring from an airshow perspective.

 

[mzaharis]

Her airshow routine is actually very good from a technical perspective, but boring from an airshow perspective.

That's something I always wondered. How does the technical ability of a top Unlimited aerobatic competitor compare to someone like Sean Tucker? Tucker gave up IAC competition after he won the Advanced championship, IIRC, so I don't know if he ever did any Unlimited competition. Since the goals of an airshow performer (spectacular visuals) are different from a competitive aerobatics pilot (precise execution of complex maneuvers), I've always how the two compared in terms of technique.

 

[Ill Mitch]

That's something I always wondered. How does the technical ability of a top Unlimited aerobatic competitor compare to someone like Sean Tucker? Tucker gave up IAC competition after he won the Advanced championship, IIRC, so I don't know if he ever did any Unlimited competition. Since the goals of an airshow performer (spectacular visuals) are different from a competitive aerobatics pilot (precise execution of complex maneuvers), I've always how the two compared in terms of technique.

Technique is about the same. In both airshows and competition, you are flying in a box, doing some of the same maneuvers, can be flying low to the ground, etc... I must point out, aerobatic boxes at airshows can vary. I have seen some huge ones and I've seen some as narrow as 700' by 3000'.

The airshow circuit is all about showmanship. An example is Julie Clark. When she is flying the T-34, you have mediocre aerobatics in a mediocre airplane, but the general crowds love her.

A good announcer can do wonders for an act. And maybe sometimes not. I cringed when Sean first had his son announcing for him. The kid was like 10 or something. "And watch now as my super-amazing, bestes dad in the whole wide world performs the super amazing Lom...uh..Lllaa...*muffle muffle...how do you say this?...muffle muffle...watch as he tumbles the airplane end over end!!".

 

[Huggyu2]

Good point: announcing is key. The case in point was at Oshkosh about 2 years ago when Patty Wagstaff performed, and John and Martha King did the commentary. It was embarrassingly bad, thanks to the commentary.

 

[John2375]

Sorry I'm just chiming in now, but what happened to Sean? I didn't hear about this - anyone got a link?
THanks

 

[31aSK]

Sean Tucker

I am a corporate pilot. I met Sean Tucker in an FBO in Oakland. Just the nicest, most unassuming person, a super guy- and what a performer! I've seen him many times. I guess I expected him to be arrogant or cocky, man was I 180 degrees wrong on that one.

 

[Tram]

Alot of those guys are like that..

Sean D and Jim LeRoy are two of the nicest guys I've met..

 

[flydog]

Something that surprised me about Tucker - after his bailout this year, he was back in his highly modified Pitts pretty quickly. I would have thought it would take longer, even if he had hired someone to modify a Pitts. Did he have a spare modified Pitts, or was he able to modify one in a "crash" (pardon the pun) effort?

Its not a Pitts. Its a modified Christen Eagle I called Challenger

 

[Huggyu2]

The aircraft he crashed was a one-of-a-kind Challenger. Not a Pitts; not an Eagle. They are building a new aircraft.
The aircraft he completed the season with was an S-2C, I thought.