Loops and clouds! For novices and long-time fans alike, this is a comic book with a truly unique storyline that will take readers on a world tour of aerobatics teams.
Featuring a preface by Pierre-Alain Antoine, Director of the Patrouille de France from 1990 to 1992, this comic book opens with the story of a young man attending his first airshow… And a dream takes root: he will become a pilot! He goes by the name of Ludo, and after a lot of hard work and self-sacrifice, he manages to achieve his goal after taking training courses at the École de l’Air in Salon-de-Provence. He joins the French Air Force and becomes a pilot (Mirage, Rafale). Ten years go by… As a patrol leader, Ludo logs 2,000 flight hours. Then his dream becomes reality: he joins the Patrouille de France, the same team he once saw at the airshow.
Through his story, we discover the Alphajets of the Patrouille de France, the Patrouille Cartouche Doré (a cousin to the Patrouille de France that stopped performing in 2016), the Red Arrows (United Kingdom), and even the Thunderbirds and the Blue Angels (United States), to mention some of the most famous ones.
But the strength of this work is not limited to the big names. Therefore, it also invokes the Belaya Rus (Belarus), the Sherdils (Pakistan), the Aero Team (Israel), the Alap-Alap formation (Brunei Sultanate), the Baby Blue (Denmark), the RAAF Roulettes (Australia), the Silver Falcons (South Africa), the Blue Impulse Aerobatic Team (Japan) and many more! An anecdote and/or presentation accompanies each of them, featuring incredible images courtesy of 14 illustrators.
“Patrouilles aériennes acrobatiques – Intégrale” also presents the high-flying female pilots who left their mark on aerobatics. Among them: Pascale Alajouanine, Mélanie Astles, Aude Lemordant and Catherine Maunoury (France), or even Svetlana Kapanina (Russia). Not to mention the helicopter patrols!
For a comprehensive, entertaining and thorough look at a specialty where hard work and focus enable both young and old to discover—or rediscover—aviation and all the spectacular opportunities it has to offer. It may just inspire a calling – like that of the young Ludo!
Comic Book. “Patrouilles aériennes acrobatiques – Intégrale” Script, Franck Coste. Editions Idées Plus (Plein Vol collection). ISBN: 2374700054
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