Red Bull Air Race

Paul Bonhomme won the championship in 2009 with a brilliant come-from-behind performance that made up for the disappointment of coming a close second in 2007 and 2008. The British ace with the French ancestors knows that as hard as it was to win that first elusive championship, it will be even more difficult to defend his title in 2010.

A quintessential Brit with impeccable manners, Bonhomme is an artist in the air with the most elegant flying style in the field. He is the most successful pilot in the Red Bull Air Race Championship with 11 career victories and 29 podiums. Bonhomme came up just short in thrilling championship battles in 2007 and 2008 before putting it all together to win the title in 2009, when he came from behind with 3 wins in the final 4 races.

Bonhomme was the epitome of consistency with 3 second place finishes in the 3 races he did not win last year. It was a truly impressive performance considering his Edge 540 did not have as much power as many of his rivals. Bonhomme and his team worked hard in the off-season on their Edge 540. He knows that the field will be filled with dangerous rivals - old and new - who have improved their planes and performance over the winter.

Bonhomme got married after winning the championship. He hails from a long line of aviators: his father was a pilot in the British Army Air Corps and later an airline captain. His brother is an airline captain. Bonhomme began cleaning planes as a boy at an Aero Club and earned his flying licence at 17. He turned to aerobatics and has flown in over 650 air shows since 1986.

THE TEAM

World champion Bonhomme says his success in 2009 was due to a combined team effort. Longstanding flying colleague Nigel Warren joined Bonhomme in 2008 and is responsible for ensuring things run smoothly behind the scenes. Bonhomme’s tech Wade Hammond, also a pilot, came on board in 2005. His visionary approach to modifications transformed the team’s Edge 540 into an almost unrecognisable machine for the 2009 season. His friendly nature and thirst for knowledge has led him to make some very useful connections in the aviation world so expect even more radical changes to the team’s race plane in 2010.