Pilot Zhao Wei has realized his childhood dream of flying. Now he's setting his sights on the World Advanced Aerobatic Championships, He Na and Wu Yong write in Shenyang.

Against a clear blue sky, several jet fighters painted in bright colors roll, flip and twist above a multitude of spectators. They might dive sharply like hawks swooping for prey or pose mid-air, but in the next second they dash across the sky In the eyes of Zhao Wei, these breathtaking aerobatic maneuvers are still too easy. He can do better with a greater degree of difficulty. For normal aerobatic performance, the plane can only roll once or twice each time, but Zhao can make his aircraft roll a dozen times.

He can even pose with a vertical or leaning gesture in mid-air without moving.

What Zhao Wei performs is called Unlimited Aerobatics, which is the highest level for aerobatics, one of the world's most thrilling competitive sports.

Only about 100 people in the world are qualified for the sport, and Zhao is the only person who has grasped the skills in China.

As a professional aerobatic pilot, Zhao is also team leader of the Red Bull Aerobatic Team of China, China's first unlimited aerobatics team.

He is the only Chinese in the team. The other three team members are all from South Africa and rank in the Top 10 of world aerobatics.

"Zhao is very talented. He has strength and good reaction capacity, which are all suitable for aerobatics," says team member Scott Ternent.

Although only coming together as a team in April 2013, within a year they have participated in several world-class competitions and air shows, achieving very good results, and have gained a worldwide reputation.

Zhao often jokes that he's better-known out of China as the only oriental face on the world aerobatics stage and has attracted a lot of attention.

Though Zhao didn't obtain his pilot's license until the age of 35, his dream of being a pilot began as a child.

Zhao was born in a rural family. He loved model planes, but the family couldn't afford to buy them for him, so his father made one for him out of a corn stalk.

"I learned all my general aviation knowledge from reading aviation magazines and books. I am not a good student in academics, but I have read all the books I could get about aviation," Zhao, 39, says at Shenyang Faku General Aviation Base in Liaoning province, where his team is based.

After graduating from Shenyang University of Technology in 2000, Zhao entered into a Stated-owned electrical equipment enterprise. Several years' working experience helped him hone mechanical skills. He established his own enterprise in 2008 and began practicing parachuting and flying gliders in his spare time.

Zhao got his private pilot's license in 2011 and then went to Germany three times to learn aerobatics.

Through assiduous training and natural talent, Zhao made progress and passed the exam after only receiving 200 hours' training and became the first Chinese to fly an Unlimited aerobatic plane.

As a rising star in the aerobatics field, Zhao has a very busy schedule this year. Besides being invited to perform in several air shows, his focus is on preparing for the World Advanced Aerobatic Championships to be held in South Africa in November. Zhao got the qualification for competition through a qualifier match.

"This will be the first time a Chinese pilot participates in such a top-level competition. My dream is to be the world champion," Zhao says.

The nature of unlimited aerobatics is to explore the limits of the human body and the harmony between the pilot and plane.

As an aerial feat, aerobatics requires great skill and daring.

"The selection of pilots is almost as strict as selecting astronauts," Zhao says.

"Aerobatics not only requires a pilot with good physical qualities and good reaction capacity, but also it requires a broader set of piloting skills and exposes the aircraft to greater structural stress than normal flights."

Zhao owns four XA42 planes. These are top-level aerobatic planes that allow the pilot to fly at a much lower altitude and comparatively slow speed. The XA42's performance has a much stronger visual impact for spectators.

"The best plane also puts high demands on the pilot. Aerobatics is a dangerous sport that dances with death. In some countries, pilots must wear a parachute when performing aerobatics," Zhao says.

Though his wife has worried about his safety, she knows it's impossible to persuade him to give up. To fully support Zhao's career, his wife Jiang Lin also joined the pilot club and helps him deal with daily affairs.

"Even if I got the world champion, it's still a personal action and achievement. Honestly speaking, I felt a little lonely when competing with foreign players. My next plan is to select and train more Chinese aerobatic pilots," he says.

Liu Ce contributed to this story.

(China Daily USA 04/03/2014 page10)