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Kent
Pietsch
 Kent
Pietsch fell in love with flying when he was four years old.
Five decades later his passion has not waned.
Kent grew up in Minot, North
Dakota, where his father, Al, operated one of the first Mooney
Aircraft dealerships in the nation. His father also taught him
to fly, and Kent earned his pilot's certificate on his 16th
birthday in 1967. Since then he's maintained a perfect safety
record by not having a single incident.
You won't miss his plane during
the air show. It's the bright yellow Interstate Cadet with the
Jelly Belly candy paint scheme. It weighs 800 pounds, boasts a
37-foot wingspan, and its horizontally opposed four-cylinder
engine can generate 90 horsepower and a G-force ranging from -3
to +5.
Kent relies less on hard Gs than
on precision and grace to thrill the crowd when performing.
"When you're doing loops, it typically has to be about +3.0
G's," he said. "It's all about energy
management."
Kent belongs to the International
Council of Airshows (ICAS), EAA, and the Airplane Owners and
Pilots Association (AOPA). He also serves as an Aerobatic
Competency Evaluator, certifying the skills of other performers
hoping to break into the business. Additionally, he, his father
and his brother Warren (also an air show performer) have been
Honorary Snowbirds for the Royal Canadian Air Force since 1995,
offering assistance at Snowbird performances.
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THE PLANE