BALTIC BEES: ALESSANDRO SCORRANO INTERVIEW - JET NR.6

We met the Baltic Bees during the Bellaria Airshow 2018, Rimini. The event marked the team's first performance in Italy.

Alessandro Scorrano, Baltic Bees "Slot" pilot.

The Baltic Bees Jet Team was deployed at Rimini airport, Italy, in early June to attend the Bellaria Airshow 2018 and offer to Italian people the opportunity to fly in a jet. We met Alessandro in a hotel lounge, he told us about the team's past and future plans.

Which is the most diffucult part of your demo?

Our display is divided into two parts: the first one is more "soft" because we are six aircraft in formation, the second one that starts after "The waterfall" figure (similar to the "Bomba" of the Frecce Tricolori) is more dynamic.

About roles, the most difficult is the Leader's one: he has to keep a very precise position, because he is the leader of the formation and we all follow him. If he needs to correct the route, he must do so very slowly. The pilots are very concentrated in this phase. I am behind, so I can be relaxed, but not too much.

We were impressed by your performance yesterday, you were very synchronized. How do you orient yourself in an unknown area?

This question is for our leader! We just follow him. Usually we receive a briefing map before each airshow that we analize with Google Maps or Earth to establish our focus points. Here in Bellaria there is the river in the middle of the display line and there are buoys at the ends. The performances over the airports are easier because we have the runaway as reference and a more detailed surrounding.

During the rehersal flight you were high and far from the display line, was it planned?

No, honestly we didn't see nothing! Many people think that a display over the sea is easier and safer, but it is not. When the color of the sky is the same as the sea, it is not easy to maintain orientation. We fly without the use of systems, we only look at each other, we do not have a coordinator on the ground.

The weather in Riga is very different from the Italian one. Can it affect the performance of the aircraft?

Yes, temperature is so different and this influence a lot the power of the engine. Expecially the umidity and the density of the air. Hot and umid air: low power. Cold air (more dense) more power.

In Latvia we have a -20°C during the winter with a very low cloud sailing that do not allow continuous training, so we stop from November till March. During this period the planes enter into scheduled maintenance and we return in 6 jets around April, starting with 2 planes, then 3, then 4, until to have complete formation.

What do you think about the L-39? It is also adopted by other aerobatic team such as the Breitlign Jet Team...

The L-39 is very suitable for aerobatics due to its excellent wing profile. It is the most successful jet trainer in the world: over 3,500 units have been built in 50 years. It also requires simple maintenance.

AERO unveiled the new and advanced L-39NG. Will you switch?

That would be great, but it is too early to say. We will fly the L-39NG thanks to our sponsor AERO who invited us to test it. They will introduce the L-39NG in Q3 2018, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the first flight of the L-39. I think the L-39NG is too expensive for our team.

This year you have a busy schedule around Europe.

Yes, our program is busy, but it is not yet defined. Last year we achieved a record: 19 flight performances during air shows. We spent two months in China, this year we were in Senegal in March and we will go to Kazakhstan in July and Iran in November.

In China? Lots of stopovers!

Of course! Twelve for China!

This year marks your 10th anniversary: something special in program?

We are organizing an airshow (Aug 4-5) at our base in Jurmala (60 kms far from Riga). This is an ex Rusian military air base that our boss rebuild as private airport. We have a museum also!

Why the name "Baltic Bees"?

Ten years ago our boss (former Air Force L-39 pilot) thought about a private, family-friendly aerobatic team. No military, funny looking. The bees are the gentle animals after Russian swifts and American birds.

The blue color is also less aggressive than black, furthermore the Hungarian Air Force has already made a "special color" L-39 depicting a yellow-black bee.

During the years I noticed that we took the occidentalized way: we changed our equipment from russian to occidental one. The bees are just a brend now.

We saw your jets at the "Ample Strike" exercise two years ago, along with some Polish Su-22s. 

We have ten L-39 jets bees painted and three of them are leased to the Lituanian Air Force to train military controller. It is courious that a private company has ten jets and our defense has none (Baltic States are under NATO Air Policing).

Regarding our cooperation with military forces, last year we performed at MAKS in Moscow as well as in other military airshows. Usually the Armed Forces asked for our exibition. Most in Eastern Europe, where budgets are higher than events in the west.

Do you earn thanks to private flights? Have you ever received a proposal from a big sponsor?

Our team cannot mantain itself with the private flights only: we have 6 pilots and 12 technicians with a monthly salary, plus the fuel, insurance and maintenance costs that count about 1 milion euro per year!

Regarding the main sponsor, I don't know if we received proposals, but the tendency is to avoid it. For example, the Breitling Jet Team received a lot of money during first years, but then decreased... In this case the team is completely dependent on the sponsor. I think our company intends to lead the team independently. Why to change something that works well from ten years?!

And I have to tell you a news: we are working to perform with 7 aircraft during the airshow in Jurmala. 

An Italian Guy in Latvia...

I came here in 2011 after a refusal from the Italian Air Force. While most people were flying in America or Spain, I wanted to get my Private Pilot License (PPL) in an unknown place like Latvia. There I met the leader of Baltic Bees, who asked me to be their speaker during their performance in Sweden. It was a dream come true!

In 2016 the owner of Baltic Bees asked me to fly one of their private jets, in the same period the pilot #6 of the team retired and they asked me to try to fly that jet.

What? I didn't... I had no experience, especially in aerobatics! But I tried and in February 2017 I started my training with Breitling (with whom we cooperate). After only 2 months I flew with our solo pilot #5 (one of the best L-39 pilots in the world). I was ready and on May 20, 2017 we flew in 6-ship formation.

How became a Baltic Bees pilot?

Latvia has no air force, it is protected by the Allies. That is why we have to find pilots outside our country.

Our chief's proposal is to raise young pilots, because of the high training costs. It is not easy to tolerate -4G or +8G maneuvers for a 50-year-old.

The chief and I are the youngest, but the other pilots are in their 50s. Our solo pilot is 56 years old... and still offers great performances! He is amazing!

Are you looking for new pilots?

We have already selected the seventh pilot for the new Bee, but due to technical problems with the jet, we are now on stand-by. If we have the seventh jet available at our August airshow, the previous pilot of number 6 has offered to fly it.

How many "G" and max speed you reach during your demo?

The aircraft maximum speed is about 900km/h, but we reach "just" 750. The solo pilot fly the aircraft at the maximum level of charge, so +8G during the turns and -4G in the negative climb. When we fly in formation we reach 5G, maximum 5,5G (after 3 months of stop we suffer them!).

Fly a jet: a dream became true. What is the target of the people that want to fly? 

Well, we have done a survey about it. We realize that no much pilots want to fly, just normal people with a dream that starts and ends that day.

We offer the unique experience of flying up to 6 jets in formation and it is nice to see how people are surprised when they know that we fly without systems, just with the flight techniques we have learned.

People decide to fly with the Baltic Bees not only to fly in the L-39, but to experience formation flying.

Thank you very much Alessandro!

The Baltic Bees Jet Team is composed of Artyom "Maverick" Soloduha (Team Leader), Igor "Major" Yudkin (Left Wing), Anatoly "Maestro" Perekriostov (Right Wing), Aleksandr "Smoked" Zarins (Left Outside Wing), Valery "Godgather" Sobolev (Right Outside Wing and Solo) and Alessadro "Giovane" Scorrano (Slot).

VIDEO

Text and Images: Matteo Sanzani