01
Selection & training
Examine qualifications, predictors, hard skills, human skills, currency, proficiency and the training structures required to develop high performers.
Excellence in Air Show Performers
EXCELLENCE FIRST.
SAFETY ALWAYS.
What can elite airshow performers teach us about selection, training, human performance, judgement and resilient safety in high-risk operations?
494 pages
CRC Press
Academic research + operational experience
ISBN 9781032824055
Why this book matters
Beyond spectacular flying.
The airshow environment is an unusually demanding laboratory for human performance. The book examines what distinguishes exceptional performers, how excellence is developed, and how safety can remain resilient when real-world conditions vary.
02
Human performance
Explore judgement, mindset, mentorship, preparation and the less visible capabilities that shape performance under pressure.
03
Resilient safety
Move beyond a narrow focus on preventing failure to examine how people and systems continue to perform successfully as conditions change.
Who should read it
One specialist environment. Wider operational lessons.
The subject is airshow performance, but the questions extend into aviation training, safety, leadership and other high-risk professional environments.
Performers & display professionals
Display pilots, team leaders, flying display directors, organisers and safety professionals.
Training & safety organisations
Instructor pilots, training commands, safety managers, human-factors practitioners and leadership programmes.
Researchers & educators
Aviation safety, human factors, aviation management, resilience and high-risk operations.
High-performance organisations
Executives and professionals interested in selection, expertise, preparation, adaptation and resilient performance.
Inside the book
A pathway from selection to excellence.
Part I
Pilot Selection — The Foundation of Excellence
Qualifications, criteria, predictors, demographics, risk factors and the wider challenge of selecting the right performer.
Part II
Training — Sharpening the Edge
Hard skills, human skills, currency, proficiency, mentorship, pre-show preparation and case studies in training.
Part III
Resilient Safety
A new view on airshow safety, research findings and case studies examining how resilient performance is created and sustained.
Part IV
Top-Notch Performers — The Pinnacle of Excellence
Examples of excellence in airshow performance and the broader implications of the research beyond airshows.
Start with the evidence
Read Chapter 1 free.
The open-access chapter examines qualifications, criteria and predictors for airshow performers, including the relationship between technical competence, human attributes, selection and operational success.
For universities and organisations
Use the book as a professional-development resource.
The strongest use case may not be a single reader. It may be a course, a display team, an instructor group, a safety department or a leadership cohort.
Course adoption & inspection copies
For lecturers teaching aviation safety, human factors, aviation management, resilience, training or high-risk operations.
- Evaluate the book for course adoption
- Map selected chapters to specific modules
- Use the open-access chapter as an entry point
Team & bulk orders
For aviation organisations, display teams, military units, training providers, safety departments and executive-development programmes.
- Team libraries and professional reading programmes
- Training cohorts and workshops
- Institutional and bulk-purchase discussions
Excellence First. Safety Always.
Go deeper into the systems behind exceptional performance.
Explore the complete framework across selection, training, human skills, mentorship, preparation, resilient safety and examples of excellence.
Speaking, academic and organisational enquiries
For workshops, course adoption, bulk purchases, interviews and professional collaboration, contact Manolis through LinkedIn.