Steve Jones (born 5 January 1960) is a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

airline and aerobatics pilot who competed in the

Red Bull Air Race World Series The World Championship Air Race is a series of Air racing, air races sanctioned by the World Air Sports Federation (FAI). Originally established in 2003 as the Red Bull Air Race, and created by Red Bull GmbH, the event involves competitors na ...

, flying a

Zivko Edge 540 The Zivko Edge 540 manufactured by Zivko Aeronautics is a highly aerobatic aircraft. Capable of a 420 degree per second roll rate and a 3,700 foot per minute climb rate, it has been flown to victory on the international Unlimited aerobatics cir ...

. He is now the championship's head judge. Jones had his first flying lesson at just five years old, in 1965, in a

Cessna Cessna () is an American brand of general aviation aircraft owned by Textron Aviation since 2014, headquartered in Wichita, Kansas. Originally, it was a brand of the Cessna Aircraft Company, an American general aviation aircraft manufacturing c ...

, on the knee of a family friend. He became a pilot both commercially and competitively. Commercially, Jones was formerly a captain for

British Airways British Airways (BA) is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a populati ...

, flying a

Boeing 747 The Boeing 747 is a large, long-range wide-body airliner designed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in the United States between 1968 and 2022. After introducing the 707 in October 1958, Pan Am wanted a jet times its size, t ...

. He spends his off-season working on and racing vintage cars. His company is also rebuilding two vintage wooden racing aircraft. Since 1994, Jones has flown competitively and as a display pilot with

Paul Bonhomme Paul Bonhomme (born 22 September 1964) is a British aerobatics and commercial airliner pilot and owner/race pilot of Team Bonhomme, the Red Bull Air Race World Champion for 2015. Racing career Bonhomme was born into a family of aviators. His f ...

in their Red Bull Matadors Team. They have taken their show around the world from the UAE to Japan. Jones flies as the wingman. Jones was a competitive Red Bull Air Race pilot from the first UK race which took place in Kemble UK in 2004. In the Red Bull Air Race series of 2007, he won in

Porto, Portugal Porto or Oporto () is the second-largest city in Portugal, the capital of the Porto District, and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipality of Porto, is small compared to its metropol ...

, defeating

Mike Mangold Michael Eugene Mangold (October 10, 1955 – December 6, 2015) was an American Boeing 767 and 757 commercial pilot for American Airlines and an aerobatics pilot. Mangold competed in the Red Bull Air Race World Series from 2004 through 2009, where ...

. Jones retired from Airrace as a competitor at the end of the 2008 season. He spent the next two seasons as technical commentator for TV and Internet coverage. Red Bull Air Race took a 3-year break, returning in 2014. Jones came back as race director and head of training. Jones is not to be confused with Steve Jones,

glider pilot Glider may refer to: Aircraft and transport Aircraft * Glider (aircraft), heavier-than-air aircraft primarily intended for unpowered flight ** Glider (sailplane), a rigid-winged glider aircraft with an undercarriage, used in the sport of glidin ...

, who was winner of the 2001 and 2014

World Gliding Championships The World Gliding Championships (WGC) is a gliding competition held every two years or so by the FAI Gliding Commission. The dates are not always exactly two years apart, often because the contests are sometimes held in the summer in the Southern ...

1995 British Aerobatics Champion

* 1995 UK Freestyle Aerobatics Champion * FAI WGP Championships – three 1st place medals, one 2nd place medal * All FAI WGP results in the formation team category as the Sukhoi Duo/Matadors

Flying achievements

* 2000 FAI World Grand Prix, Gold Medal, Japan * 2001 FAI WGP, Silver, Japan * 2002 FAI WGP, Silver, Czech Republic; Gold, Japan * 2004 FAI WGP, Gold, U.A.E. * 2005 FAI WGP, Gold, Switzerland * 2005 FAI WGP, Bronze, U.A.E.; Gold, Switzerland Legend: * CAN: Cancelled * DNP: Did not participate * DNS: Did not show * DQ: Disqualified * NC: Not classified

External links

Red Bull Air Race World Series websiteSteve Jones websiteAerobatics maneuver and videos website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Steve 1960 births Living people British aviators British air racers Red Bull Air Race World Championship pilots Aerobatic pilots Commercial aviators

1995 British Aerobatics Champion

Flying achievements

See also

External links