Sunseeker Hawk 38 to challenge aerobatic plane at Bournemouth Air Festival

Sunseeker’s high-performance day boat, the Hawk 38, is set to challenge an unusual aerobatic plane as part of the Sea & Sky Sprint during this year’s Bournemouth Air Festival, which is taking place 1-4 September.

Bryan Jones, marketing manager at Sunseeker International, comments: “We are delighted to have helped put together this incredible demonstration which will see the Hawk 38 being driven at its limits across a 1km slalom course just in front of the beach, whilst the plane will be following both a horizontal and vertical route in an attempt to cross the finishing line first. Given the agility and performance of both machines, it’s going to be an exciting challenge.”  

G-JPIT is a Jet Pitts biplane and features a pair of Lynx Turbojets while the Sunseeker Hawk 38 delivers a claimed top speed of up to 70mph (62 knots) and features inflatable Hypalon 866 STAB tubes and a pair of Mercury 400R engines.

Jon Weaver, Air Festival director adds: “We are delighted that renowned aerobatics pilot Rich Goodwin has agreed to take on this exciting Sea & Sky Sprint challenge. He has had a regular presence at the Bournemouth Air Festival for a number of years performing mind-blowing aerobatic stunts in his muscle biplanes. 

“The Air Festival provides a great platform to showcase the prominent international status of local brands including Sunseeker International, based in Poole. We are looking forward to our partnership going from strength to strength and we cannot wait to see this spectacular demonstration play out on sea and in the air.” 

Retired RAF pilot Richard Goodwin, who will be flying the Sabio Group-sponsored Muscle Biplane, G-JPIT, will be pulling off some daredevil loop-the-loops and barrel rolls at between 200ft and 1,800ft as part of another individual display during the air show.

Goodwin says: “I am very excited by the challenge of doing something a little bit different at the Bournemouth Air Festival; an event which is a real highlight in the UK Air show calendar and one that I look forward to each year.

“We aim to push the boundaries of science, technology, engineering and mathematics to create a unique experience and I am passionate about inspiring our future STEM aviators and engineers.

“Taking on the incredible Sunseeker Hawk 38 at Bournemouth Air Festival is a great opportunity to push the boundaries of aerobatic flying once more. It’s shaping up to be a wonderful occasion.” 

The Sea & Sky Sprint will take place on Saturday 3 September and Sunday 4 September at the Bournemouth Air Festival.