Pilot Richard Goodwin on flying at Bournemouth Air Festival

Richard Goodwin never fails to impress the festival crowds with his unique aerobatic manoeuvres.

He flies a G-JPIT Muscle Bi-Plane which he spent four years building and perfecting.

In a sit down with the Daily Echo, the ex-RAF pilot revealed how modifications to the plane have transformed the way he displays.

• I did a loop-the-loop in a plane - it was breathtaking and I can't stop smiling

Richard said: “It’s got a lot of small, incremental modifications that enable it to do what is does.

“The biggest modification is the addition of the two ATM Lynx jet engines. It enables it to do the hovering manoeuvrers.

“It’s quite an innovative thing to have done and have achieved.

“You see me for ten mins at an air show but you don’t see the hours and hours of work that goes into it. 

“It takes months of work over the winter to produce that display, so hopefully people enjoy the ten minutes of performing they see.”

Richard enjoying a read of the Daily Echo (Image: NQ)

Richard does about 40 big displays a year and has done around 25 since the jet turbines have been attached.

He describes the G-JPIT as a “very exhilarating” plane to fly, and one that is “noisy” and has a “great presence”.

On how he prepares for a flight, Richard said: “You need to do aerobatics on a full stomach. The Bournemouth air festival packed lunches are ideal.

“They really look after us here. The events team is fantastic.”

Richard also praised the festival's location, labelling Bournemouth as the “ideal place” for display flying. 

He told the Daily Echo: “It’s an iconic, beautiful location. It’s just stunning.

“Where else do you get miles and miles of fantastic sandy beaches, and beautiful cliffs that produce a fantastic arena for an air show?”