THE high-wing aeroplane slides through the air above Lethbridge airfield, west of Werribee.
Inside, the view of the light brown fields far below contrasts with the blue sky.
Slowly the wing begins to tilt to the right, until sky and ground have swapped places.
Then, just as slowly, the wings begin to tilt, and ground and sky resume their normal position.
Welcome to the world of Jeremy Miller, passionate aerobatic pilot and owner of Skythrills Aviation.
Much like a dancer glides gracefully from one move to the next, Miller co-ordinates his aerobatic routines as a ballet in the sky, with the plane seeming to float from one complicated manoeuvre to the next.
SEE: Gallery-Taking to the skies in our west
This isn’t the high-energy flying seen in airshow aerobatics, with the plane snapping one way and then the other at breathtaking speed, but rather a gentle symphony of harmony and extreme skill as pilot technique takes the place of brute power.
Now, the public will get to watch his skill in the sky after he was accepted as one of the acts at this year’s Australian International Airshow at Avalon. And he couldn’t be more excited.
“This is something I’m very passionate about,” Miller says. “It’s an opportunity to fly at a major airshow and hopefully inspire people to either take up flying, or if they are already pilots, to try aerobatics.”
The plane he’ll be performing in is an American-built Decathlon II, a training aircraft that is fully aerobatic.
“I want to show that a Decathlon is more than just a basic aerobatic trainer. It’s capable of highly graceful manoeuvres while its slow speed keeps it in front of the crowd all the time.”
Miller is a genuine child of the air, having had his first experience flying in a light plane, coincidently a Decathlon, when he was given an aerobatic joy-flight for his 14th birthday. He started lessons the next week.
Now 30, he has more than 6000 hours flying experience, 4000 of them as an instructor. His passion has always been about hands-on flying and passing on those skills.
“I was never tempted to get an airline job. I love working with people, watching them progress with their own flying dreams. It’s the best job in the world.”
The Australian International Airshow is at Avalon Airport this weekend, including Friday evening. Go to airshow.com.au
