The World Air Sports Federation is the world governing body for air sports, and also stewards definitions regarding human spaceflight. It was founded on 14 October 1905, and is headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland. It maintains world records for aeronautical activities, including ballooning, aeromodeling, and unmanned aerial vehicles (drones), as well as flights into space.
The SZD-56 Diana is a 15 metre Class glider originally designed by Bogumił Bereś at PZL-Bielsko. However, PZL Bielsko went bankrupt before it could be put into serial production.
The International Gliding Commission (IGC) is the international governing body for the sport of gliding. It is governed by meetings of delegates from national gliding associations.
The European Gliding Championships is a gliding competition held every two years.
George B. Moffat Jr. (1927–2024) was an American author, twice world champion glider pilot, and a member of the U.S. Soaring Hall of Fame. He began flying airplanes in 1953, gliders in 1959, entered his first national soaring competition in 1962, and was still an active competition pilot as of 2008. Before competing in sailplanes, he compiled a winning record in International 14 foot Dinghy racing.
Sergey Stanislavovich Rakhmanin is a Russian powered and glider aerobatic pilot and flight instructor.
Catherine Maunoury is a French aerobatic pilot.
Sebastian Kawa is a Polish glider pilot, eighteen-time World Champion, FAI world leading glider competition pilot, the World Champion in 15m Class and European gliding champion in 18m Class. In 2024, together with Sebastian Lampart, he became the first pilot in aviation history to fly over K2 in a glider. He is the recipient of the FAI Gold Air Medal, the highest distinction conferred by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale.
Jerzy Makula is a Polish pilot who won the FAI World Glider Aerobatic Championships seven times.
Hans-Werner Grosse was a German Luftwaffe bomber pilot and glider pilot who established 50 world records approved by FAI Gliding Commission.
Markus Feyerabend is a German glider aerobatic pilot.
Ingo Renner OAM was an Australian glider pilot. He won the World Gliding Championships four times.
Mikhail Mamistov, is a Russian powered and glider aerobatic pilot.
Olaf Schmidt is a German glider aerobatic pilot.
Edward Makula was a Polish glider pilot and engineer.
Sándor Katona is a Hungarian glider aerobatic pilot.
Stanisław Makula a Polish glider aerobatic pilot. He took part in several Polish Glider Aerobatic Championships and FAI European and World Championships. Together with his father Jerzy Makula and Krzystof Brzakalik he won the team silver medal in the 11th FAI World Glider Aerobatic Championships in Serpukhov in 2005.
The SZD-59 Acro is a single-seat glass composite glider for aerobatics and cross-country flying by PZL Allstar of Bielsko-Biała, Poland.
Gliding is a recreational activity and competitive air sport in which pilots fly unpowered aircraft known as gliders or sailplanes using naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmosphere to remain airborne. The word soaring is also used for the sport.
