A decorated aerobatic pilot regarded as an industry leader by colleagues died Thursday when his single-seat aircraft crash-landed at Joint Base Langley-Eustis in Virginia ahead of an air show this weekend, according to the military, potentially pausing the event.
Rob Holland, 50, was landing just before noon Thursday ahead of a scheduled performance at Air Power over Hampton Roads when he crashed, dying instantly, authorities said. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the cause. Holland, flying a custom-made MX Aircraft MXS, was the sole person aboard.
Col. Matthew R. Altman, the joint base commander, told reporters at a news conference Thursday that a decision on whether to go ahead with the air show will be made later today.
“I think I’m one of millions of people who saw this individual fly,” Altman said. “We do air shows to open the base and to bring people on, and to inspire future airmen to look up and imagine what can be, and this individual did it better than anybody. Everybody on this base, particularly those folks who wore flight suits to challenge the skies, will deeply, deeply miss him.”
The base describes the show online as a demonstration of the “evolution of air superiority” expected to draw more than 75,000 spectators. Holland was listed first among pilots the military said would perform “jaw-dropping, gravity-defying stunts … pushing the boundaries of modern aerobatics.”
Holland’s biography on his company’s website notes he has won 37 medals, 14 of them gold, in competitions — including 12 consecutive national aerobatic champion events — and performed for more than 4.7 million spectators over more than two decades. His schedule had him performing in 19 additional air shows across the country after Hampton Roads.
His company, Rob Holland Aerosports, confirmed the death on its Facebook page.
“Rob was one of the most respected and inspiring aerobatic pilots in aviation history,” his company posted. “Even with an absolutely impressive list of accomplishments, both in classical competition aerobatics and within the air show world, Rob was the most humble person with a singular goal to simply be better than he was yesterday.”
“The world lost an extraordinary pilot, an incredible person, and a true hero who inspired countless lives,” E3 Aviation Association, a group for pilots and aviation enthusiasts, said in a statement posted on its website.
According to Rob Holland Aerosports, Holland had accumulated more than 15,000 flight hours in 180 different types of aircraft. He grew up in New England and obtained his pilot’s license as a teenager. He is credited with creating many of daring aerobatic maneuvers demonstrated at air shows around the world.
“One of my goals is to take aerobatics to the next level,” Holland is quoted as saying in his company biography. “I want to push the limits of what can be done.”
