Game Composites GB1 GameBird Achieves FAA Certification

It is not often that a fully aerobatic airplane is certified. But just this week the team at Bentonville, Arkansas-based Game Composites saw their GB1 GameBird receive its certification. The FAA signed the Part 23 paperwork yesterday — about four months after the European Aviation Safety Agency gave its approval.

The GameBird was hatched in 2013, when aerobatic pilot and designer Philipp Steinbach and a small team started drawing the initial shape of the airplane. The design was created using CAD software in England, where all of the initial development was done.

Even with the international move to Bentonville last year, the small team was able to get the airplane certified in 4 years — a feat that takes most manufacturers at least a decade.

The GameBird is a versatile aerobatic airplane, with quick handling characteristics, capable of unlimited aerobatics at plus and minus 10 G with a roll rate of 400 degrees per second at 200 kias. However, with the ability to quickly shift its CG with a removable 25-pound weight in the tail section, the airplane can go from an unlimited aerobatic performer to a stable cross-country platform with an impressive 1,000 nm range. There is also a 30-pound baggage compartment for added versatility.