There is no surprise that Kirby Chambliss was named the recipient of the 2024 Bill Barber Award for Showmanship. The only surprise is that it took him so long to receive it.
Kirby, one of the top aerobatic pilots in the world, was crowned U.S. National Aerobatic Champion five times, and as a member of the U.S. National Aerobatic Team, he won 13 medals at multiple World Aerobatic Championships. He also was the Red Bull Air Race World Champion in 2004 and 2006, and flew in every Red Bull air race from 2003 to 2019.
Throughout his air racing and aerobatic competition careers, Kirby also has flown air shows across the nation in his Red Bull Edge 540. He performed at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh on Saturday, and again on Sunday as a member of the Red Bull Air Force.
Kirby said he was honored to receive the award, presented by World Airshow News and the friends and family of the late Bill Barber, particularly since the recipient is chosen by past award winners.
“It’s always a surprise to receive awards like this,” he said. “I had no idea I won until I got the phone call.”
Showmanship is key to the award. Kirby said the type of flying he does is very aggressive, even explosive. “If I can have people say they haven’t seen that before, I’ve done my job, and I always try to do my job.”
Besides flying aerobatics, Kirby flies races and competitions, and is a Southwest Airlines pilot. He said the three types of flying are just different. “But I’m pretty causal about everything. When I close my canopy, I always do the best I possibly can.”
Kirby said he prefers flying as a team with the Red Bull Air Force rather than as a solo act. “We’re very unique when we put all three disciplines together,” he said. “People really enjoy it,” he said, adding that his favorite move is a gyroscopic maneuver where he goes end on end.
Kirby acknowledged that his flying has changed somewhat over the years. “I find it easier because I’ve done it for so long,” he said. “The airplane is an extension of my arms, and I know it like the back of my hand.”
A private pilot at 17, Kirby became Southwest Airlines’ youngest captain by 28. But his interest in aviation began as a young boy as he helped rivet on his dad’s Davis DA-2 homebuilt in their garage. “I’ve always wanted to be a pilot,” he said. “There was nothing else I ever wanted to do. I just had to figure out how to do it.”
He certainly figured it out.
“When you’re trying to be the best in the world, the only thing you can do is practice more,” he said. “You don’t become a world champion without practice.”
Kirby received the Barber Award after Saturday’s air show.
