Vicki Cruse

Vicki Cruse (December 13, 1967 – August 22, 2009) was an American aerobatic pilot and administrator. She won the U.S. national unlimited aerobatic title in 2007. She had been president of the International Aerobatic Club (IAC) since 2005 and was also an Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) director and board member.

Cruse was a native of Springfield, Missouri and was shortlisted as one the all women candidates of the Fossett LSR land speed record bid. At the time of her death she lived in Santa Paula, California.

Cruse died on August 22, 2009, when her light plane, a borrowed Zivko Edge 540, registration N540BW, crashed onto the famous Silverstone Race Circuit in Britain during a qualifying flight for the World Aerobatic Championships. According to witnesses, having completed a vertical climb, she had pushed the nose over at the top in order to descend vertically. She then performed a one and one-quarter snap roll. The objective was to stop rotation after the aircraft has rolled one and one-quarter times, but rotation in this case only slowed, continuing to the ground. She was pronounced dead at the scene.