Teams, Medals and Records

Air Supply owner Phil Curtis has participated in a range of skydiving teams and won various medals and accolades, including representing Britain at many World Championships.

Phil bags two gold medals at 2023 British Nationals

Phil's 2023 4-way AA class gold medal winning team at Skydive Hibaldstow

Phil bagged two national gold medals at two separate championships in the 2023 season. Competing at separate events in formation skydiving at SKydive Hibaldstow and Skyhigh Skydiving, Peterlee, Phil's teams fought off tough and close competition to emerge victorious in both the AA 4-way category and the Senior 8-way category.

Phil as part of 2023 British gold medal winning 'Aeolus' 8-way team, ready to board at the competition at Skyhigh Skydiving, Peterlee, September 2023

Check out Air Supply and friends on BBC News after having set a new British record! In July 2023, Phil Curtis of Air Supply was co-organiser on the new 41-way British total break sequential record - the team set two separate British records in a single day!

Microclim8 8-way team - 2010 and 2014

Phil as part of the British 8-way team Microclim8 at the World Championships in the Czech Republic, August 2014
Photo: Microclim8

Phil was a member of the British national 8-way formation skydiving team 'Microclim8', winning multiple gold medals in national competition. In August 2014, Phil represented Great Britain as a member of Microclim8 8-way at the Skydiving world championships in Protesjov, Czech Republic. The team achieved a 4th place finish, the highest ever finish by a British team in the 8-way sequential formation competition. Returning to the UK soon after this, Microclim8 took the gold medal at the British National Championships at Skydive Hibaldstow.

Phil as part of 8-way team Microclim8 winning Gold at the British Nationals, September 2014
Photo: Charlie Pearce

Microclimate: 2010 National 8way Champions, with Phil 2nd from left.

Sore Point 16-way team (2009 - Present)

Sore Point win gold at the Skydive Empuriabrava 16-way competition 2012 (Phil with the red t-shirt just left of centre.
Photo: Sarah Cannon

Sore Point, the all-British 16-way team, have dominated the Skydive Empuriabrava 16-way trophy since it's inception in 2009. Phil Curtis of Air Supply Skydiving has been an integral part of Sore Point every year - bringing home four gold medals in the process.

Sore Point have beaten off many challenges from around the world - including the USA and Europe - during this time. 2012 brought a renewed challenge from the French, in the form of a team assembled specifically to defeat Sore Point, optimistically named 'Seek and Dethrone'. This led to a close competition, but Sore Point held their nerve to take home yet another gold medal.

Connexion 8-way team (2007-2008)

Team Connexion at the world meet
Photo: Lucy Herrett

Connextion, after a short break, decided in 2007 to reform with a one year project. The team made four changes and brought in former Womens four way World Champion and World Cup winner Sacha Chilton; Mark Whitehead and Andy Scott - both National 8 way Champions previously with VNE and Army 9; and Phil Hartree from the Bodyflight Rage 4-Way team. The Team also changed camera flyer to Dave Butterell from British 4-way Team Fusion.

The Team decided on a 100 jump plan in the form of 4 weekends Training in Skydive Lillo and 3x 100+ jump camps in Perris Valley again under the eye of world renowned coach Dan BC. The Team goal was again to be representing the UK at the 2008 World Championships in France.

The team unfortunately were not able to complete all the planned camps in Perris due to injury and illness. However, with the help of alternates Liz and Ian Matthews and Martin Soulsby on many occasions standing in for training and competitions, the Team went on to win two further National Golds in 2007 and 2008, also representing the UK at the 2008 world Championships and finishing 5th.

Connexion 8-way team (2005-2006)

Team Connexion 2005-2006 Lineup

We decided to finish our NRG Team after the 2004 Nationals and try something different, so we moved onto 8 way with a serious set of targets.

We put together Team Connexion and included Ian (Milko) Hodgkinson, Phil Curtis, Andy (Ibbo) Ibbetson, Marcus Beck, Andy Pook, Derek Thomas, Rob Stevenson, Dave Ruffell and Gary (Swoop) Wainwright (video).

This team qualified at the 2005 British Nationals to represent Great Britain in the 2006 World Championships and then went on to win the 2006 British National Championships.

NRG 4-way Team

Phil Curtis,
Megan Curtis,
Ian (Milko) Hodgkinson,
Marcus Beck,
Andy (Ibbo) Ibbetson,
Gary (Swoop) Wainwright (Video)

NRG was formed at the end of 2003. the aim to have some fun and enjoy 4-way formation skydiving.

What we achieved was a surprise and gave a great sense of achievement to all. The team made just under 200 jumps just over a year. 100 jumps on training camp in Florida coached by 4-way world champion Gary Smith and a further 100 jumps in the UK coached by John McIver and Steve Hamilton (British national 4-way champions).

After assessing the progress made in Florida, the team decided to compete at the British National Championships (2004). The team went on to take the bronze medal.

The World Team

Brainchild of renowned US skydiver B.J. Worth, the world team brought together some of the World's best skydivers. Their aim was to build the largest formation of skydivers the world had ever seen. Phil had the pleasure of taking part in this team.

World Team '94

For ten days in the summer of 1994 the world team gathered in Bratislava, Slovakia. Jumping from high altitude using AN-6 and AN-12 aircraft provided by the Slovak military, they built the largest formation ever seen with 216 skydivers.

Phil Curtis takes part in the World Team '94 in Bratislava

World Team '96

The World Team came together again in September 1996 in Anapa, Russia. B.J. had envisaged a three hundred-way formation, -the logistics of which had previously been thought impossible.

Phil Curtis takes part in the World Team '96 record attempt, building a 297-way formation
Photo taken by Henny Wiggers

On 27 September 1996 with the beautiful Black Sea as a backdrop, the World Team skydivers left the four gigantic Russian MI-26 helicopters at 21,000ft. By the time the ground loomed close and the formation broke up, a new Guinness world record skydive formation of 297 people had been made. Although the 300-way formation did not build, the attempt had given skydiving more media coverage than ever before.

For more information on the World Team visit their web site at: http://www.theworldteam.com/

World record sequential skydives

In 2003 and 2004, renowned american organiser Guy Wright built back-to-back world sequential skydiving records in which Phil took part.

Phil takes part in the world record sequential skydives, 2004.
Photo taken by Tony Hathaway

Another Planet

Another Planet were the UK's premier 16-way formation skydiving team. Phil was a member of this team for 5 years. Since it was recognised by the IPC as an official event, the worldwide standard of 16-way has improved beyond all expectations.

With some of the UK's best formation skydivers on the team, it is no surprise that 'the planeteers' can 'cut the mustard' but our recent performance has surpassed all expectations. Already undefeated in the UK, Another Planet set out to take on the best in Europe.

1998 saw the planeteers putting in their best performances to date. At the European Cup in La Ferte Gaucher, France, Another Planet locked horns with twelve other teams from France, Germany, and Belgium for ten rounds of competition over three days from four aircraft. By round five, the competition was as hot as a heat wave in hell.

The German team, Fantastic 16 jumped first setting a new German record and equalling the World record set by the Australians earlier that year of 9 points in time. The planeteers had to come up with something special to stay in the running. We did.

Our previous best had been 8 points, a blistering performance gave us 13 points, 12 of which were in time. We had not only smahed our own personal best but also the World record in the process! Later on in the year we entered the World Cup. Against the best in the business we managed an awesome Bronze medal.