posted Sep 4th, 2023 - The 8-way Open Class teams German Outdoor Nationals completed all ten rounds, even though the Sunday was supposed to be only a weather day. However, the national championships were the qualification event for the next outdoor world meet at the same time, and the situation in 8-way Open was close enough after Round 7 to follow through with the three missing rounds.

Operation Adler were only two points ahead of Airbus Illertissen Oceanside after Round 7, and the outcome was still wide open. Operation Adler had the better start in the first two rounds and protected the 2-point lead carefully, even though Airbus reduced the difference to one single point in Round 5.

The highly experienced lineup of Operation Adler still did not blink after losing a round and re-created the 2-point lead in Round 7. Neither of the two German 8-way opponents had won a round by more than a point at that time, and three more rounds could still allow Airbus to win the meet.

It turned out very differently. Operation Adler continued their solid and reliable performance unchanged, while the young Airbus lineup started the chase of the 2-point difference with the biggest loss of the meet on Sunday morning. The 5-point difference in Round 8 alone sealed the competition outcome before it was over, and Operation Adler eventually won by eleven points.

German Outdoor Nationals 2023			1		2		3		4		5		6		7		8		9		10		Total	Avg
Rank	8-way Open		7,9,21		2,8,J		11,K,6		5,H,C,22		B,Q,O,1		14,15,3		A,4,10		16,13,D		F,20,19		N,E,17,G		Total	Avg
1	Qatar Falcons	QA	15		13	-1	19		18		21		19		20		21		16		12	-4	174	17.4
2	Operation Adler	DE	12		11		12	-2	13		14		13		16		14		13		14	-1	132	13.2
3	Airbus Illertissen Oceanside	DE	11		10		12	-1	13		15		13		15		9	-1	12		11	-1	121	12.1
4	Saar 8 SWDN	DE	7		4		9		7	-1	6		9		7	-1	7	-1	7	-1	8		71	7.1
5	LQ macht KO's	DE	4		2		2		4	-1	4		2	-1	5		4		3		2	-1	32	3.2
6	M8-Nix	DE	1	-2	2		2		3		2		3		4		4		3		3		27	2.7

The Qatar Falcons did not have much opposition and were actually on their way to the current lineup's highest 10-round meet average before Round 10. Four point deductions then allowed Operation Adler to even win a round over the strongest 8-way team in the world behind GKXP8.

It is an interesting 8-way situation in Germany after the national championships. Airbus have been the national 8-way team for many years and represented Germany since 2008 at the outdoor world championships that Germany attended in this category.

Team captain Thomas Spielvogel has been in the Airbus 8-way lineups since 2008 and won his own first FAI bronze medal at the FAI Outdoor World Championship 2022, together with his current team mates Carl Enders, Steffen Schiedek and team videographer Erik Lorenz . Now he lost the qualification event for the next outdoor world championship in Israel 2024 with the new Airbus lineup.

Most of his former Airbus 8-way team mates in earlier lineups (Markus Bastuck, Linda Köb, Thomas Mack, Göran Meyer, Alexander Prendinger, Christian Schaefer, Jörn Thiele) now won the 8-way competition and the 10-round qualification for the world championship next year.

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Operation Adler - Airbus Illertissen Oceanside at the German Outdoor Nationals 2023

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Markus Bastuck, Göran Meyer and Jörn Thiele competed together with Thomas Spielvogel in Maubeuge 2008, also Airbus 4-way member Thomas Mack in Dubai 2012. Göran Meyer, Jörn Thiele, Thomas Mack, Christian Schaefer, Steffen Schiedek and Thomas Spielvogel were in the Airbus lineup at Skydive Chicago 2016.

The Airbus 8-way team in Australia 2018 had current members Carl Enders, Steffen Schiedek and videographer Erik Lorenz in the lineup, together with Operation Adler members Linda Köb, Thomas Mack and Alex Prendinger. Germany did not send any teams to the FAI Tanay Mondial in 2021, and a new Airbus 8-way lineup won the first FAI bronze medals in Eloy 2022. This time, Thomas Spielvogel had joined forces with some 2008 team mates (Olaf Biedermann, Max Thiele, Göran Meyer, Erik Lorenz on camera) and current members Carl Enders and Steffen Schiedek, plus Stefan Knoch and Linda Köb of the 2018 lineup.

It's the first time for Thomas Spielvogel that he did not win and qualify for the next world championship with his 8-way team. However, his current lineup may still have to be ready to compete for Germany next year. The Operation Adler members in the two national 4-way teams (Linda Köb, Thomas Mack, Felix Pfeiffer, Alexander Prendinger, videographer Daniel Weiß) did not take on 4-way and 8-way double duties at the 23rd FAI World Cup of Formation Skydiving and won FAI medals in their main respective events. It is impossible to say at the moment who will compete for Germany in 8-way next year. Fact is only that Operation Adler won the national 8-way outdoor championship on Sunday.

FAI Outdoor World Meet 2022			1		2		3		4		5		6		7		8		9		10		Total	Avg
Rank	8-way Open		20,16,B		P,D,21,13		17,K,11		E,A,19,22		2,9,M		C,14,F,12		3,6,18		4,10,1		8,Q,O,H		5,7,J		Total	Avg
1	Paraclete XP8	US	25	-1	20		20	-1	18	-1	18		19	-1	23		26	-1	16	-2	20	-2	205	20.5
2	Qatar Falcons	QA	21	-1	14	-2	16	-1	17		16		15	-1	19	-1	20	-1	14	-1	12	-4	164	16.4
3	Airbus	DE	18		14		14		13		4	-1	12	-2	16		16		12		14		133	13.3
4	MicroClim8	UK	16		9	-2	12		10		11	-1	7	-3	15		16		11		12	-1	119	11.9
5	Mojo Annecy-Clermont	FR	15		10		11		10		11		10	-1	8	-5	13		9		10		107	10.7

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Airbus at the FAI Outdoor World Meet 2022 - Video Footage Courtesy of FAI/ISC and OmniSkore!HD

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