Simon de la Bretèche

Simon de la Bretèche was a French-trained pilot, aeronautical engineer and international aerobatic competitor, born on 7 August 1982 and killed on 12 April 2022. He grew up in Ancinnes in the Sarthe, began flying at fourteen at the Aéroclub d'Alençon and learned competition aerobatics at the regional aeroclub of Caen under his instructor and mentor Patrick Gigot. After a master's degree in aeronautics in 2005 he worked in Toulouse for the Airbus subcontractor Sogeclair Aerospace. In May 2020 he joined Aura Aero to help develop the Integral R aerobatic aircraft, and he died with his colleague Baptiste Vignes when a prototype of that aircraft crashed during a test flight.