Manolis Karachalios is a civilian instructor pilot based in Greece. He was the Hellenic Air Force's F-16 Demo Team "ZEUS" Display Pilot for the 2010 to 2012 display seasons and in 2018 he took over as the Flying Display Director of the Athens Flying Week International Airshow (AFW). He joined the Hellenic Air Force Academy in 1996 and graduated with honors in 2000. He is a member of the European Airshow Council (EAC) and the International Air Show Safety Team (IASST), as well as the moderator of the annual fast jet solo display pilot safety workshop.

0. Front Matter. 0.5. Prologue: Introduction to Excellence in Air Show Performers. Part I. Pilot Selection - The Fountation of Excellence. 1. Qualifications, Predictors, and Criteria. 2. Demographics of Air Show Performers. 3. Demography, Risk Factors, and Resilient Safety: An Empirical Analysis. 4. The Odyssey of Pilot Selection. Part II. Training - Sharpening the Edge. 5. Hard Skills For Aerial Excellence. 6. Human Skills: The Cohesive Glue. 7. Maintaining Currency and Proficiency. 8. Mentorship. 9. Pre-Show Preparation. 10. Case Studies in Training: Framework for Resilient Excellence. Part III. Resilient Safety. 11. A New View on Air Show Safety. 12. Study Findings on Resilient Safety in Air Show Performers. 13. Case Studies on Resilient Safety in Air Show Performers. Part IV. Top-Notch Performers - The Pinnacle of Air Show Excellence. 14. Examples of Excellence in Air Show Performances. 15. Epilogue: Excellence Beyond Air Shows.