Captain Paulus Kärnä’s Hornet solo kicks off with a Dirty Roll

Introducing the Air Force F/A-18 Hornet display pilot 2025 Captain Paulus Kärnä from Lapland Air Wing.

Captain Paulus “Hassel” Kärnä serves as the Chief of the Fighter Squadron 11 Tactics Office at Lapland Air Wing. Apart from flight instruction and flying, his work entails various administrative duties. Call sign Hassel has flown the Hornet for 11 years, accumulating 970 flight hours. This year he will fly the Hornet as the Air Force main display pilot in addition to his normal duties.

The season’s stand-in display pilot is Captain Ville Tuomainen of Karelia Air Wing.

PAULUS KÄRNÄ

• Air Force main display pilot 2025
• Hails from Oulu
• Military rank: Captain
• Serves at Fighter Squadron 11, Lapland Air Wing
• Has been piloting the Hornet for 11 years, ca. 970 flight hours
• Call sign Hassel 

Becoming a fighter pilot was my dream job ever since I was a little boy.

Paulus, how did you become a fighter pilot? 

My road to this point was in fact pretty linear as becoming a fighter pilot was my dream job ever since I was a little boy. I completed my conscript service on the Pilot Reserve Officer Course that started in 2008. After the course, I continued to the Military Academy in Helsinki and from there to Hawk training in Kauhava and then to Lapland Air Wing in Rovaniemi where I took to the controls of the Hornet in 2014.

What do you think about working for the Air Force and Lapland Air Wing?

What means the most to me in my work at the Air Force is the fact that I get to play a part in sustaining and developing national security. In the light of the recent years’ events, this meaning has only become more evident. And Lapland Air Wing employs many fine individuals who share the same vision and are great to work with. 

I currently work as Chief of the Tactics Office of Fighter Squadron 11. My work consists of varied admin duties in addition to flight instruction and flying. I fly displays on top of my regular duties.

You must be able to make quick decisions and understand their consequences.

What type of person makes a good fighter pilot?

A few traits are important in enabling you to fly a fighter aircraft safely and effectively. You must be responsible and able to work under intense pressure as needed. You must be able to make quick decisions and understand their consequences. Each pilot must also have perseverance. Not even the top guns may always be at the top of their game but you still have to do your best on every single flight. 

Despite most aircraft being single-seaters, flying air combat is largely teamwork between four fighters, or a flight, and the fighter controller on the ground. You have to set the bar high for yourself if that’s what you expect of the rest of the team. Many traits and skills can be improved by training.

Last year you were the stand-in display pilot alongside Captain Petteri Kairinen - what were some of the display season’s memorable moments?

Kairinen is my course mate from the conscript year, so it was extremely easy for me to accompany him. Of course I remember best all last year’s air shows but the magnificent views around Zeltweg Airport where Airpower Austria was organised may also deserve a special mention. During the year, working with Petteri as well as Karelia Air Wing mechanics was an absolute pleasure.

How did you develop the current year’s display sequence?  

All last year I was brainstorming ideas for my display sequence. I had the chance to see a number of different sequences and learn from them.  I also watched many previous years’ Finnish Hornet sequences on video.

I decided pretty early on a few individual manoeuvres that I wanted to include in the sequence. After that I thought about combinations of the manoeuvres that would showcase the Hornet’s manoeuvrability with its maximum range and at the minimum distance from the crowd.

I did want to bring something not seen in a while or completely new to the sequence.

Please tell us more about the manoeuvres of the sequence. Will we see anything new or unusual?

I did want to bring something not seen in a while or completely new to the sequence. My first manoeuvre this year will be the Dirty Roll, meaning a barrel roll with the landing gear extended. The Hornet looks slightly comical with the landing gear down and the aircraft type’s name referring to hornets has been derived from this.

I don’t know if the Dirty Roll has been performed in Finland before but Canadians and the Swiss have included it in their Hornet solos.

What factors play into the success of a display sequence?

The weather always has a big role in display flying. I have prepared three sequences for different conditions. Cloudiness is the most significant factor. Usually, we know already before take-off which sequence will be possible to fly, though you can switch to another sequence mid-display if the need arises.

Flying across clear skies and still air is naturally easiest. 

The prevailing wind has an effect on the execution technique of the sequence. Strong winds can push the aircraft toward a wrong heading, making correction of manoeuvres’ alignment and small execution technique changes necessary. Flying across clear skies and still air is naturally easiest. 

If I was able to decide, I would rather have a strong wind blowing parallel to the display line and dark clouds as the backdrop of an air display. The spectators can see the aircraft better when the sun doesn’t shine in their eyes and flares look more impressive against a cloudy sky. Wind can also be used to assist in some manoeuvres for an additional boost to the sequence’s wow-factor.

How do you prepare for an air display?

My preparation for a display depends on the situation at hand. At my airfield in familiar surroundings, it’s often enough to check the weather and give the sequence a mental run-through before take-off with due consideration of observations from previous flights. I have no other regular routines that I would repeat before a flight. 
In big air shows, especially, there are many more things requiring advance preparation. All this aims to keep my focus fully on the performance when the flight begins. The sequence itself is intensive enough to make me forget any nervousness and other thoughts once the aircraft has taken off.

The Hornet’s simply a legendary aircraft, also for display flying.

What are your expectations for the flight display season starting soon?

The Hornet’s simply a legendary aircraft, also for display flying, on top of its other capabilities and it’s a big honour to get to show off its versatility to audiences. I’m very much looking forward to the air displays this summer. Air shows abroad are always a pleasure to attend but the main air show of the Finnish Aeronautical Association in Kauhava will likely be nostalgic for myself as I will go back to the scenes of my early career. Let’s hope we’ll see the largest crowds possible both there and the other events this season!

The Hornet solo will be seen for example in the following 2025 season events:

• 6 May - Careers in Military Aviation Day, Jyväskylä
• 14 May - Careers in Military Aviation Day, Pirkkala
• 14-15 Jun - Kauhava Air Show, the main air show of the Finnish Aeronautical Association
• 18-20 Jul - Royal International Air Tattoo, Great Britain
• 21 Aug - Careers in Military Aviation Day, Rovaniemi
• 30-31 Aug - Radom International Air Show 2025, Poland

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