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The aeronautical pentathlon is an sporting event at some multi-sport events, such as the Military World Games. The sport was created in 1948 after the Second World War by Commander E. Petit from the French Air Force.

The competition consists of the following contest: a flying contest and six sports events: Shooting, Fencing, Swimming, Ball Contest, Obstacle run, and Orienteering. The sports are said to represent various aspects of military flying, such hand-eye coordination (shooting and basketball) and combat (fencing). The idea is to physically prepare air-force soldiers for evading enemy soldiers, and is considered as the ultimate fitness test for air-force personnel.

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Despite the name (Pentathlon means five events), the sport has six components:

• Shooting - consists of 20 shots fired in 40 seconds at a distance of 10m.
• Fencing - the event is usually carried out in such way that each competitor meets all other competitors.
• Swimming - held over a swimming distance of 100m, 50m without obstacles with a diving start and the other 50m passing under 3 obstacles with a diving start.
• Ball Contest - includes basketball dribbling and shooting
• Obstacle Run - an obstacle course of 300 to 400 m, with 10 to 12 obstacles. The obstacles are of the same type as Military Pentathlon obstacles, but may be placed in a hilly or irregular terrain and the obstacles may be placed in different order. Some of the obstacles include a rope ladder, tripwire, balance beam, water jumps, crawls under barbed wire and an assault wall.
• Orienteering - athletes go through checkpoints placed in a forest area in the shortest possible time using a map and a compass.

There is also a low-level flying contest included where the competitors serve as navigators, but it is not scored. Each aircraft is flown by a neurtral pilot, who executes the instructions of the competitor regarding navigation and timekeeping in the best possible way.

The composition of events for this sport have changed over time. Previous versions of the sport included flying events in military aircraft (e.g. precision navigation requiring the finish line to be crossed at an exact time).

The aeronautical pentathlon is one of the sports at the Military World Games (first on the program in 2010), and there is also the Military Aeronautical Pentathlon World Championships.

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Similar Sports

• Military Pentathlon — a competition involving a shooting phase, obstacle run, obstacle swimming, grenade throwing, and cross-country running.
• Naval Pentathlon — comprises an obstacle race, Life saving swimming race, Utility swimming race, Seamanship race, and an amphibious cross-country race.
• Modern Pentathlon — an Olympic sport that comprises five events: fencing, 200m freestyle swimming, show jumping, and a combined event of pistol shooting and 3200m cross country run.
• Obstacle Course Racing — an event requiring an athlete to run through a variety of different obstacles.
• Cross-country Running — distance running races over natural terrain.
• Surf Lifesaving — competitions consist of performing various tasks performed by lifeguards on the beach.

Related Pages

• About the sport of Modern Pentathlon at the Olympics
• Military Patrol was a sport at the Olympic Games
• List of Multi-Sport Sports — sports involving two or more sports
• About the World Military Games
• Complete list of sports
• The Encyclopedia of Sports