Pilot
Charles Donovan Fairbanks constructed a homebuilt version of a prewar Knight Twister to enter into Biplane Air Racing in 1971. The former WWII B-24 tail-gunner — he won the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air Medal with three Oak Clusters and the Croix de Guerre — won his first race, then 86 more NARA-sanctioned air races in his “White Knight” over the next 18 years. Fairbanks raced all over the country, including two sanctioned events in Mexico. His record shows he won 10 finals, three Silver races, two Gold races and 10 heats. He set three World Records for qualifying. During that time, he was elected Biplane Class vice president of NARA. During the week, he was president of his Cardinal Air Training school. His last race was the 25th Anniversary of racing at Reno, NV, in 1988. His race #5 was retired afterward, the first to be done so in the Biplane Class. “We never missed a race with mechanical failure,” Fairbanks said of his reliable Knight Twister. “In 18 years of flying, nothing ever broke.”