The Cobra Maneuver T-Shirt

In aerobatics, Pugachev's Cobra (or Pugachev Cobra) is the dramatic and demanding manoeuvre in which a plane flying at a low speed suddenly raises the nose to the vertical position and slightly beyond, momentarily dropping it back to normal flight. It uses a potent engine thrust to maintain approximately constant altitude through the entire move.[1] The figure has several combat uses including spoofing doppler radar, and is also an impressive trick to demonstrate aircraft's pitch control authority, high angle of attack (AOA) stability and engine-versus-inlet compatibility, as well as pilot's skill. The manoeuvre is named after the Soviet test pilot Viktor Pugachev, who first performed the manoeuvre publicly in 1989 at the Paris Le Bourget air show.[2] Initially Cobra was performed by Sukhoi's test pilot Igor Volk while testing the new Sukhoi Su-27 fighte