New Zealand: "Red Checkers" to fly again this season

[Stratofreighter]

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/4510099 ... urn-to-air

Red Checkers team return to air

HANK SCHOUTEN - The Dominion Post

Last updated 05:00 04/01/2011

PHOTO: CLOSE FORMATION: The air force's Red Checkers aerobatic team in action. Air Commodore Steve Moore says the planes fly close to each other but the trick is to make the manoeuvres look spectacular without being dangerous.


The air force's Red Checkers aerobatic display team is back flying after two accidents grounded the formation.

Squadron Leader Nick Cree, 32, a flight commander at the training school at Ohakea air force base, died on January 14 2010 when his CT-4 Airtrainer crashed into a sand dune at Santoft, near Bulls.
He had been practising an aerobatic manoeuvre.

In March, the five-aircraft display team was grounded again when the canopy of one plane clipped the wheels of another as they were moving between formations.

Six airshow displays had to be cancelled.

Joint forces air component commander Air Commodore Steve Moore said offical reports had still to be received on the two subsequent courts of inquiry.

But relevant commanders had been given information to ensure that this year's aerobatics team learned the lessons from the accidents.

The manoeuvres being done at the time of the accidents would not be done this year.

One was the fish tail pass that Squadron Leader Cree was practising.

This involves a pilot flying slowly and level and pushing the plane rudder left and right to wag the tail.

The other, in which two planes touch each other, is a team carousel manoeuvre.

Air Commodore Moore said display team planes routinely flew within a few metres of each and the trick was to make the manoeuvres look spectacular without being dangerous.

Eight displays were scheduled for this summer, starting with the Wings over Wairarapa from January 21-23.

But it was still uncertain whether the team would be available.

It was a matter of safety and whether they had a display that was good enough, but "the indications I've had from the officer commanding is that that they are coming up to that".

Pilots had been doing individual training for the past two months and team had recently started flying together as a formation.