< PreviousKiwiFlyer Magazine Issue 76 20 contributed by Gavin Conroy Brett Emeny and I have discussed trying to coordinate a photo flight for the Yak-52 team over the past few years. It has always been difficult to do as the only time the nine aircraft and pilots are together is during an air show. It gets so busy at shows with practice and pilot briefs, plus we cannot head out for a photo flight during the show. Air shows are the worst time to try and conduct complicated photo flights such as this – until this year! At Wings Over Wairarapa 2021 I had a target list of things to do. The Yak-52 team flight was not one of them. It was not even on my mind. In fact by late afternoon on the Saturday of the show my jobs were done and I was looking forward to an easier day on Sunday, but it was not to be. I had been flat out for three days and by Saturday evening was tired enough to fall asleep waiting for photos to download – and missed a dinner outing. I woke up at 9.37pm as my phone went nuts. Covid was an issue again, alert levels were to be changed at midnight, and the show was over. So much time and effort had been put into the show; the Saturday had been brilliant. To lose Sunday left a rather empty feeling. On Sunday morning, grumpy, I started planning for the trip back home when I got a phone call from one of the Yak support crew, Jeremy Hughan. The idea had been thrown around that we should have a go at a photo flight with the whole team. The pilots wanted to fly. That changed my attitude. I was off to the airfield! Jay McIntyre had flown up to Masterton for the show and was still there. He could fly the Nanchang camera plane. That was one vital piece in the puzzle sorted. Jay and I have flown together so many times that I have lost count, and if ever there was an occasion where I needed to have someone experienced and familiar with doing photo flights, it was this one. In fact, we had conducted a demanding flight back in 2008 where we lead the RNZAF Red Checkers on a photo flight out of Woodbourne using the Nanchang. That was many years and lots of flights ago. Once everyone had arrived, we briefed the objectives and safety considerations for the flight. The team was keen on a good head-on type shot in the same formation they use for the opening nine ship loop. I was keen on that as well, but on the other hand I did want to try the extremely difficult ‘Echelon Stack’, as that formation would highlight just how good the team is. I had seen them enough at airshows to know that if there was a team of nine who could do it, it would be them. Nine aircraft flying in a normal echelon formation is hard enough; the issue with doing it for a photo taken from a low wing camera plane is that everyone is sort of stacked up on one another, looking down through the formation back to the leader and onto the camera plane while flying the best line they can. By the time you get out to number four or five in the formation the others further out have the more difficult job, as the view picture looks much steeper. It is a very hard formation to make work. If one person is out of position it looks bad. Sometimes big stack formations just don’t work out, but I was confident we could pull it off. Eventually we agreed to have a go at both formations and do the echelon formation before the slightly easier head-on 9-ship photos. The brief took about 30 minutes then we all went our separate ways and met up with engines running at the end of the runway Herding Yaks The Photographer’s Perspective Thousands of images are taken of display teams from the ground, but what about from the air ? That requires formating the display on a camera plane and has the potential for being quite a task when there are ten aircraft involved. With a team as polished as the Yak group are and with Gavin Conroy behind the camera in a plane piloted by Jay McIntyre, the stars were aligned for some outstanding images. Gavin Conroy describes the day: After the Sunday of the Wings Over Wairarapa Air Show had to be cancelled, what better than to spend the time chasing some perfect 9-ship photographs. Gavin Conroy imageNine Yaks and a Nanchang getting ready for an epic Echelon image. Every aircraft needs to position slightly above their neighbour to the right. Getting closer. Perfection. 21 2021 #5 Gavin Conroy image Pilot Life Insurance Specialists who will guide you through the process of Protecting Your Family and Business as well as Insuring Your Debts INSURANCE l MORTGAGES l LENDING l INVESTMENTS Are your family and assets protected? Contact Craig Spratt Spratt Financial Services Limited 021 935 788 or 09 306 7250 craig@spratt.co.nz www.spratt.co.nzKiwiFlyer Magazine Issue 76 22 Herding Yaks ready for take-off. I don’t get butterflies often, but this was one time when I did. It would be the largest echelon formation I had attempted to photograph and, as we sat at the back, looking up through the other nine as we took off one at a time, the pressure really came on. We climbed to 2500 feet, did a 180 degree turn towards Wellington and this was the time to make it happen. As interesting as it was looking back through the other nine there were plenty of nerves. That’s because there were a lot of pistons moving up and down, there was plenty of fuel being burnt and there were thousands of beads of sweat to be lost, so we had to get this right. Team leader Doug Batten started to bring everyone into formation on the left-hand side of us. Once I had signaled Doug into position you might think he would have the easiest job, but in fact he must maintain a perfect formation for the others to fly from. Once the formation was together, I spoke to Jay a bit as to where to position us; much easier to move us than the other nine. If I moved Doug at this point everyone else would move as well to get lined up again which causes a wave through the formation. This can take several minutes to correct and sometimes you never get it back. It is very demanding and tiring flying, so it is best to get the hard stuff done while everyone is fresh and has plenty of energy. When the Nanchang moved position, it was only vertically to fit everyone in the frame, aircraft sometimes hide behind one another, so we would call individual pilots that we needed to move. Most of the communication was to the back four. It is very difficult out there. Things were starting to come together nicely. We flew in a straight line for fifteen minutes to try and achieve the photo. The air was a bit unstable which made things even harder. We got to the point where I could see that we had done the best we could, so it was time to do another 180 back towards Masterton to photograph the next formation. For this part Doug led the team in their normal nine ship loop formation. We could then fly around the formation in the Nanchang to get the photos needed. Due to Jay’s superb flying we nailed it first time, but we flew around them for a while as we had 10-15 minutes to burn on the return leg. Following a debrief I headed back to my room to see if we had got the echelon shot. It was the only thing I had been thinking about the whole time. My thoughts had been that if we couldn’t get it in 15 minutes then we just couldn’t do it. While some of the photos looked good, there was only one with everything lined up just right. It’s not a matter of just holding the button down on the camera and hoping you get the photo. You have to wait for everyone to be pretty much lined up and then wait for that moment when hopefully, it happens in front of you. It was a great flight to be involved with. Everyone was smiling afterwards. Thanks again to all those people who made it happen. While I am at it, I would like to say thanks to the entire Yak team and those past members who have helped make the team what it is today. The Yak-52 display at air shows is something we all look forward to. The 9-ship loop does it for me every time. Brett often asks me to send images following a display, so they can look at how things went and work out ways to get better next time. This is a sign of a group aiming for the perfect display. We all love your work. The photo I refer to as ‘The One’ is dedicated to everyone on the team who made Wings Over Wairarapa possible. Thanks Team! Gavin Conroy F K 07 843 1200 or 021 743 033 1 Ingram Rd, Rukuhia, Hamilton paul@centralaero.nz Helicopter Maintenance Aeroplane Maintenance Maintenance Control Services Light Sport Aircraft Maintenance Amateur Built Aircraft Maintenance Microlight and Autogyro Maintenance Rotax Maintenance Balloon Inspections Airworthiness Reviews Avionics Checks Propeller Balancing Digital Vibration Analysis Advice and support for all things aviation For more information, visit centralaero.nz KEEPING YOU FLYING Real-time tracking, real-time decision making. Put your trust in a provider who helps thousands of aircraft owners and operators around the world, get their teams home safely every day. www.spidertracks.com“Why HP Aviation Hoses...? 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More recently, Oceania Aviation acquired Aeromotive. But we’re still here doing the work we’ve always done. We’re even still in our original WWII building. Back in the early days most of our work was in cylinder overhaul but new replacement parts are much cheaper and more available now so our primary work has migrated towards other component repair and precision engineering tasks. What about your own background Craig - there’s a lot of experience here? I joined Aero Chrome Plate NZ in 1984 and have been working within the Engineering and Plating workshop ever since. Before that, I was a timber treatment plant operator pretty much from when I finished school – back when there used to Located within Hamilton Airport, Oceania Aviation’s Engineering and Plating Division (formerly known as ECNZ) has been led by Craig Patterson for over 20 years. A range of very specialised services are carried out here, the combination of which can ‘bring back to life’ expensive or rare parts that might otherwise never fly again. As well as servicing maintenance providers nationwide, the facility also integrates well with Oceania’s other MRO divisions as an ‘in-house’ support function that saves time and costs for customers. KiwiFlyer recently chatted with Craig to find out a little more about their engineering and plating processes, and ECNZ’s long history of service to NZ aviation. be ‘situations vacant’ in the newspaper, I came across an advert for Aero Chrome Plate and went for it – and have never looked back. Steve Hunter, who has just been promoted to the divisional Production Lead, is an Aviation standard qualified welder and has been with the workshop for around 25 years. Between us, we have a pretty extensive knowledge of the processes we carry out here; if I’m calculating right there’s about 65 or so years of combined experience. Both Steve and I have qualifications in Aeronautical Engineering, which is fairly specialised to the engineering and plating processes that we regularly carry out. What are some of those processes then? We actually carry out quite an extensive range of engineering services: Crankcase repairs, Hard Chrome Plating, Tig Welding and Cadmium Plating to name a few, as well as general machining work but in an aviation context – such as precision alloy and steel welding for aircraft components. We often get called on as a general fix-it service when maintenance providers and engine overhaul shops encounter problems that they don’t have the expertise to fix. As part of Oceania Aviation, we do a lot of work for other divisions within the company too. Having an in-house machining, welding and plating service is a real benefit for Oceania customers in terms of both time and cost savings. Perhaps let’s run through some of those in turn. In the case of crankcases, I guess you’re talking about cracks or oversized main bearings? Yes cracks arise from damage or sometimes casting defects. Bearing shells can spin and thrust surfaces can wear. We carry out a variety of crankcase services from inspection and advice to repair or full overhaul. Having detected cracks, we can often grind, heat and specialist heli-arc weld a repair, check hardness, then machine to within as-new tolerances. It’s pretty impressive! Business Profile Craig Patterson, longstanding veteran of Oceania’s Engineering & Plating Division.Machining component tooling.WWII cylinder overhaul.25 2021 #5 Hard Chrome Plating can be used to restore oleos, shafts, and no doubt more. What does that involve? We can pretty much hard chrome plate anything that has approved tech data and repair schemes, of which we have a significant number. We often salvage worn or scored parts by grinding, plating, embrittlement relieving and then a final grind to size. Overhauling pistons in nose gear oleo struts is a common application. We have a lot of repair schemes available for different applications on different aircraft – and if one comes up that isn’t already available then we can usually arrange it. Tig Welding is a common enough skill, but one imagines there is a higher than average standard applied to aviation? Absolutely - Steve Hunter is a specialised ‘Aviation standard’ qualified welder. Welding aircraft components in accordance with tech data can save the customer money, by avoiding the need to replace the components – which are often either expensive or hard to source. But most importantly it is the turnaround time that is crucial in aviation. Usually, we are providing an urgent repair service after customers (often a maintenance facility as they do their inspections) have made an unfortunate discovery, so we work hard to provide a fast turnaround. Sometimes our team will be provided a component for welding and will have it back to the engineers within a few hours. So complete cylinder overhauls don’t generally happen anymore, although I understand that you still carry out select cylinder repairs? Yes, we’re actually the only workshop in NZ that can carry these types of repairs out. In fact, recently we brought eleven Pratt & Whitney 1340 cylinders from a World War II aircraft back to full service for a Warbirds customer of ours. This involved grinding the cylinder bores oversize, which had to be carried out using an internal grinding machine from the same era. I think you’re one of very few companies still offering a Cadmium Plating service? Yes, we’re the only workshop in the North Island (Airbus carry out this service in the south). It’s such an old process and is so aviation specific, that it’s challenging for any new providers to pop up, both in terms of approvals required, and the size of the market. Cad plating provides great protection from corrosion or rust, meaning your components will remain in a better condition for longer and hence save on repair costs in the long run. That leaves us with general engineering to talk about. We’re known as a go-to provider for anything where technical and complex machining and welding is required – not just within aviation. It’s a bit of a pride thing to know that when a maintenance engineer encounters a problem in NZ, usually the best option is to “send it to the Oceania guys in Hamilton and see if they can fix it”. There’s a lot of satisfaction in recovering/ restoring a previously unserviceable component and thus saving (often a lot of) money for our customers. Thanks for the chat, Craig. Hopefully the present Auckland/Waikato lockdowns will be over soon and work can return to normal. We haven’t been too badly affected but we’re largely a secondary form of provider to others, so it follows that if their work slows down then ours does as well. There has been less flying happening with the current restrictions but at the moment but we’re still operating at full capacity, so really that means we can offer an even faster service than usual! Contact Craig Patterson on 07 843 0426, email: craig.patterson@oal.co.nz or visit oceania-aviation.com EuroFOX www.DtiAircraftSales.com NZ Agents for AeroPro EuroFOX. LSA or Microlight category. Tricycle or tail wheel undercarriage. Glider tow version. Rotax 912 ULS engine. Wings can be folded. Outstanding quality and reliability. Priced from €60,000 ex-factory plus options CAA Part 145 Approved Parts Supply Installation & Repair Ardmore based Fully mobile Representing Advanced Flight Appareo Avidyne David Clark Dynon Kannad PS Engineering Trig Aeroshell (reseller) 23 Victa Lane, Ardmore Airfield 09 299 9289 info@icea.co www .icea.co AVIONICSKiwiFlyer Magazine Issue 76 26 When Neroli Henwood was new to flight training, she says there seemed to be a bit of a divide, “those who flew taildraggers and those who didn’t.” That’s probably still a fair call today. Fortunately for those who are intrigued by the potential fun involved, and willing to get bitten by the bug, there are opportunities to complete an entire CPL in a taildragger if you want to – or at least to include as a rating at some time in your flying career. There wouldn’t be a taildragger pilot out there who isn’t pleased they did that. Neroli writes: Neroli Henwood in Piper Super Cub BQV flying along the Raglan coast. I love watching the reaction on visitors’ faces when we open the hangars and reveal two very similar looking Super Cubs. Both are contributed by Neroli Henwood with images by Bill and Neroli Henwood recently restored to near new condition, both sit side by side, a stone’s throw from the runway and ready to be shared with anyone who will love them like we do. I remember when I first learnt to fly and there was always banter around the bar regarding which aircraft of the day were the coolest. This was back in the early 1980s and most aircraft being flown were GA types. Many aircraft were privately owned, and it was just prior to the big share market crash. Many of these machines were exported overseas when the economy collapsed and owner’s needed to release some cash. Farmers around the country commonly owned their own aircraft and they used them like family utes. Come Fieldays each year, Hamilton Airport witnessed rows of aircraft lining up for the event. The sound of those big Dragging Your Tail? Open the door to the world of taildraggers Bill Henwood image C anterbury A ircraft M aintenance for all Aircraft and Magneto servicing Exclusive NZ Dealer and Certified Installer for the ElectroAir Electronic Ignition system Hangar Facilities and full workshop available at Rangiora Airfield Talk to us about 500 hour servicing on Bendix and Slick mags. Special rates of $85 +GST per hour Phone 03 310 6675 to enquire or make bookings27 2021 #5 Cessnas, 180 and 185, C206, Cherokee Six, Piper Cubs and the odd Beaver roaring into town made a lasting impression on me. It was the beginning on my intrigue with taildraggers. As a newbie to flight training I was getting to know the trusty Cessna 152 and loving it a lot. I loved the challenge of learning to fly the aircraft consistently, and good landings were becoming mostly judgement based, as opposed to a fluke. I was also beginning to figure out that many of the ‘coolest’ aircraft seemed to be taildraggers. Pilots often talked about wanting to get time in taildraggers and there seemed to be a bit of a divide – those that flew taildraggers and those that didn’t. At the time I was oblivious to the nuances but I did love the look of them. My chance to become a taildragger pilot came many years later, no longer a licensed pilot and nearly 20 years since I last flew anything. Bill had always said that if he owned another aircraft, it would be a Piper Cub. Much to his surprise, especially as he didn’t even know he was in the market, he became the excited owner of ZK-BQV. A browse on Trade Me found me gazing at an advert for this Cub at Ardmore and soon a very surprised Bill was on the phone organising a viewing. Fast forward a few weeks and I got my first real experience in a taildragger. To be fair, at the end of the flight I did wonder if perhaps a nice C172 might have been a better choice. Bill was delighted with the purchase and I wondered if I would ever get the hang of it. He assured me that in a few months time I too would be happy. Having 115 hours total time and not having flown in so many years, I found wrangling this girl a little bit of a challenge to begin with. As time went on, I realised one day that I was no longer chasing her down the runway, but I was, in fact, keeping marginally ahead of the movement. I was suddenly ahead of the game. This, for me, was the point where my enjoyment of flying a taildragger began. Always respectful, always learning but having lots of fun. In the early history of aviation, aircraft generally had tailwheels, or skids, and that became the conventional undercarriage configuration. Only later, in the last stages of WWII were aircraft starting to be equipped with a nose wheel undercarriage configuration. Now, of course, the majority of aircraft are so equipped. This is for practical reasons, especially with the advent of jet-engined aircraft. Tarmac on airfield runways and taxiways don’t like heat from jet engine tailpipes being directed at them. Pilots and designers also came to appreciate the easier ground handling characteristics of nose wheel aircraft. Tail draggers seemed destined to be consigned to the annals of history. However, there are still niche jobs for tailwheel aircraft, such as top dressing, towing gliders, bush flying and of course the resurgence in interest in relatively recent years of keeping vintage and warbird aircraft active. So, pilots are still needed with taildragger skills and the know-how to handle the conventional gear aircraft. There are a number of flying schools or aero clubs in New Zealand that offer tailwheel conversion training and currency checks. A handful offer primary or ab-initio flight training in tailwheel aircraft. Classic Cubs offer both. Classic Cubs Bill and I operate a modest two aircraft flying school called Classic Cubs from Te Kowhai Airfield. Our daughter Olivia learnt to fly in BQV and gained her CPL and C–Cat instructor rating in 2018. Olivia secured a position with L3 Harris at KiwiFlyer Feature Bill Henwood image Contact our NZ Partner Superior Air Parts (09) 298 8992 bob@aviationpowersupply.com.au rob@superiorairparts.com.auKiwiFlyer Magazine Issue 76 28 Dragging Your Tail Hamilton, instructing mainly students from other countries, until COVID resulted in redundancy in 2020. Olivia now instructs with us in the Super Cubs. Both aircraft are 1957 Piper Super Cubs, ZK-BQV is a 100 hp model without flaps and ZK-BTC has a 160 hp engine, plus flaps. We have owned BQV for 14 years, initially based at Ardmore, then moved to Te Kowhai in 2010. We have owned BTC since 2016, but she hadn’t flown since 1968, and needed a bit more work than just a ‘cut and polish’. BQV was extensively refurbished after an engine failure and argument with a water trough in the ensuing forced landing in 2015, so had new fabric and a newly overhauled engine as part of the repairs. She is our primary trainer and is well loved by our students. BTC spent most of the first nine years of her life as a top- dresser, based at Glen Murray in the North Waikato. After an overhaul at just 2000 hrs and briefly flying with a private owner, she was parked up in the old Tauranga Aero Club hangar. Many people recall seeing her become derelict over the years and after several moves, her remains ended up at an airstrip near Te Awamutu. In 2016, we were offered the airframe and engine parts and rebuilt her to flying condition over the next four and a half years. We carried out a ground up restoration, under the supervision of Dave Stewart from Hamilton Aero Maintenance. Bill carried out the metal work on the fuselage frame and the painting, both Bill and I did the skin work on the wings, and I did the fabric work. I decided to use the water borne Stewart System on both aircraft and I am a total convert. Since the first flight in May this year BTC has completed about 50 hours flying, including a trip to Haast in July for the AOPA Winter Fly In. Being the new girl in the family means that we have been enjoying getting to know her, but others will have the pleasure of training in her too. Everyone that I have met in aviation has their own stories to tell, but they often have similarities and overlaps. The pilots that have learnt to fly in the Cubs with us or have come to begin their Taildragger love affair, all seem to leave with the same smile, same enthusiasm and desire to keep flying these type of aircraft. One of our past students is Damon Barakat who has kindly shared his taildragging story in the following text. Along the way Damon and his Dad Phil had the pleasure of owning Piper Cub ZK-BTU. Damon’s Story Getting started in aviation can be very confusing in today’s world, whether it be flying or engineering. Where does one start? Like a Balinese market, the options are overwhelming and every vendor promises you their product is the best. The advice I would give anybody wanting to get started in aviation (young or old) would be to find a mentor – if they’re a good storyteller and own a taildragger, even better. At 16 years old, two years away from finishing school, I was stuck at a crossroad. Having grown up racing BMX and Motocross, I had developed a love for engineering, but I also really wanted to start flying. Fortunately, I was introduced to Grant Benns. This proved to be a significant point in my life as the conversation I had with Grant that day shaped my career in aviation. 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