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Post by Dave Homewood on Sept 9, 2006 23:26:42 GMT 12
I think the first ever airshow I went to was at Rukuhia, or Hamilton International Airport now,I don't know how old I was but I just recall big green Air Force tents there, and I got a poster for NAC engineering from the NAC stand. It must have been about 1976/77. I think the next one I went to, which I remember better, was again at Rukuhia, and it must have been a Waikato Aeroclub Airshow. I recall the Harvard team did a routine, a Pitts Special too, and three Isaacs Furies did a fly-by before landing. One of the pilots was Dad's mate. I can't recall his last name but Dad always referred to him as Sez Les. I believe that was in 1980. The next show I remember going to I actually have evidence of. I found an old photo of me and a Pitts.  This is me in front of Pitts Special ZK-EES (now co-owned by Richard Hood). The place was Te Kowhai, near Hamilton, at Max Clear's microlight airfield. It was early 1981 I believe. This was a big fly-in of microlights, home builts, general aviation, aerobatic planes, and I remember particularly that the Confederate Air Force had a stand there and so did someone promoting the American EAA (possibly SAA people??). They had tables full of old EAA and Confederate calendars from the 1970's that had been cut up to make little posters and were selling them for about 5c each. I and my siblings bought a number of them, but later Dad bartered all the best ones off us for his new model room - and they're still on the wall there with my NAC poster. Later on in life i began going to shows more regularly, but these are the three earliest I remember. Nothing too special but great memories (what i have left of them...). What was your first airshow? Or other early ones of interest? |
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Post by flyjoe180 on Sept 10, 2006 9:11:33 GMT 12
First airshow I ever went to was the RNZAF 1981 Whenuapai Airshow. Got some photos somewhere... The C130's were in their blue and white trim, and the RAAF had a Mirage III there too.
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Post by yak2 on Sept 10, 2006 11:17:29 GMT 12
Not sure if they had camera's for my first air show. It was at Point Cook and around 1954. A neighbour was a GAF Lincoln pilot who had just returned from Malaya, and we drove there in style in his early 50's Plymouth. All I wanted to see was a Sabre or Canberra but I was disappointed. On the curved apron in front of the tower were lines of Tigers and Wirraways (pre Wingeel days). At the end of the show we were taken to the officers mess, and as we arrived there was an almighty roar as the place was buzzed by a Lincoln. It was low for such a large aircraft and scared the @#$ out of us kids. Late 1980's and I was back at Point Cook with my 3 year old son. A feature was a display (loud) by an FA/18, which was nearly equalled in volume by young Scott's bawling.....scared the @#$% out of him!
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Post by planeimages on Sept 10, 2006 11:23:46 GMT 12
About 1948 (I was six) at Schofields, west of Sydney. My Dad was Officer of the day in the RAAF . A pair of Mustangs touched wings on landing and collapsed in a heap. I saw the accident and tugged at my father's sleeve and said, "Dad, the Mustangs just pranged." Don't be silly, son". was the reply.
Then all hell broke loose when the crash siren sounded and Dad leapt into action.
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Post by corsair67 on Sept 11, 2006 18:48:36 GMT 12
50th Anniversary of Kingsford Smith and Ulm's crossing of the Tasman at Wigram in 1978. I remember the weather was crappy for most of the weekend. We went home early on the Sunday and missed the F-111s burning the water off the runway late in the afternoon!  |
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Post by Bruce on Sept 11, 2006 19:06:44 GMT 12
My first airshow was a large display at Hamilton when I was quite young. I guess this would be the Aviation Showcase show of 1977. I dont recall much other than large DC10 models, A Fieldair Ag Dak and Aerial mappings Beech Kansan in static display. (which I went inside, I remember the camera sight in the nose.
Later memorable shows include the 1981 Whenuapai show and another Hamilton show in 1982(?) when I had my first aircraft flight in a newly arrived Bandeirante. The 1987 Whenuapai show would have to have been my favourite. (Although some of the mid '80s Ardmore shows were pretty good too)
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Post by Dave Homewood on Sept 12, 2006 19:22:20 GMT 12
Your first show must have been the same as my first show Bruce. Since i made my post i have found out it was organised as a huge event, a real showcase of the aviation world, under a team lead by Doug Patterson of NAC fame.
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Post by stu on Oct 17, 2006 19:22:21 GMT 12
Just browsing this thread and it's stirred a memory that someone may be able to help with ...
I vaguely remember at a reasonably young age being in the Rukuhia area with my father during an air show (pre-1974 I think as I was still living in Hamilton at the time).
A very large and strange military jet flew overhead and my father said that it was a Vulcan bomber from the RAF. Of course, since then I have come to know what a Vulcan looks like but at the time I had no idea and now, 3+ decades later, I can't be sure of what I saw as the "I was told so, so it must have been" adds a bias to any mental image I try and form.
Does anybody know if any Vulcans ever visited at Hamilton and if so, what year? Mainly just a personal thing to justify, or otherwise, a long held belief that I have seen one in the flesh.
Cheers,
Stu.
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Post by corsair67 on Oct 18, 2006 16:42:58 GMT 12
Stu, I'd say there was a very good chance that you did see a Vulcan as they did visit NZ on a few occasions in the late-1960s and early-1970s.
There even is a picture floating around somewhere (I saw it in a NZ Wings mag) of a visiting RAF Vulcan with a Kiwi painted in the centre of the fuselage roundels!
Maybe Colin (Phil82) might be able to shed more light on this?
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Post by phil82 on Oct 19, 2006 1:07:24 GMT 12
Yes, there was a Vulcan with a Kiwi roundel on it. It was 'tagged" at Ohakea, and there were a number of photos taken of it on various RAF stations in the Middle East before it was finally removed! www.avrovulcan.org.uk/vulcan_people/562_kiwi.htmI was at Ohakea, down by the Tower, the day the very last Vulcan visited NZ in 1970 something! he took off from 27 and stayed low in a left turn towards SH1, then made another left turn to point directly at the Tower. He crossed onto the airfield boundary from the south, and got lower and lower, and I kid you not, from where I was standing, I could see directly down the intakes . He put the boot into it and went up in a very steep climb over the Tower, then off.Mag-bloody-nificent! |
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Post by corsair67 on Oct 19, 2006 11:30:22 GMT 12
Colin, I knew I could rely on you to come up with the goods!  I liked the fact that the RAF guys played along with the ruse by telling the Yanks that the RNZAF were getting 94 Vulcans! ;D A Vulcan flying under Sydney Harbour Bridge - that would have been worth seeing. |
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Post by flyjoe180 on Oct 20, 2006 8:49:44 GMT 12
A very impressive 'zapping'!
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