Royal New Zealand Aero Club comes to town...
Having made it back over the mountains the other day (flight to Dannyvirke), I learnt of an event to take place at the airfield midweek. The Royal New Zealand Aero Club have organised an air safari and are coming here to paraparaumu for a night stop. The Kapiti Aero Club are playing host to about 30 planes and 50 participants who have for the past 8 days been navigating around New Zealand, mostly for fun, sometimes in competition and are eventually going to end up at the Omaka Air Show.
well, naturally I have volunteered to help out and after the lunchtime briefing my assignment is well, I guess parking attendant. Yep, I have to marshal the planes towards their parking spots, trying to maintain some kind of order! Tables and chairs set out in the club's hangar, tea urn boiling away and cakes laid out, all we need now are the pilots. Kicking heels for a while I get acquainted with some of the members. A good crowd actually, from an ancient old timer to a young school boy. Camer, of Dutch origin, has ambitions to become a commercial pilot, working hard, earning his lessons by working at the club weekends - admin, cleaning, tea he does it all, for the love of flying of course.
2.30pm as the first planes begin to roll in. A Piper Comanche makes it in first followed by Cessnas, smaller Pipers and a few home-builds too. Oh, and the Kiwi Airforce are here with a couple of thier homegrown CT4 trainers. By 4pm most of the safari participants have arrived, just one straggler, current position unknown! A busy hangar with pilots and passengers sipping tea and devouring hot cross buns as they await transport to hotels.
Tomorrow, 2.30pm departure en-mass. 30 planes need to position in their appointed order since this final leg to Omaka is a competition. Pilots need to submit an arrival time before starting and the one who hits the spot exactly wins - simple right!
Having made it back over the mountains the other day (flight to Dannyvirke), I learnt of an event to take place at the airfield midweek. The Royal New Zealand Aero Club have organised an air safari and are coming here to paraparaumu for a night stop. The Kapiti Aero Club are playing host to about 30 planes and 50 participants who have for the past 8 days been navigating around New Zealand, mostly for fun, sometimes in competition and are eventually going to end up at the Omaka Air Show.
well, naturally I have volunteered to help out and after the lunchtime briefing my assignment is well, I guess parking attendant. Yep, I have to marshal the planes towards their parking spots, trying to maintain some kind of order! Tables and chairs set out in the club's hangar, tea urn boiling away and cakes laid out, all we need now are the pilots. Kicking heels for a while I get acquainted with some of the members. A good crowd actually, from an ancient old timer to a young school boy. Camer, of Dutch origin, has ambitions to become a commercial pilot, working hard, earning his lessons by working at the club weekends - admin, cleaning, tea he does it all, for the love of flying of course.
2.30pm as the first planes begin to roll in. A Piper Comanche makes it in first followed by Cessnas, smaller Pipers and a few home-builds too. Oh, and the Kiwi Airforce are here with a couple of thier homegrown CT4 trainers. By 4pm most of the safari participants have arrived, just one straggler, current position unknown! A busy hangar with pilots and passengers sipping tea and devouring hot cross buns as they await transport to hotels.
Tomorrow, 2.30pm departure en-mass. 30 planes need to position in their appointed order since this final leg to Omaka is a competition. Pilots need to submit an arrival time before starting and the one who hits the spot exactly wins - simple right!
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