I have just added a new section to my web database on New Zealand Aerobatic Teams – this one being about foreign teams that New Zealanders have flown with.
It is currently small and basic, and I’m sure there is a lot more info I could add if I can find it. If you have anything to add, please let me know.
http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/Airshow_Display_Foreign_Teams.htm
A few questions –
– Did Cobber Kain do more than one aerobatic team display with No. 73 Squadron? I’m sure he must have, he was one of their best pilots after all.
– Can anyone supply more info on the Hunter and Meteor teams that Ray Hanna flew in before the Red Arrows?
– Has anyone got details of the dates/venues of all the displays for the Red Arrows entries, and the other teams with them missing?
– According to the Red Arrows’ official website news pages, the team was reduced to eight aircraft for some displays when Boomer Keith broke his hand. I have taken out the displays between the news article dates as he obviously wasn’t flying in them, but have I got it right? Did any others there not include him in the line-up?
I have to say I find it astonishing that they reduced the team to eight rather than have a stand-in pilot for such emergencies. All of our display teams have an extra man who’d trained up to slot in at the last minute, and during the season they act as the commentator as well. I guess because our teams are all operational units who happen to have a team within it, rather than dedicated display teams where the extra man would sit on his butt all year in the Red Arrows?
By: XR537 (G-NATY) - 6th August 2007 at 15:28
– Has anyone got details of the dates/venues of all the displays for the Red Arrows entries, and the other teams with them missing?
I have all the Arrows on a database if it helps.
I have to say I find it astonishing that they reduced the team to eight rather than have a stand-in pilot for such emergencies. All of our display teams have an extra man who’d trained up to slot in at the last minute, and during the season they act as the commentator as well. I guess because our teams are all operational units who happen to have a team within it, rather than dedicated display teams where the extra man would sit on his butt all year in the Red Arrows?
It would be impossible to train one pilot to fill all nine positions in case of stand-ins – (s)he’d have to be Superman and learn all the moves for each position (for 25 main moves muliplied by three different flight configurations) and for three display types, Full, Rolling or Flat = 675 different manoeuvres off by heart!!!
Each position is unique in it’s positioning, complexity, and also consider if the pilot wasn’t needed (as in a number of years now, except recently)… having to stand-by all season and not get to fly.
There is also no stand in Leader – if Red 1 doesn’t fly, the whole team doesn’t fly – which also makes a great deal of sense.
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August 4, 2007 at 11:29 am