Ashburton air pageant spectacular success

Press, 6 November 1978, Page 1

Ashburton air pageant spectacular success

Ashburton Airport had the busiest day in its history yesterday when more than 70 aircraft, from many parts of New Zealand. presented a spectacular air pageant. The pageant had been organised by the MidCanterbury branch of the Cantebury Aero Club as a dual commemoration. Ii was the last big event of the 10-day official programme of Ashburton Borough centennial celebrations, and it marked the jubilee of the MidCanterbury branch, which was formed in October, 1928; Conditions were superb for the five-hour display: bright sunshine, a cloudless sky, and the lightest of breezes. The programme included multiple sky-diving. 11 members of the Canterbury Sky-diving club freedropping more than a mile before parachuting to rhe ground; a fly-past and displays by aircraft ranging from 40 years old to the very latest: aerobatics; gliding; precision and formation flying; and topdressing.

The pageant opened with a fly-over by an Air New Zealand Friendship at 12.30 p.m. The oldest aircraft was a Tiger Moth, built in 1938. and the latest was probably the elegant, highly manoeuvrable twinengine Beechcraft Duchesse. seen for me first time in the South Island. Among the three aerobatics displays was one by Mrs Pam Collings, of Christchurch, the national champion who represented New Zealand at the world aerobatics championships in Kiev, Russia, in 1976. She seemed a part of her powerful, nuggety i little Potts Special bi- ' plane, which is only 5m long, has a wingspan of I 5.5 m, weighs 360 kg empty, hui has .< 180 it.p. engine ! and a climbing rate of 2600 ft. per minute ■ Mrs Colling'- said she did nor take part in this ; year’s world champion- ; ships in Czechoslovakia j because of the expected cost, 820,000, to make the trip. But she hopes to be I able to compete at the next world championship meeting in 1980. provided

she can obtain'sponsors to help finance the trip. In contrast to the sophisticated modern machines, several nippy little home-built aircraft, made in enthusiasts’ back yards for only a few thousand dollars, showed rhai aviation can also be the hobby of the “average” man. Some, driven by a car engine, use only about 13 litres of fuel an hour. A Hughes 500 helicopter. a new machine costing abou $250,000 and owned by Doug Hood, l td, gave an impressive d.splay of its power and ma-

noeuvrability. w-hethe hovering or sweeping pas spectators at 150 knots. I seems well capable oi rounding up lit estock or rhe company's Mount Hut station, where it is based fhe era of aiivrali agriculture was also wel demonstrated in severs displays by top-dressinj machines, both tix.d-winj aircraft and helicopters .Ashburton s pioneers die not survive Io see machines take to the air. However they would surely have ap predated the sight of a r craft topdressing the lanr ai 150km/h