January 2005 Issue 2

Happy New year

Welcome to the second of our of bi-monthly newsletters and to a new and exciting year which we hope is going to be packed with lots of flying with tales to tell.

Congratulations! First Solo - Gary Bluett First Solo - Alan Johnson

We kicked of our year with our first ever competition last Saturday which proved an enormous success with much hilarity all round, full details are on the back page, so please have a read. HZV pasted it’s first 100 hr check with flying colours following it’s engine overhaul which is great news and the aircraft is back to it’s old self.

Our re-vamped website which is our main information vehicle is now up and running  so have a look and let us know what you think. We have also just started our radio advertising campaign on The Rock 90.2fm so listen out and again the feedback would be great.

We are now into the peak season, so book your slots early to avoid disappointment and we look forward to a tremendous year and helping you all achieve your flying dream.

Christmas Party

Despite the disappointment of having to cancel our competition in mid-December due to the weather, we did go ahead with the hog-roast BBQ combined with the fixed wing guys at the aero-club which was a good success.

After a great start with the two Paul’s flying in Santa with the Jetranger, giving away lots of lollies and goodies for the kids which them kept them occupied for the next few hours, the adults cracked into the beers big time.

Our thanks goes to the bar staff who tried to keep up with the almost constant demand for jug refills and soft drinks for the non-drinkers amongst us and who says aviation and drinking doesn’t mix (just kidding!!!).
John gave out our annual awards and certificates, with Brian Mahoney winning our treasured plucked - duck trophy for outstanding pre-flights and attention to detail.

Congrats go to Brian and the rest of the certificate winners and thank you to all of you who turned up and made it such a successful and enjoyable evening.

Did you know?

• Hot, wet and low pressure produce less lift
• On average you need 1” of power per person on a R22
• Dirty blades rob you of 1” of power on a R22
• You need at least 2” of spare MAP to do a vertical
• A Bell 47 is longer than a Jetranger
• For every 1000ft your TAS goes up by 1kt
• Halley’s comet is not due back fro another 57 yrs
• Newton discovered the Three laws of Motion after a bet by his friend Sir Christopher Wren
• Einstein made his 5 major discoveries of physics in a three month period in 1904 then never had another original thought
  

News and Up Coming Events

2 Day Cape Reinga Trip—5th/6th March

So with our first event of 2005 now completed we look forward to our next jaunt which will be a real goodie.
Our two-day event to Cape Reinga on the 5th and 6th of March is one not to be missed and we recommend booking your place early.

With 5 R22 helicopters booked already with possibly the Jetranger and the R44 joining us, this looks to be one to be remembered for a while.

The final itinerary is yet to be finalized but we will fly up the fabulous west coast, past 90 mile beach to the lighthouse and then back down the east coast past Coopers Beach, the Hole in the Rock and the stunning Bay of Islands.

Along the way we will stop into the Northland Air Rescue to look around, go Quad biking on the long sandy beaches and drop into Omata vineyard for some lunch. All in all it should be a great trip, so please give us a call and if you are interested. Also look out for our golf day in early April, dates to be advised. 

NZ World Helicopter Championship!!!

Saturday 22nd of January will go down in the annals of New Zealand aviation history as the first helicopter championships held in Auckland and what a prodigious event it turned out to be!

It’s probably not the first, but what a great way to start the New Year after a couple of false starts in December and bring some fun back into flying the fabulous helicopter.

The idea originally came about by our Swiss instructor Stephan who actually attended the real world championship in 2003 in Austria.

We then adapted the format  to fit both our private and commercial students and made our first competition a real fun day out with the added tension of competing for the coveted BP Challenge Trophy!
Split into teams of two, pilot and co-pilot, the first event was to navigate a 45nm course, identify and photograph six points along the route and in the quickest time possible.

Now the trick here, was both speed and accuracy...and a steady hand to take the photo! If you had a good co-pilot or  you bribed one of the instructors you were in the money!.

So to protect the innocent, there were a range of various styles. Apart from those  who genuinely took part to the spirit of the rules, there were those who just missed the targets altogether hoping they could make up the time penalty, those who just missed and those who went so slow who thought that stylish flying would win over the hearts of the scrupulous judges….how wrong could they have been!

Rounds two and three were equally amusing. Round two required the pilot’s to be guided around a slalom course.

For the post—PPL’s a rope attached to a bucket of water, had to be carefully steered by the co-pilot through a series of gates at just the right height and speed, spilling as little water as possible  and then landing the bucket on an elevated table with points awarded (or not as the case maybe) for accuracy.

The pre—PPL’s had to navigate the same course but with the co-pilot dropping golf balls into 5 tyres along the route. With just enough wind to make it a challenging all round, hilarity abounded. From the golf balls that were miles off target , those that hit the skids on the way down and those which were pocketed for the next game of golf by the unscrupulous.

The water challenge also proved interesting… as an indication, it’s a good job  we were not dependant on the water remaining in the bucket  to quench peoples thirst  and that the participants are not slingloading high value gear on a job!

The last challenge was down to a test of nerves, skill and outright luck….the precision landing!

With a painted fluro line in the grass and tape attached to the skids, the two were supposed to meet, but in the main they decided to blissfully repel each other.

Our upcoming septuagenarian Chief Flying Instructor was the only one who could  manage such a task, probably because he has been flying rather  a long time and had also not been withered by nerves on the previous two rounds.

We finished in true aviation style with beers, sausage sizzle and the prize giving. Congratulations to Carey Jarvie who took the cup,  a great bottle of wine and a flying lesson voucher. Tim Hemi who came second and Alan Johnson who came third who each received some vouchers.

All in all it was a fantastic day enjoyed by all.  A huge thank you to all that took part, our sponsors who kindly donated the prizes and our staff for helping us co-ordinate and keep the fun safe.

We are looking to organize another bigger and even better competition in April and opening up to other flight training schools and pilots. So register your interest now and get practising!!!!

And Finally...

Little Johnny and Billy are in a hospital lying on stretchers next to each other outside the operating room. Billy leans over and asks, “what are you I here for?” Little Johnny says “I’m here to get my tonsils out and I’m a little nervous.”

Billy says “You’ve got nothing to worry about. I had that done when I was four. They put you to sleep, and when you wake up they give you lots of Jelly and Ice Cream. It’s a breeze” Little Johnny then asks, “what are you in here for?” Billy says “a circumcision”

Little Johnny says “Whoa, Good luck buddy, I had that done when I was born, couldn’t walk for a year!”

CFI’s BIT - REMEMBER!

Power available is reduced when….
--- Hot
--- Heavy