It all started one sunny afternoon out at the NHMC field in Kumeu when I was asked by Steve Nichols “ hey Steve a few of us are going to attend Wangaratta Jets are you in ?” I jumped at the opportunity as I have attended the ANZAC jet meeting for a few years now and have got to know a few of the Aussies that regularly make the trek to NZ and was keen to see how they do it .
The New Zealand team heading to invade their shores was comprised of Steve Nichols , Lloyd and Morris Bushby , Clayton Mitchell and myself , however I have to have to acknowledge and thank all the other people that helped out to make our trip possible including the team at Air New Zealand . Although it turns out that when customs asks you “ what ’ s in the box ” apparently “ the mother in-law ” was not the correct answer . The Wangaratta Jets event was held over the weekend from Friday 19th to Sunday 21st April . We had flown in and driven to Wangaratta the night before so were out at the aerodrome early on the Friday ready to get stuck into it . We were greeted by the organisers of the event who had erected marquees for us to use and really made us feel “ at home ”. Friday didn ’ t see much flying with only a couple of the Aussies flying after scrutineering due to a very strong ( and cold ) wind . This suited us as we could take time to settle in , unpack and assemble the aircraft giving them a thorough check over to ensure nothing had come loose on their travels over the ditch .
After a swag of beverages on the Friday night we woke Saturday morning to find the wind had dropped and the sky was clear . With a quick stop at McDonalds on the way to the aerodrome we were in to it . Wind was straight down the runway and nice and steady , certainly a change from the turbulence we sometimes get at Tokoroa . I guess that ’ s probably because Wangaratta is flat . With continual flying throughout the day we ploughed through 20 litres of fuel in no time and by early afternoon were having to make trips backwards and forwards to the bowser making sure that we picked up the JetA1 nozzle and not the AvGas one , although I was tempted to fill the rental car up with this just to see how fast rentals can actually go . Saturday night we headed into town and had an awesome meal followed by a few more “ beverages ”.