Straighten Up and Fly Right
Wiseowl 89 group photo of all participants. Photo: AC Grant Armishaw. OH-07-0614-31-tn.jpg.
PLTOFF James Peters gives us a student’s-eye view of Exercise Wiseowl 89 held at Masterton’s Hood Aerodrome - nestled in a large basin formed by the Eastern edge of the Ruahine Ranges - over 1-13 September. All photos by AC Grant Armishaw.
Masterton was chosen for its stable weather, proximity to Ohakea and large expanses of uncontrolled airspace which was perfect for formation flying exercises. The camp is held for the main purpose of teaching students the art of formation flying, but has equally important roles of pubic relations and deployment training.
Exercise Wiseowl deployed in the early hours of Monday morning. A procession of trucks, vans and a bus, laden with tidy piles of gear which would form our home for the next two weeks left Base Ohakea bound for Masterton.
Setup started in earnest soon after arrival and a tent town began to emerge. Spirits were high and by lunchtime most of the tents had already been erected. It was complete, with the exception of minor details, by late afternoon.
The successful start had students looking forward to getting back into formation flying. Formation flying is a skill all military pilots must have for the purposes of a large group of aircraft operating as a single unit and further developing skills of flying a particular type of aircraft.
Camp setup is when everyone pitches in. Here AC Brendan Stads does his bit. Photo: AC Grant Armishaw. OH-07-0611-20-tn.jpg.
This type of flying requires a high standard of co-ordination, summed up by a prominent member of the 07/1 course who said: ‘I just kept making continuous random movements with my hands and feet and seemed to stay in position.’ Formation also requires anticipation from the wingman, in conjunction with smooth and predictable flying from the leader.
The first few sorties were therefore a combination of highs and lows, with the students struggling to fly in balance as well as being smooth and co-ordinated! However; success was near at hand and after seven flights all students were warily deemed suitable for solo formation by their instructor, who led a short sortie into the area with a member of 07/1 on his wing.
For the students, this flight was the highlight of the course to date with an enormous amount of satisfaction and confidence gained. Most solo flights took place on Friday, which culminated in the instructor display team the ‘Zucchinis’ showing their skills overhead the field in preparation for the Saturday air show.
Air Traffic Controller Mark Costello kept a close eye on proceedings. Photo: AC Grant Armishaw. OH-07-0612-39-tn.jpg.
The Saturday air show and open day is an integral part of Wiseowl. The day serves the important dynamic of public relations with the local community and was a great success at Masterton. Although numbers through the camp were not in the league of previous years, the genuine interest in RNZAF careers was very high. Throughout the day the crowd was treated to displays by the ‘Zucchinis’, Iroquois, Harvard, solo airtrainer and local operators, while the camp was opened up for people to walk through and enjoy. Many were impressed by the comforts of home that we had brought with us and the camp’s general high standard was a credit to all involved.
Saturday continued into the late afternoon with the cocktail party with invited guests and dignitaries from the local community. More importantly, from the students’ point of view, a number of World War Two veterans attended. They humbled us with their wartime experiences before tucking into an amazing meal prepared by Army chefs. The Army chefs deserve the highest accolades for their culinary sensations during the entire camp. As the cocktail party came to a close, costumes began to appear and Saturday continued in a light-hearted mood.
Saturday refused to die and carried on late into the night with the students’ party, themed ‘Grease Lightning’. This was a grand occasion made special by three camp members having birthdays. One was a 21st which was celebrated with great fanfare, singing and a yard glass. While the celebrations were going on, some No.3 Squadron members took unauthorised possession of the Wiseowl 89 sign, a car bonnet. The prank was much to the chagrin of the students, who had discussed mounting a guard, but had done nothing about it.
Air Force dog ‘Rocky’. Photo: AC Grant Armishaw. OH-07-0613-22-tn.jpg.
Retaliation was swift. Two padlocks were procured and added to the already secured Iroquois. The night continued with the firemen under strict instructions to hold onto the bolt cutters. Sunday dawned, but before an attempt could be made to reach an agreement over the sign the students found, to their disappointment, that the padlocks had been cut and returned.
The remainder of the camp continued smoothly and everyone enjoyed Masterton’s hospitality.
A tired but happy crowd unloaded the gear at Base Ohakea after the Wiseowl 89 contingent returned from sunny Masterton on Thursday 13 September. The camp had been a great success with the deployment and setup swift and efficient, flying skills developing every day and the local community making the most of an opportunity to see the RNZAF deployed much like our overseas operations. Members of 07/1 thank all personnel involved and recommend the Wiseowl experience to everyone.