Wings clipped at Warbirds
Pilot unharmed as fighter collides with cherry picker on runway.
An inquiry will be launched into why a cherry picker was on the runway when a Yak 3 vintage aircraft crashed during the opening of the Warbirds over Wanaka International Airshow.
The pilot, Arthur Dovey, was not injured and walked away from the accident, but the aircraft’s right wing was seriously damaged.
The accident delayed the air show programme by about 35 minutes while emergency services dealt with debris.
Dovey got out and waved to the crowd before talking to emergency services personnel.
Airshow general manager Ed Taylor said the cherry picker was on the runway as part of an event that was happening shortly afterwards.
‘‘We’ve launched a full inquiry and will try to find out exactly why it was there and the series of events. We’ve still got to establish all that – there are a number of people involved.’’
The Civil Aviation Authority was aware of the accident and officials had been on site, Taylor said.
Warbirds Over Wanaka this year includes military displays by airforces from New Zealand, Australia, the United States and France. US Ambassador Scott Brown also attended yesterday morning.
The airshow, which is celebrating its 30th anniversary, continues today, with a ‘‘rides day’’ tomorrow.
Up and down the country, settled autumn weather allowed Kiwis an opportunity to get out to events in a number of centres.
Among the activities on offer this weekend were the Auckland Easter show, the National BMX Championships in New Plymouth (see below), and the 56th National Jazz Festival in Tauranga. Anyone keen to catch DinoFest at the Hamilton Lake Domain has their last chance today.
Down south, sweet-toothed Cantabrians can indulge in The Great New Zealand Easter Egg Hunt, at Ferrymead, from 10am today
But for those looking to do a little Easter shopping, things can get a bit confusing at this time of year.
Yesterday was regarded pretty much as a standard weekend day, and for that reason, nestled between its three more ‘‘difficult’’ cousins – Good Friday, Easter Sunday and Easter Monday – it was business as usual in terms of alcohol sales and groceries.
Good Friday allowed limited options for shops and services, but some dairies, service stations, takeaway bars, restaurants, hairdressers and pharmacies were open.
The situation’s less clear cut today, following a law change in August 2016 granting territorial authorities the right to decide which shops in their areas can open.