Some see it as remarkable that, given New Zealand's long involvement with the Hughes 500 design family, it has taken so long for an example of the original OH-6A Cayuse, nicknamed Loach, to arrive here. But, judging by the immaculate appearance of Zac Yates' newly-imported example, it has been well worth the wait.
ZK-HOL, an OH-6A built in 1967, saw active service in South Vietnam from 1968 to 1971, when it was repatriated to the United States and flown with the Pittsburgh Air National Guard. Following the type's replacement in that unit by OH-58 Kiowas in 1984, Loach 67-16208 became N8329F with the Pittsburgh Sheriff's Department. Once again replaced a Bell product, this time the 407, in early 2001, the aircraft was bought by private collector Tim Conrad who proceeded to return the old veteran to stock military specs, including original radios and deactivated weaponry. At EAA AirVenture Oshkosh in 2002 it won Grand Champion Warbird - Helicopter, the first aircraft to take the crown.
Long a fan of the Hughes 500 type, Zac Yates pounced on the aircraft when it was offered for sale on the Internet earlier this year.
The aircraft is almost exactly as from the factory, right down to a (demilitarized) XM72E1 Minigun
"I'd thought about getting a 500 and painting it as a Loach for some time," Zac says, "but my heart was never really in that idea. I always dreamed of an actual OH-6 instead. By pure chance I visited Courtesy Aircraft Sales' website, and bam! there was a Loach!"
Soon the paperwork was complete and the aircraft was put into a container and shipped to New Zealand. Skysales Aviation at Harewood, the NZ agent for MD Helicopters (owner of the Hughes designs) assembled the aircraft, and after a quick repaint ZK-HOL was ready for its first flight downunder. Test pilot was John Lamont, who quickly converted the overjoyed owner onto his new type.
"John gave me the go-ahead after a dual flight or two, and then I was off!"
The aircraft is painted in a semi-historical scheme representative of its Vietnam service, with some added embellishments.
"I'm a big fan of Apocalypse Now!, and I wanted to make 'HOL something of a tribute. So, like the Hueys (in the movie), 'Death from above' is painted on the nose in red, and we've got a Playboy bunny on the side. By way of tribute to one of the girls in the movie, I decided to call her 'Miss December'!"
Seasoned chopper spotters in NZ are surprised at how different the Loach's instrument fitout is to the otherwise identical 500C
ZK-HOL is the first gunship to be flown in New Zealand, and there are hopes that she will be joined by others. In the US and Europe, examples of the sleek and deadly AH-1 Cobra perform at airshows, and Zac says plans are afoot for at least one of that type to be imported.
"I've talked to a few fellow pilots here and there's definitely interest. At the moment though it's just a matter of finding who's actually serious about investing.
"As with any warbird project, money is the major factor here."
The only signs that this isn't a shot from Vietnam 1970 are the registrations under the tail and on the rooftop "doghouse" fairing - otherwise the aircraft is extremely faithful to the period
Zac says he's focusing on developing an airshow display routine for the Loach, with a view to attending as many shows - large and small - as possible in the coming months.
"I desperately wanted to display her at Masterton (for Wings Over Wairarapa) but the container didn't arrive in Lyttelton until the Sunday of the show, so I'm hopeful now we'll make it to Omaka for Classic Fighters."
The Loach makes an interesting hangarmate for Zac's diverse stable of aircraft based around NZ, including a Fletcher Fu24 and Jurca MJ100 Spitfire replica. Due to the unique ability of the helicopter to touch down anywhere it's very likely we will see 'HOL all over the country.
"I plan on making a small tour of the country, stopping off at a few beaches along the way! There's nothing quite like tearing along at 100mph with the doors off...bliss!"
now thats creative !
