Posted Tuesday, August 2, 2011 @ 04:53 PM
G-AWEK’s History
Built in early 1968, with c/n 4071.
First registered in Britain on 6th March 1968.
Colour red & white
Operated by Sportair Flying Club, Biggin Hill.
Featured in the Aspen Films (Mike Carlton) movie Flying Light, being aerobatted by the great and late-lamented David Perrin.
At 1st Jan 1970 & 1971 registered to C J Lees, but still used by Sportair members.
Wing damaged beyond repair in a forced landing 25th Otober 1972
The 1972 AAIB report was brutally terse: ‘Fournier RF4D G-AWEK, 25th October at 1515GMT, near Chelsfield, Kent. The 352 hrs CPL pilot was unable to restart the engine which had stopped during a stall turn. The aircraft was substantially damaged during subsequent forced landing into a field with marked downslope.’
Neil Jensen in the Sportair newsletter suggested this was another example of very bad airmanship, and went on to say that pilots not approved for aerobatics must not fly aerobatics in club aircraft.
At 1st Jan 1973 G-AWEK was registered to Mike R Carlton
On 11th October 1973 the CAA logged it as ‘Destroyed’.
Its C of A expired on 23rd August 1974.
It was re-registered to Paul Barrett on 15th March 1996, but de-registered 18th May 2001 (cancelled by the CAA), then re-registered to Matthew Hill in 2003.
It was re-assembled using the wing of G-BIIF recovered from long-term storage at the back of a hangar at Biggin Hill.
REbuilt in Sussex during late 2009 and resprayed in its carefully researched original red scheme, but with the upper wings and tail in the sunburst scheme.
After 27 years G-AWEK flew again for the first time in December 2009 in the highly capable hands of Fournier Ace Matthew Hill.
During test flying on 30th January 2010, late in a landing roll, the wheel gently retracted because of a poorly-fitting downlock latch. The propeller was broken, but there was no further damage, and no need for an engine strip-down thanks to Rectimo Service Bulletin 3/65.
Since June 2010 G-AWEK has been seen all over Britain leading sister-ship G-AWGN through formation aerobatics as one of the RedHawks (www.redhawksduo.co.uk)
Yours, Bob
[Edit by Bob Grimstead on Wednesday, August 3, 2011 @ 05:24 AM]
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Flying and displaying Fournier RF4Ds VH-HDO and G-AWGN, building replica RF6B G-RFGB and custodian of RF6B prototype F-BPXV