Ohakea to see Kiwi who really can fly

The "sleekest and sexiest plane around" has secured Tauranga pilot Phil Hooker a spot at this weekend's air show at Ohakea.

He will perform aerobatics in the New Zealand-designed and built Furio at a pageant to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Royal New Zealand Air Force.

Mr Hooker said it was an honour to be invited to New Zealand's largest military air show for 20 years and a big step up from local civilian air shows.

He will be the only Bay of Plenty civilian pilot to feature at the show near Palmerston North.

The Furio attracts a lot of interest wherever it goes and when he put it through its paces at Tauranga's Classics of the Sky air show in January, the RNZAF set its sights on getting the plane to Ohakea.

Mr Hooker was the only Furio pilot approved to do low-level aerobatics at air shows.

Since he climbed into the cockpit of the "magical" three-year-old prototype, three more had been built and the future looked good for the carbon fibre high performance cross-country cruiser.

Mr Hooker flies gyrocopters, microlights, helicopters, gliders, hang gliders and war birds.

After Ohakea, his next major air show in the Furio will be at Oshkosh, Wisconsin, in July.

Mr Hooker is the chief flying instructor for Bay Flight, operates the M*A*S*H helicopter and is the test pilot for many Tauranga aircraft.