A 1941 Stearman PT17 flying at the 2025 Hawke’s Bay and East Coast Aeroclub Tail Dragger Fly-in.
A 1941 Stearman PT17 flying at the 2025 Hawke’s Bay and East Coast Aeroclub Tail Dragger Fly-in.
If you saw an interesting and unique aircraft fly over your head in Hawke’s Bay last weekend, you weren’t hallucinating.
An array of distinctive airplanes gathered from around the country at Hawke’s Bay and East Coast Aeroclub in Bridge Pa for the club’s 18th annual Tail Dragger Fly-in.
A 1930's Waco UOC flying at the 2025 Hawke’s Bay and East Coast Aeroclub Tail Dragger Fly-in.
Although alot of the planes participating looked slightly different, they had one thing in common – a tail-wheel configuration.
That’s where an aircraft is set up with two main wheels located forward of the centre of gravity and a small wheel skid at the tail.
This design was common in early aircraft and is still used today for its ability to handle rough terrain.
A Tiger Hawk at the 2025 Hawke’s Bay and East Coast Aeroclub Tail Dragger Fly-in.
A Zenith Zodiac CH650 at the 2025 Hawke’s Bay and East Coast Aeroclub Tail Dragger Fly-in.
Participating aircraft included antique biplanes and planes from the 1930s, 40s and 50s, aircraft modified for off-aerodrome landing, home-built aircraft and new design kitset planes.
Now in its 18th year, the two-day event is a high point of the aviation year in Hawke’s Bay, organiser Steph Elliers said.
“It’s great to see it going from strength to strength, with increasing numbers of aeroplanes arriving from all over the country,” she said.
