Red Checkers
The Central Flying School instructors’ team that flew Harvards and then CT-4 Airtrainers in red and white checks for most of half a century.
Red Checkers: how the team came to be and what it flies today
Harvards and a fuel crisis
The Red Checkers were formed in 1967 by the RNZAF’s Central Flying School, then at Wigram near Christchurch, flying the North American T-6 Harvard. The team took its name from the red and white checkered noses of its aircraft. It was disbanded in 1973, when the oil crisis made display flying hard to justify.
The Airtrainer years
It re-formed in 1980 on the New Zealand-built CT-4B Airtrainer, the RNZAF’s basic trainer, and moved with the Central Flying School to Ohakea in 1994. From 1998 it flew the CT-4E, a more powerful version. Its pilots were flying instructors, seven of them in the team, and over time the checkered nose was reduced to a smaller checkered stripe.
2010
2010 was the team’s worst year. On 14 January Squadron Leader Nick Cree was killed when his CT-4 hit the ground while practising display manoeuvres near Ohakea. On 1 March two aircraft touched during training, causing minor damage, and the team was grounded for the rest of the season.
Replaced by the Black Falcons
The Red Checkers were disbanded in January 2015 with the retirement of the CT-4 Airtrainer. The Central Flying School began flying the Beechcraft T-6C Texan II in 2016, and the RNZAF’s new team took the name Black Falcons.
Red Checkers in numbers
The team
- Formation
- 7 pilots
- Flying instructors of the Central Flying School
El avión
- Flown
- PAC CT-4E Airtrainer
- North American T-6 Harvard (1967–1973)
- PAC CT-4B Airtrainer (1980–1998)
- PAC CT-4E Airtrainer (1998–2015)
Hogar
- Based at
- Base Ohakea de la Real Fuerza Aérea de Nueva Zelanda
- Wigram until 1994
- Ohakea from 1994
The display
- Livery
- red and white, with a checkered nose, later a checkered stripe
Every type Red Checkers has flown
| Aeronave | Años | Number | Nota |
|---|---|---|---|
| T-6 Harvard norteamericano | 1967–1973 | ||
| Pacific Aerospace CT-4B Airtrainer | 1980–1998 | ||
| Pacific Aerospace CT-4E Airtrainer | 1998–2015 | Retired January 2015. |
Red Checkers, year by year
Team formed by the Central Flying School on Harvards.
Disbanded during the oil crisis.
Re-formed on the CT-4B Airtrainer.
Moves from Wigram to Ohakea.
Converts to the CT-4E.
Sqn Ldr Nick Cree killed in a display-practice crash near Ohakea.
Two aircraft touch in training; team grounded for the season.
Team disbanded with the retirement of the CT-4.
Central Flying School begins flying the T-6C Texan II; successor team named Black Falcons.
The cost of flying this close
Display flying is among the most demanding flying there is. These are the accidents on record, with the findings as published.
PAC CT-4 Airtrainer. Squadron Leader Nick Cree was killed when his CT-4 hit the ground while practising display manoeuvres near RNZAF Base Ohakea. 1 killed.
PAC CT-4 Airtrainer. Two team aircraft touched during training, with minor damage; the team was grounded for the rest of the season. No fatalities.
Everything people ask about Red Checkers
What aircraft did the Red Checkers fly?
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When were the Red Checkers disbanded?
Around Red Checkers
Todos los datos, verificados
Verified 2026-10-02.