About Fighter Flights

Fighter Flights operates out of the world renowned Omaka Aviation Heritage Center in the beautiful wine growing area of Marlborough. The aircraft you will fly in is actually hangered in the new WW II AHC exhibition hall in a representative Stalingrad Diorama.

Fighter Flights also supports as many airshows as possible during the summer months and there is ride availability at these shows usually on the post show Monday. To date the Fighter Flights Yak has appeared at the Warbirds over Wanaka Easter Air Show (every even year), the Omaka based Classic Fighters Easter Air Show (every odd year), the Tauranga Classics Air Show and the Wings over Wairarapa Air Show.

We also support the NZ Warbirds Open days at Ardmore Auckland and the regular flying days at Omaka Airfield that are organised as fund raisers for the Avaition Heritage Center.

Fighter Flights is a business offering flight experieces in a Yakovlev 3 WW II V-12 fighter-“The Russian Spitfire”.

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Take Off

Graeme Frew

PILOT

Graeme is the Director and Chief Pilot of FFL. Graeme started his aviation career as an engineer with the RNZAF and after 8 years of trying, gained a pilot qualification in 1987. He went on to fly Andover and Hercules transport aircraft for 9 years. The highlight of his time with the Air Force was working with the United Nations in Iran for 6 months and three seasons of flying down to Antartica.

In 1995 Graeme started an Air Line career where he is currently flying as an Airbus A320 Training Captain.
Graeme has always had a passion for Warbird aircraft and owned a Nanchang CJ-6 for a number of years before purchasing the Yak as a project in 2004. Flying and displaying the Yak 3 is a hard earned dream come true for Graeme and he loves being able to demonstrate the power, performance and grace to his passengers on what is a once in a lifetime experience.

Ryan Southam

PILOT

Ryan has been immersed in aviation from a very early age and was actively flying at the age of 17. From this early beginning the passion for vintage aviation and warbirds has driven Ryan to train and develop his career path around this exciting but small niche of vintage and warbird aviation as a commercial pilot, instructor and aircraft restoration engineer.
Ryan has always had a hankering to fly the higher performance fighters such as the Mustang and Spitfire and jumped at the offer to fly the Fighter Flights Yak 3-the Russian Spitfire.

Currently experienced in flying over 60 different types of aircraft, a large portion of which are vintage or warbird, Ryan brings a wealth of experience ranging from WWI single engine aircraft through to WWII twin engine bombers. Ryan will introduce you to the power and agility of this amazing aircraft so widely praised by ‘friend’ and feared by ‘foe’.

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