‘‘The joke is that I got into flying a bit like an arranged marriage,’’ Ms Newell said.
‘‘I grew up in Waiau, North Canterbury, and I’m from a farming background, and other than the fact that I wanted to travel when I was younger, I never really thought of being a pilot.
‘‘When I was 16 my parents bought me a trial flight and I fell in love with it, but I didn’t think of it as a career option, I thought it was a silly thing to think about doing.’’
With Ms Newell working on a dairy farm doing relief milking, her father clearly had bigger ideas for his daughter.
‘‘Dad signed me up for the written test at the International Aviation Academy in Christchurch.
‘‘I was working on the dairy farm but he’d spoken to my boss to make sure it was OK.
‘‘He basically said, ‘Right you’re starting tomorrow.’’’
Even while learning to fly, a career in aviation felt like a ‘‘big daunting thing’’. But after following an examiner’s advice to just take things step by step, she is now an accomplished commercial pilot
‘‘I never thought that I could be an airline pilot, but my flight examiner, Charlie Elliot, just told me to do one thing at a time.
‘‘Train, and do the next thing, and if you enjoy it, do the next thing and keep on going.
‘‘I did my commercial pilot license and after that I just wanted to do more training.
With her commercial licence and a desire to further her education in aviation, Ms Newell remembered a chance encounter with fellow pilot and vintage aviation enthusiast Bevan Dewes, who is now her business partner and fiance.
‘‘I’ve always had an interest in vintage stuff, and I love the workmanship that goes into things that last, but I’d never thought about flying old aeroplanes until Bevan showed me his Chipmunk [a 1940s military aircraft] at Forest Field Aerodrome’s 25th anniversary,’’ Ms Newell said.
‘‘When I was looking for a job after I got my commercial licence, I remembered this person I’d met with the Chipmunk and that he had suggested going to Wanaka because they had Tiger Moths.
‘‘I knew that I wouldn’t be able to fly the Tiger Moth straight away, or potentially ever, but I went to Wanaka to instruct so I could be close to them just in case the opportunity came up.’’
The opportunity did come up, and when it did, the bond between the pilot, the plane, and its history was instant.
‘‘I love the open cockpit, and the fact that its mechanical, but the planes also connect so many people,’’ Ms Newell said.
‘‘The Tiger Moth was a trainer during the war, and it was used to train pilots in the Commonwealth.
‘‘After the war, they were owned by aero clubs, or by agricultural companies, and they were used to pioneer agricultural spraying and top dressing in New Zealand.
‘‘It’s almost like these planes have a personality, and I really like that aspect of it.’’
Later, with Ms Newell looking for a plane of her own to use as a flight instructor, a Tiger Moth became available.
‘‘I was looking for an aeroplane to train people with, and I was looking at a Cessna 120 from America, but then this Tiger Moth became available.
‘‘Even though the Tiger Moth used to be a trainer, it’s definitely not an aeroplane that suits training in modern times because you’re sat one behind the other, rather than side by side, which makes things a bit easier.
‘‘But one thing led to another and we bought and restored it.’’
The result is Queenie, a 1940 Tiger Moth which is one of the jewels of Legend Aviation, the business Ms Newell founded with her fiance.
‘‘One we’d done that, we just wanted to share it with people.’’
And where better to share it than Warbirds Over Wanaka.
‘‘Flying around Wanaka is just romantic in every way, especially in the Tiger Moth.
‘‘You’re out in the environment, and rather than looking at the view, you’re just part of it.’’
