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Corser and Fogarty flying high By Glenn Le Santo
Lincolnshire, England, August 6, 2001 -- Carl Fogarty and Troy Corser got the ride of their lives after the Brands Hatch round of the World Superbike championship. The pair met up at the Royal Air Force (RAF) base, Scampton, in Lincolnshire, England to go up into the wild blue yonder with Britain's crack aeronautical team, The Red Arrows.
Former World Superbike champion Troy Corser is quite the keen flyer already. He's well on his way to getting his own pilot's license and looked visibly elated during the pre- flight briefing. Carl Fogarty is less happy flying on airplanes and those famous eyes flickered with a distinct look of nervousness as Wing Commander Andy Offer took the pair through pre-flight rigmarole.
"I worry about mechanical failure on the damn things," said a nervous looking Fogarty before climbing into the cramped cockpit of the twin seat Hawk trainer jet. Fogarty's nerves weren't helped by the constant jibing from an associate of his who had already flown with the Reds. "He's just been going on all morning about how sick I'm going to be up there!"
The pair took to the air riding pillion in the Hawks with full-time stunt pilots at the stick. These pilots are world-renowned experts allowed to do only three years in the 'Reds at first. A pilot can only continue after the three years are up if they are skilled (and lucky enough) to make it to Wing Commander. During those years they'll fly three sorties a day, five days a week. And they'll have to perform in front of crowds at several air shows, bike races and special events all over the world.
British television's Suzi Perry, who covers the World Superbike championship for the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation), joined Corser and Foggy on the mission. She was smiling through much of the briefing, a vain attempt to hide her nerves. For some reason the Wing Commander had chosen to take Suzi in his aircraft, pulling rank over his men who were left with the two former World Superbike champions.
Once the briefing was over - which at times consisted of impenetrable airmen's banter - it was time to fly. "I know it sounds like I was talking gibberish," commented Wing Commander Offer, "but it does all actually make sense to the men and consists of weather reports, flight paths, formation patterns and, of course, emergency procedures." Lucky, then, that it was impenetrable. Otherwise the talk of where to bail out or crash land may have had Foggy even more on edge. His last words before they closed the canopy were: "I know where my sick bag is, it's in my right hand, ready!"
After being carefully strapped into their "bang seats" (RAF banter for ejector seats) the three were taken up into the air to experience low level, high speed flying with a twist - or several twists, in fact! They were all taken through a full range of stunts, including barrel rolls, loops, vertical climbs and dives.
First to land was a decidedly grey looking Suzi Perry. "That's such a weird feeling," commented Perry as she climbed down from the cockpit. "I wasn't sick though, only nearly," she admitted. "The barrel rolls feel like flying on a magic carpet, but during the fast turns it felt like my body was being crushed, it felt like I was imploding. I was also very hot, despite having the air con' on full blast! Carl was waving at me, or should I say sticking his finger up at me and pulling faces?"
When Fogarty landed he was still grinning and hadn't needed to reach for the ever-ready barf bag. "It was great, it was easy," enthused Fogarty. "I just sat back and let him take me for a good ride. It was like being back on a race bike, when we were banking I was sticking my knee out like on a bike - it's been that long since I raced! The G-force is unbelievable, I could hardly keep my eyes open because of it and my arms felt like they weighed a ton! I'm really glad I did this. I used to watch these guys performing at the TT when I was over there watching my dad racing when I was still a kid."
Foggy's pilot, Flight Lieutenant Mark Cutmore, is in his last year with the 'Reds, so he's plenty experienced enough to handle a difficult passenger, even a multiple World Champion. "He was brilliant," said Cutmore. "He was worried about being ill but once we were up there he relaxed completely and gave me free reign to fly the full range of tricks and we pulled around 4.5 Gs most of the time with a maximum of about 7 Gs."
Corser urged his pilot, Flight Lieutenant Justin Hughes, to keep them up for longer and even took control of the jet to perform some maneuvers. "He's a natural," said Flight Lieutenant Justin Hughes afterwards. "He wanted to stay up for longer still but I had to land as we were running low on fuel. He took control of the stick for a while and did a few stunts. He's a bloody natural and I've already asked him to join our team if he's at a loose end when the bike season's over!"
How did the flight compare to a ride on his factory Aprilia race bike? "The acceleration didn't feel much harder than on my RSV," said Corser. "But the speed of the turns and rolls is awesome. It's so responsive, they handle much better than the little propeller airplanes I've been training in."
A mention must be given to the unsung heroes of this piece, the guys who keep the Hawks flying. Behind the scenes there are a bunch of dedicated and highly skilled guys in overalls keeping these old jets running. Even while the officers were up in the air giving their pillions the ride of their lives, these guys, known as the "Blues," were shut away in the corner of a vast hanger at Scampton giving one of the Hawks a major service. Without them, this very impressive team, which has wowed audiences all over the world with their flying skills, would be grounded.
The comparison with the mechanics and technicians who keep the race bikes going in the World Superbike championship is easy to make. Just like in the WSB paddock, the work these men do is often unappreciated despite the fact that the lives of the pilot (or riders) depends upon their skills. Their task of keeping the 25 year old jets in top flying condition and ready to take the hammering that the pilots hand out, deserves respect. A special mention goes out to Chief Technician Stuart Frazer for showing me what a Hawk looks like inside out!
A big thanks to the RAF and Squadron Leader John "Ginge" Page who organized the event and made us journalists all feel so welcome. Like many of the pilots, Ginge is a keen motorcyclist. It was his last day in the post as he's moving on to new pastures within the RAF. Thank you, Squadron Leader, sir!
Relevant links: www.redarrowsclub.com www.redarrowsshop.com
Specifications: Plane: Hawk Trainer. Mk 1A Engine: Rolls Royce / Turbomeca Adour Mk 151/02 turbofan Performance: Max Speed: 540 knots Service Ceiling (Maximum flying altitude): 48,000ft (14.630 meters) Dimensions: Span: 30 ft 10 in (9.40m) Length: 38 ft 10 in (11.85m) Height: 13 ft 2 in (4.00m) Weights: Max. Take off: 12.566 lb (5,700kg) Landing: 11,000 lb (5,000kg)