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Fouga
The
French Fouga CM-170 Magister has long enjoyed the reputation of
being the "Deluxe" item in a training category jet warbird.
With twin engine safety, excellent air conditioning and
pressurization, hydraulically boosted ailerons (on most versions),
and delightful flying qualities, the Fouga always pleases. It's truly
a miniature Falcon jet, and is elegant and graceful in both design
and flying characteristics.
The
Fouga was one of the first purpose-built primary jet trainers, and
served with some 19 air forces as a trainer and light ground attack
jet. The vast majority of Fougas in the USA are ex-French, although a
few ex-Finnish airplanes are circulating.
Fougas
are one of the jets with which Red Star Aviation has always been
most closely associated. We have, to date, owned 14 different
examples of this airplane, and our current one is the best that we
have operated. We have trained innumerable numbers of pilots in this
aircraft, well over 200 to date in various courses that we teach, and
we have operated it with a 98% dispatch reliability rate and zero
mishaps of any nature.
Our
aircraft is the more powerful Fouga version, with the larger
Turbomeca Marbore VI engines substituting for the more common Marbore
II engines. This gives us a little better climb rate, while
sacrificing a little range. Our Fouga has been modified with
sophisticated avionics including VHF (civil) and UHF (military)
communications radios, full digital IFR capability, a Honeywell
UNS-1C Flight Management Computer, and a color multifunction display
for navigation information. We have installed an angle of attack
measurement system, and in-cockpit video cameras for recording flight
information. The reasons for these modifications are to enable it to
meet its most common training role, which is teaching Corporate
Aviators how to recover from unusual attitudes and in the techniques
for recovery from wake turbulence and windshear. Naturally, these
modifications also enhance this aircrafts utility in the primary
training role. We rely on the Fouga as one of the backbone aircraft
of our fleet, and suggest it to be used as a primary or intermediate
level trainer. Pilots seeking full qualification in this aircraft do
need to be multiengine rated, as it is a twin engine aircraft.
If
we are asked to pull our favorite aircraft out of the hangar for a
"Fun Flight" there's no hesitation: The Fouga comes out
first. Come and fly it with us!
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