No. 488 Wing was the

wing A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expres ...

of the

Royal New Zealand Air Force The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) ( mi, Te Tauaarangi o Aotearoa, "The Warriors of the Sky of New Zealand"; previously ', "War Party of the Blue") is the aerial service branch of the New Zealand Defence Force. It was formed from New Zeala ...

(RNZAF) with responsibility for commanding all units based at

RNZAF Base Ohakea RNZAF Base Ohakea is an operational base of the Royal New Zealand Air Force. Opened in 1939, it is located near Bulls, New Zealand, Bulls, 25 km north-west of Palmerston North in the Manawatu District, Manawatu. It is also a diversion landin ...

. It was established in December 2010 and disbanded in March 2015.

History and role

In mid-2010 the RNZAF conducted a review of its command and control arrangements.BurleighEvatt (2012), p. 9 This review followed the death of a member of the

Red Checkers The Red Checkers was the aerobatic/precision flying Team of the Royal New Zealand Air Force. The Checkers fly the Pacific Aerospace CT-4E Airtrainer. Previous aircraft used were the CT4B and North American Harvard (T-6). Until the year 1994 ...

aerobatics team in a flying accident on 14 January 2010 and the crash of a

No. 3 Squadron RNZAF No. 3 Squadron RNZAF is a unit of the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF). It currently operates NHIndustries NH90 and Agusta A109 helicopters. The squadron was initially formed as a territorial unit of the New Zealand Permanent Air Force in Chri ...

Bell UH-1 Iroquois The Bell UH-1 Iroquois (nicknamed "Huey") is a utility military helicopter designed and produced by the American aerospace company Bell Helicopter. It is the first member of the prolific Huey family, as well as the first turbine-powered helic ...

on 25 April 2010 which resulted in the death of three airmen. The courts of inquiry into both accidents concluded that insufficient supervision of the units stationed at

had contributed to unsafe flying practices. In particular, the court of inquiry into the Iroquois accident found that the abolition of the RNZAF's geographically co-located base command positions in 2001 had resulted in a harmful lack of clarity around command responsibility. As a result of the recommendations of the command and control review, the RNZAF decided to establish a wing headquarters to command the units stationed at Ohakea. The new unit would complement No. 485 Wing, which commands the units stationed at

RNZAF Base Auckland RNZAF Base Auckland is a Royal New Zealand Air Force base located near the upper reaches of the Waitematā Harbour in Auckland, New Zealand. The base formerly comprised two separate airfields, Whenuapai and RNZAF Station Hobsonville. Hobsonville ...

.BurleighEvatt (2012), p. 22 Accordingly, No. 488 Wing Headquarters was raised on 8 December 2010. The wing's name was selected to honour

No. 488 Squadron RNZAF No. 488 Squadron was the name given to two distinct Royal New Zealand Air Force squadrons during the Second World War. Both were formed under Article XV of the Empire Air Training Scheme and served under the operational command of the Royal Air F ...

, a fighter unit which saw combat in the Pacific and Europe during World War II. As part of the new command arrangements, the RNZAF's

Training Group Training Group (TG) of the Royal Air Force was the group that controlled the stations of Personnel and Training Command. History It was formed on 1 April 1994 from the AOC Training Units with Personnel and Training Command its controlling fo ...

was disbanded, with its Flying Training Wing being reassigned to No. 488 Wing. No. 3 Squadron was also transferred from No. 485 Wing to No. 488 Wing. In early 2011 No. 488 Wing headquarters issued directives aimed at addressing "urgent deficiencies" in the Defence Force Flying Orders. The flying orders were eventually completely re-written during 2012.BurleighEvatt (2012), p. 11 In addition to its work in improving flying standards, the wing has also overseen the process of introducing RNZAF's

AgustaWestland AW109 The AgustaWestland AW109, originally the Agusta A109, is a lightweight, twin-engine, eight-seat multi-purpose helicopter designed and initially produced by the Italian rotorcraft manufacturer Agusta. It was the first all-Italian helicopter to ...

and

NHIndustries NH90 The NHIndustries NH90 is a medium-sized, twin-engine, multi-role military helicopter. It was developed in response to NATO requirements for a battlefield helicopter which would also be capable of being operated in naval environments. The NH90 ...

helicopters into service. No. 488 Wing was disbanded on 2 March 2015 as part of a major reform to the RNZAF's structure. No. 485 Wing and No. 209 Squadron were also disbanded as part of the reorganisation.

Structure

As of December 2014, No. 488 Wing comprised the following units: * No. 3 Squadron (Bell UH-1 Iroquois, A109, NH90) *Flying Training Headquarters **

Central Flying School The Central Flying School (CFS) is the Royal Air Force's primary institution for the training of military flying instructors. Established in 1912 at the Upavon Aerodrome, it is the longest existing flying training school. The school was based at R ...

** Pilot Training Squadron ( Aerospace Industries CT-4E Airtrainer) ** No. 42 Squadron ( Beechcraft Super King Air B200)

References

;Citations ;Works consulted * {{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017 488 Wings (aviation) Military units and formations established in 2010 2010 establishments in New Zealand