Kahu NZ was born via an aspiration fuelled by a focused motivation to become something strong and exciting within our helicopter business. The age old; “imagine if”, “I reckon I can”, “I’ll give it a go” attitude, was key in making this all happen. We all have this in us, its just matter of applying it relentlessly and as my good friend the late Pera Te Amo always said, “lean forward and outcomes prevail”.
Kahu NZ is that. With beginnings derived from rural NZ, previous experience within both aviation and military environments and a can do attitude, the idea of doing something like buying and operating the iconic Black Hawk, came easy.
By seeking out and bolting on like minded people spread across all walks of life, trades and the globe, the plan slowly evolved. Pot holes and curve balls abounded but thats expected. However a determined drive navigates these issues and finally you get runs on the board and the light gets brighter.
Kahu (Māori name for Hawk) is fitting for the Black Hawk which after 40 years of operations has found a new home in New Zealand. The idea to rename the exisiting company with the addition of the Black Hawk, came easy. The branding of the Hawk came easy also. Thanks to some very clever locals, the new brand was born. The “Kiwi Hawk” has been instantly owned by Kiwis. The eagerness to make it part of who we all are, has evolved with huge excitement and a strong willingness by many people to help wherever possible.
With black being the iconic colour of our national sporting teams, Kahu the Māori hawk, NZ our amazing country and the kowhaiwhai our special Maori illustration of all things Pakeha and Māori, we collectively capture who we are. Another special adage, is the US flag, representing the Pickering family of America who helped make all of this happen and whom we would not have succeeded without.
Having all of this bolted into one aircraft type, exudes an overwhelming sense of “Kia kaha” (strength). Flying our skies, working within our communities and representing us abroad reflects a similar image we see of our national teams, companies and people fronting up and getting the job done. This is an easy aircraft to like. Its a real been there and done that helicopter. Its “there and back” capability is legendary, all 40 years and 14 million flight hours of it.
So we welcome the Black Hawk to NZ. We say a huge thanks to everyone involved with this special project and long live the immense power of the human mind once tapped by motivated individuals.