KITS 10/2022

Z-326, No. 933, Burdigala Flying Group, Bordeaux-Léognan-Saucats Aérodrome, France, 2016

A very unusually colored Z-326 flies from Bordeaux-Léognan-Saucats airport today. The owner is obviously a fan of Navy aircraft and so he painted and

decorated his Trener in this spirit. The aircraft was

handed over to the CNVM (Centro Nacional de Verificación de Maquinaria) in Spain in 1968. From there

it was later sold to the French owner. It was flown

by the Picardie-Amiens Aero Club and is operated by

the Burdigala Flying Group today. In addition to several unidentified air unit markings, the aircraft also

sports various non-standard symbols.

Z-326, No. 876, private owner, Germany, 2018

The aircraft was produced in 1963 and sold to Germany on January 5, 1965. It received the D-EFAI matriculation, after some time it was sold to Sweden (where

it flew as SE-CWK), but later returned to Germany.

Subsequent changes of owners took the aircraft

first to France and then back to Germany again…

In Germany the aircraft continued to operate with the

original German matriculation. From 1984 to 1993 it

was owned by Dietmar Metz, now a member of the

Dragon Trener Team. Dietmar started his aerobatic

career flying the D-EFAI. Today, this Trener Master

has a new owner and a new livery, which includes

also a small Czech cockade.

Z-326MF, No. 861, Fundació Parc Aeronàutic de Catalunya, Barcelona-Sabadell, Spain, 2005

The first Trener Master exported to Spain was the one

with the serial number 861. Manufactured in 1962, it

was sold to Spain on April 29, 1964, and obtained the

EC-WXA matriculation. The aircraft served with the

Spanish National Aerobatic Team as the first Z-326.

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INFO Eduard

The team won the 1964 World Championships in Bilbao. Subsequently, the aircraft was grounded for several years. In the 1990s, members of the Foundation

at Barcelona-Sabadell Airport attempted to repair it

to airworthy condition, but eventually it was trans-

ported to Zlin-Avion Service in 2002 for complete

overhaul and conversion to the Z-326MF standard.

It was all completed in 2003. Since then, it has been

operated by the Sabadell Airport Foundation, now

with the EC-AXA matriculation.

October 2022