Accolades for Graeme Frew, Whanganui-born 'Burt Munro of the skies'

Graeme Frew in action in the Nevada air races in his plane, Full Noise.

He's been labelled the "Burt Munro of the skies" and now Whanganui-raised Graeme Frew has made a name for himself in the world's fastest motorsport competition, not far from where Munro claimed his motorcycle land-speed record.

Over the past week, Frew has been competing at the 54th National Championship Air Races in Reno, Nevada, in his Yak-3 World War II era Soviet fighter plane. Air racing is known as the world's fastest motorsport and Reno is one of the few remaining race meets.

The first Kiwi to compete there, and supported by a crew of engineers and pilots from New Zealand, Frew picked up seventh place in the finals of the Unlimited gold class and won Unlimited Rookie of the Year.

Aircraft in the Unlimited class, which is mainly made up of World War II fighters, compete together in multi-lap races around a course marked by pylons in the Nevada desert. The Unlimited class planes reach speeds of anywhere from 500km/h to 800km/h.

The Burt Munro comparison reflects the inspiration Frew has taken from the man behind the world's fastest Indian and the continuation of Munro's brand of Kiwi ingenuity.

Frew's plane, "Full Noise", has the same race number as Munro's Indian motorbike. When Frew bought it, the plane was a wreck following a take-off accident at a race in Reno. He shipped it to New Zealand in 2004 and, after a lengthy rebuild, it took to the skies again in 2012.

The No 8 wire mindset came to the fore again when the Full Noise team had to do an overnight engine change, which took 18 hours, the day before the first race in Nevada. Full Noise started last in the competition and worked up to the premier race.

When he's not racing restored fighter planes, Frew is an Auckland-based airline captain. His plane is normally part of the Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre display in Blenheim and attends air shows around New Zealand.