Some Kiwis can fly -- very fast. But the New Zealand government wants to clip their wings.
Fourteen months ago, the Royal New Zealand Air Force was on the verge of snaring a fleet of F-16 fighter jets to replace its aging A-4 Skyhawk attack planes. Now, there will be no combat squadrons at all.
The neutering of New Zealand's air defenses -- the first advanced nation to do so without prompting from a defeat in war -- is part of a raft of defense changes that the center-left government announced in April. Along with the 17 Skyhawks, earmarked for disposal by the start of 2002 are 17 Aermacchi jet trainers, 700 jobs and a plan for a new frigate.