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Post by flyinkiwi on Mar 16, 2017 9:01:17 GMT 12
I used to fly a C180K model (ZK-JFG) with a three-blade McCauley propeller and a Robertson STOL kit. It was a lovely smooth machine, although it was quirky in a crosswind. You always used full flap (or none at all) in a crosswind because the ailerons were drooped with the flaps up to 30 degrees flap which limited their defelction. They went to full travel again at 40 degrees flap. I believe that Robertson STOL system was part of a float plane kit? JFG came from PNG originally, having flown with MAF there. It was badly damaged in a crash near Kawakawa Bay near Ardmore years ago and was rebuilt with the mods, which was how I first flew it. I did around 500 hours in that aeroplane and loved every moment in it. I think Colin (Kereru) has some good photos of JFG in action at Ardmore. I had the privilege of flying JFG briefly on a recent club trip to Raglan. The controls get quite heavy as the speed increases and she demands a lot of attention to trim, but it was a delight to fly her and the O-470 runs oh so sweetly. Former Aero Club CFI Roger Cruickshank was PIC and I must say I'm glad I wasn't asked to land her. She lives in Hamilton these days owned by the McChesney family who let Roger and other suitably qualified club members fly her.
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Post by Peter Lewis on Mar 20, 2017 13:41:54 GMT 12
The next Cessna 180 was registered ZK-BEZ to Rural Aviation on 31Mar1954 after being allocated N2317C at the factory. Kitted out for agwork, it operated in that role for Rural until August 1957 when it reverted to passenger-carrying configuration and was sold to the Hawkes Bay & East Coast AC at Hastings. This was in an era where there were stringent importing restrictions on bringing machinery and equipment into New Zealand, with import licencing and currency restrictions imposed bt the Government and the Reserve Bank. There was a work-around at the time whereby you could import an agricultural machine without running foul of restricive import licencing provided you used that machine for productive agricultural work for a specified time. This is probably why ZK-BEZ went topdressing prior to aero club use. At some stage while with HB&EC AC it carried the name City of Hastings. Afet 10 years with the aero club it was passed on to other owners (including a period in the Chatham Islands), eventually being damaged at the Piopio strip on 25Feb2013 during forced-landing caused by fuel starvation. The last time I saw ZK-BEZ it was being rebuilt by John Geary of Martin Aviation Services at Ardmore. The registration is still current. Cessna 180 ZK-BEZ in Rural Aviation livery at Paraparaumu 8May1954. Note that it is carrying Australian-style underwing pods, which we have discussed and deduced that were part of a seed-sowing exercise. Sans pods, at Dannevirke March 1956
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Post by kiwiduster1 on Mar 20, 2017 19:19:20 GMT 12
ZK-BEZ when owned by HB@EC aero club. Landing Bridge Pa.
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Post by xbaggy on Mar 31, 2017 10:34:59 GMT 12
BMU based at Timaru in 1974 and owned by Whirlwide Helicopters, used as Compnany hack. Unfortunately BMU was overnighting at Kaikoura on the night of the big August storm in 1975 and was blown from her moorings and severely damaged. I am not sure where the remains ended up. I have mentioned, in another thread that Timaru Hospital used to bring "Whooping Cough" patients out to the airport and the late Des Macambridge (Operations Manager) used to fly them up to altitude in BMU, where the air was thin, to relieve their congestion. I cannot recall the altitude but it must have worked as it was quite a regular occurance.
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Post by Peter Lewis on Apr 3, 2017 18:01:36 GMT 12
Cessna 180 N3672C arrived in the country in 1954 to become ZK-BGN at New Plymouth in September of that year. After assembly and fitout by Rural Aviation it moved to Hastings in November 1954 to become the property of Vanair Ltd. being registered as such on 20Jan1955. Vanair was operated by Mortimer T Vanderpump. Van had served with the RNZAF from 1940, including time as the CO of 19, 24 and then 15 Squadron. On leaving the air force in 1946 he was appointed CFI at the Hawkes Bay & East Coast Aero Club at Bridge Pa. In 1950 Van bought Auster Autocrat ZK-AUO and formed Napier City Air Service, working as a charter operator. Finding this financially unsuccessful he then entered the aerial topdressing industry with Tiger Moth ZK-AZP which was obtained from Air Contracts Ltd. in mid-1952. ZK-BGN replaced the Tiger, and was fairly quickly repainted in Vanair advertising and named ' Susie' after his wife. Unfortunatly, just five months later, ZK-BGN crashed at Putorino, northern Hawkes Bay, on 1Apr1955 while working and Mort Vanderpump was killed. It is believed that the crash was caused by engine or prop failure. Either the crankshaft broke or propeller shed a blade in flight and the crash occurred when Van was trying to carry out the subsequent forced landing. Substantial parts of ZK-BGN were incorporated into a 'bitsa' rebuild by Rural at New Plymouth which became ZK-BWK in 1960. ZK-BGN newly arrived at Hastings in late 1954A short while late, ZK-BGN as 'Susie'
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Post by kiwiduster1 on May 5, 2017 19:56:58 GMT 12
Hi Peter , Good to have you back hopefully well rested. Three pics you might add to BJV. The first is one of yours. Not sure where.? When she arrived at the Palmerston North Flying School Also seen here with Palmerston North Flying School. I have fond memories of trips down to Little Wanganui bringing back loads of whitebait in her and an encounter with one Tony Glowaki !! Fun days.
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Post by isc on May 9, 2017 23:09:33 GMT 12
When I first knew BKG, it was owned by Brian Hore of Nokamai station in the mid 1960s, it used to come into Rex at Dunedin each year for it's annual inspection, back in those days it had either an O-470A, or J engine (225HP), its been up rated to a O-470K (230HP)I think, and it's looking rather nice. isc See it at Charley Draper's strip when there is a fly in.
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Post by Peter Lewis on May 10, 2017 19:44:45 GMT 12
ZK-BLL was a unique Cessna 180 import into New Zealand, as it arrived already kitted out with a set of Edo amphibious floats. Miles King, the Rural Aviation MD, was convinced that floatplanes and amphibians had a bright future in this country so he travelled to the US and on to Canada to obtain floatplane experience. He wrote quite extensively about this part of his flying life in his book The Sky My Canvas. When ZK-BLL, which started life as N3230D, had been assembled at New Plymouth King undertook a wide-ranging demonstration of its capabilities throughout the country. Registered to Rural on 8Aug1955, the summer of 1955/56 saw ZK-BLL appear at many beachside holiday hotspots. Despite all this promotion by King, no further sales of 180s in this configuration resulted at that time, and in June 1957 the aircraft was sold to Northern Aviation Ltd. of Whangarei, possibly still with the floats attached. This enterprise did not last long, and ZK-BLL was sold on to Air Contracts Ltd. at Masterton in October the same year and took up life as yet another normally-configured agricultural aircraft. During its time at Masterton it carried the pilots name 'Clive Thorne'. Finance company Commercial Brokers Ltd. took title to ZK-BLL in January 1964 and they leased the aircraft to Northern Air Services Ltd. who operated from Te Kuiti. In November 1965 Northern took full ownership. In March 1996 the aircraft was sold into private ownership with W J Telford, Balclutha who kept it until June 1974 when Alistair Johnston & Ian Royds of Ashburton took it over. ZK-BLL finally met its end on 15May1980 when it hit some power lines and cartwheeled into a paddock at Willowby, Mid Canterbury. Pilot and one passenger seriously injured, a second passenger died some hours after the accident. ZK-BLL all pretty and polished at Mangere 1956, durings its floatplane days. Rather less pristine, ZK-BLL as a dungduster at Te Kuiti 1964
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Post by Peter Lewis on May 18, 2017 17:55:35 GMT 12
The new Cessna 180 that arrived as N4690A became ZK-BQA with Rural Aviation on 10Feb1956. After assembly at New Plymouth this aircraft went to Hastings in May the same year to work for Reeves Transport (Air Services) Ltd. In 1958 Bill Reeves bought new Piper Cubs ZK-BOX and ZK-BPL off Airwork to replace ZK-BQA, and the Cessna was traded in at Airwork for these two purchases. ZK-BQA was registered to Airwork in November 1958. I don't think that ZK-BQA was used operationally by Airwork, and the registration was cancelled on 17Feb1960 on its sale to Hazair Agricultural Service based at Orange, New South Wales. It took up the registration VH-BBM there, but did not last long as that registration was cancelled in September 1960. ZK-BQA in Reeves service at Bridge Pa, Hastingsand cleaned up and tidy outside the Airwork hangar at Christchurch
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Post by pacdriver on May 28, 2017 21:33:36 GMT 12
My first ever plane ride,late 1950s Middle Districts Aero Club, maybe Brian Milne , I was 4 or 5 years old 😎👍 the seed was sown
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Post by ZacYates on May 29, 2017 16:06:09 GMT 12
That, Mr Lewis, is a brilliant point!
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Post by Peter Lewis on Jun 10, 2017 17:46:01 GMT 12
After the Vanair C180 ZK-BGN crashed at Putorino on 1Apr55 the remnants were eventually taken back to the Rural Aviation workshops at Bell Block. Over time, these were incorporated into a bitsa rebuild along with various other new and used parts and the result finally emerged in March 1960 to be registered as ZK-BWK with the c/n RA.2/60 On completion, the aircraft was flown south into the care of Auster Air Services at Timaru. They took ownership on 6April1960. On 9Sept1963 ZK-BWK moved to Aerial Sowing (Canterbury) Ltd., Christchurch, and stayed with them until moving into private ownership on 23Dec1966. As has been pointed out already, on 24Feb1968 ZK-BWK was flown across to the Chatham Islands inside a Safe Air Bristol Freighter. It was then employed freighting crayfish from Pitt Island to the main Chatham Island to allow them to be prepared for export. ZK-BWK was returned to the NZ mainland later that same year. It was eventually destroyed in a a takeoff crash at Esk Heard Station, North Canturbury, 2Nov2013. ZK-BWK of Auster Air Services at Harewood (Christchurch) April 1961
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Post by isc on Jun 29, 2017 2:10:53 GMT 12
[img src=" i1378.photobucket.com/albums/ah84/iansc1/2014-12-13_0640x427_zps9b6518db.jpg" src="http://s1378.photobucket" alt="ZK-BKG and Peter Splinter, opening day for new Rex Aviation hangar at Dunedin" style="max-width:100%;"] Not quite the photo transfer I wanted, but click on the above and you'll get it. Peter Splinter was the engineering manager, and BKG was owned by Brian Hore at the Nokomai Station, south of lake Wakatipu. I,v got another photo a year or so later with a new paint job, and a photo of it now, I'll have to hunt them out. isc If you fiddle around with this you can find all the Cessna photos I have in P Bucket, including my weather vane. Well that didn't last for ever, the photo comes up on my computer, but tried another last night, it was gone with a message from PB. It's back again!
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tintopa
Leading Aircraftman
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Post by tintopa on Jan 23, 2018 21:07:30 GMT 12
Anybody know anything about this photo? This from way back on page 6 of this thread!!! I think the guy may be Brian Snell. If i'm correct he flew for Aerial Farming/Manawatu ATD. Killed Australia in a c180 at Cosgrove 24 Sept 65
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tintopa
Leading Aircraftman
Posts: 4
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Post by tintopa on Jan 23, 2018 21:12:16 GMT 12
Anybody know anything about this photo? This from way back on page 6 of this thread!!! I think the guy may be Brian Snell. If i'm correct he flew for Aerial Farming/Manawatu ATD. Killed Australia in a c180 at Cosgrove 24 Sept 65
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tintopa
Leading Aircraftman
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Post by tintopa on Jan 23, 2018 21:25:13 GMT 12
I'm a bit lost on this thread -
However, Bill Easton was a mate of my grandfathers. He was kind enough to let me use his workshop on weekends while I was a boarder at Dannevirke High School during the late 50's. With a friend we made a tandem bike and a go cart.
The firm did indeed make bridge girders - at one stage 1 a month manufactured and delivered to Taumarunui as part of a major bridge replacement program by the county while my father was the engineer there. About 100 were made. I did two trips home riding in the front truck. Rear vehicle was a design and build by Eastons, driver lay semi prone, powered by a Commer petrol engine.
Now, I understand that Bill had a Tiger Moth, fitted with a canopy.
Sorry - that's about all I know.
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Post by isc on Jan 23, 2018 22:04:15 GMT 12
Hi Tintopa, I to lived in Dannevirke 1958/60, lived on the corner of Trafalgar and Alardice sts, just round the corner from Vic Christy, and a few hundred yards from Eastons yard, often saw the bridge girders getting moved out. I seem to remember the Tiger Moth with the canopy. I often used to bike out to the airstrip just to see planes up close, or up to Oringi to see the DC-3, or Lodestar. isc
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Post by davidnzl489 on Jul 9, 2019 16:37:23 GMT 12
I remember this well. My father was Bert Burrowes, who had returned to flying a few years after the war. After sometime at Social Security, he worked at the Freezing Works to get the necessary money to train to be a topdressing pilot. He initally flew Tiger Moths, and briefly a Beaver for Rural Aviation. When BDF was available, we moved to Feilding, where he became one of the first (if not the first) Cessna 180 topdressing pilots.
I can only surmise that his wartime experience as a Beaufight torpedo bomber with No 489 Torpedo Bomber Squadron, (where he was nearly shot down) helped him deal with this emergency. The severed tail fin remained in our garage for several years. Family legend has it that Dad threw a weighed note out to a farm house on the way to New PLymouth (Home fbase or Rural Aviation) to alert them to his predicament. (No radios in those days to alert the emergency crews!!) His logbook shows that he went back to work the following day.
Dad remained involved in aerial topdressing until his death in December 1985. A Cessna 180 flew past the church after the service.
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Post by thomarse on Apr 12, 2020 18:18:56 GMT 12
Good point - CAV definitely had bomb racks but AFAIK was flown all her ag days by Naylor Smith.From memory CAV was a bright red and white, CAU was a sort of brown and white.
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Post by gooneybird47 on Mar 13, 2021 14:10:45 GMT 12
Wow, these pictures bring back memories, if only I had a camera or even a note book. My Dad was the Stores Manager for Rex/Rural Aviation and most Saturdays I had free range around Bell Block Airfield. I had flights in anything that was being test flown after maintenance at the hangar. We flew down to Christchurch several times for school holidays with our grandmother in 180/185 on delivery or after maintenance flights. From 180/185 through to Airland/Fieldair DC-3 and Lodestars I was lucky enough to get a ride. There is a picture of me in Paul Harrison and Brian Lockstone's A Century of New Zealand Aviation. Taken in 1964 at Bell Block sitting on the ground by an NAC DC-3, I am all of 9 years old. I remember the Rex/Rural annual meetings and Dad always arriving home late. Back in those days a lot of New Zealand's aviation seemed to involve a lot of alcohol. At an early age I tried to obtain one of the hangar cats new kittens. Momma Cat and I had a discussion over this, she won and I needed several stitches.
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