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Post by johnm on Aug 12, 2017 14:42:42 GMT 12
about 1982  ?? when I was at the Motueka NZ flight school someone said there was a mozzie in a farm shed down the road me and my mate went looking ................ sure enough we found it, asked Mr farmer if we could look - it was in good nick ................ with other aircraft (can't recall the others) from memory the main wings and tail were on and standing on undercarriage ............and the elevators were off. we sat in the cockpit - it was complete (more or less) even the pilots handbook was there to read (something about if plane mishandled someway watch out the prop blades would n't break off ?!?) can someone advise where that Mosquito ended up and also what happened to the other aircraft please |
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Post by Dave Homewood on Aug 12, 2017 15:51:38 GMT 12
That would be John Smith at Mapua, I'd guess.
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Post by rayo on Aug 12, 2017 16:11:11 GMT 12
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Post by rayo on Aug 12, 2017 16:26:04 GMT 12
That would be John Smith at Mapua, I'd guess. Dave, Speaking of the Mapua Aircraft what is the current state of the Hudson restoration do we know?? |
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Post by Dave Homewood on Aug 12, 2017 16:47:33 GMT 12
Last I heard there are not plans to restore it to flying, unlike the media and some airshow commentators continually seem to say. But some interior parts were being restored by Martin Reid. This is two year old info though. Since then the Reid family have had more important priorities.
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Post by campyrider on Apr 18, 2018 22:52:52 GMT 12
As a long time aviation enthusiast and modeller I have great interest in viewing this collection. Information on location and how to contact Mr Smith would be greatly appreciated. I am a regular visitor to the Nelson area and will be there June 2018.
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Post by 185skywagon on Apr 23, 2018 22:32:21 GMT 12
I'm pretty sure there was another mossie in the motueka area until recently (say last 20 years) when it was dumped. Wasn't it a fuselage only, intended for his kids to play in
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Post by Dave Homewood on Apr 23, 2018 23:04:32 GMT 12
I'm pretty sure there was another mossie in the motueka area until recently (say last 20 years) when it was dumped. Wasn't it a fuselage only, intended for his kids to play in  |
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Post by 185skywagon on Apr 23, 2018 23:17:11 GMT 12
Was just a story I heard a few times from the area. Story goes that it had been on the farm for over 50 years and was eventually dumped or burned due to it's extremely poor condition, with the owner being oblivious to it's true worth. Was either in the upper moutere or tapawera area.
Of course being a story the finer details may have changed between tellings...
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Post by shorty on Apr 24, 2018 14:38:16 GMT 12
Would that have been NZ2308?
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Post by 185skywagon on Apr 24, 2018 17:20:34 GMT 12
Could be but I wouldn't think so. The stories I heard was that it was definitely destroyed and not all that long ago.
My understanding was (and correct me if I'm wrong here as I'm definitely no expert on the type or history) that there were a number that were sold into the area to use their parts for other purposes. One can assume that a couple of these physically survived, perhaps stripped of all useful parts. The remains of the one in question probably ended up in someones back yard as a kids play hut where it sat for many years.
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Post by noooby on Apr 24, 2018 18:52:07 GMT 12
That would be my Dad's cousin down Clinton way. They burned one at Guy Fawkes, but that was decades back (1950's). He had 4 or 5 in total. I thought the last of the parts went to the UK?
Dad was on the family farm in East Taieri at that time and the Mossies stayed there for a while until room and transportation was organised. A couple of underwing tanks were left behind but everything else headed South.
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Post by agalbraith on Apr 24, 2018 22:01:28 GMT 12
John Smith was still gathering Mosquito parts from around the area even only a few years back. He showed me all sorts of stuff he had picked up. Cameron and I spent about 3 hours there going through Mossie stuff with him....in fact Cameron got quite the lesson in Mosquito manufacturing differences between airframes from Australia compared to UK built ones.
When he opened up the main shed door to point out some stuff on the Mosquito and show Cameron, you could barely get to it, compared to prev visits. In fact, I didn't bother as I have been up in her several times, I left Cameron to wiggle his way through the maze to see her. But I certainly got the impression he was still acquiring stuff from the region.
I know he was still looking for a 'Strike Camera' to put back in the nose, as his one has the big central camera port (not the G45) above the .303's as well as some RP rails, as he only has one rail. Also the underwing bomb rack fairings, but we doubted those 3 piece fairings ever made it out to NZ.
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Post by Dave Homewood on Apr 24, 2018 22:46:55 GMT 12
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Post by 185skywagon on Apr 24, 2018 23:13:31 GMT 12
Well definitely not in ashburton but that thread you linked might very well be on the money Dave. I don't remember reading it when it was active so it's rather interesting and is starting to connect some dots. After doing a little digging it is worthy of note that quite a large number were sold to the area. There could even potentially be another one still laying around on a property there (apart from John's obvious one), I guess we can only dream. I'm heading down in a few days I will do some digging.
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Post by madmax on Apr 25, 2018 10:37:09 GMT 12
I recall reading when I was a "plane mad" young lad in the 1950s, probably in Wellingtons Evening Post, of a farmer of orchardist in the Nelson/Motueka area who had purchased one or more Mosquitoes to strip for their hydraulics and wheel with which to use to construct farm equipment. If my memory is not playing tricks I believe their was a photo of photos with the article. I expect the date of this article would probably have been somewhere around 1953 to 55.
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Post by denysjones on Apr 26, 2018 15:00:30 GMT 12
Possibly a bit of an aside but I recall something about a mossie that ended up in a wood yard in Blenheim. The yard, as I recall, had a name like Ruffels and a/c was quoted by what was obviously it's RAF serial beginning with RF. That would offer up some 14 candidates with RF908 (NZ2369) looking most likely as have been recorded derelict sans wings in Blenheim in 1961 by Charles Darby (AHSNZ Journal Vol4 P41).
Anyone have positive data on this and if so it's eventual fate?
Charles also recorded the mossies '21, '06, TA578, RF885 and a 5th unidentified at Lower Moutere if that helps any with the madmax's post.
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Post by Dave Homewood on Apr 26, 2018 23:31:17 GMT 12
Dad worked on an apple orchard for a picking season at Upper Moutere in the early 1960'sand he said every morning you'd hear Merlin engines being started all around the valleys. They were mounted on trailers made from the aircraft wheels and they were towed around the orchards with the propellers spinning to blow frost off the trees, just like the helicopters do these days. Dad always reckoned they were from TAF Mustangs but it's more likely they were engines and wheels removed from Mosquitoes I think.
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Post by ZacYates on Apr 27, 2018 11:58:29 GMT 12
There could even potentially be another one still laying around on a property there .... I'm heading down in a few days I will do some digging. The pessimist in me thinks you'll need literal digging: I'd be very surprised to see much beyond fittings and other smaller metal parts still around. Looking at recovery photos for NZ2308 and others suggest that, 35+ years later, you'd be lucky to find any wooden parts or even a recognisable ex-Mossie. That said I'm curious to see what you turn up. |
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?? when I was at the Motueka NZ flight school someone said there was a mozzie in a farm shed down the road
