Jack Gould, of Oxford and Walrus Fame

[Dave Homewood]

I don't know if all the old hands here were fully aware of this but I wasn't, Jack Gould that bought up loads of Oxfords and some Walrus flying boats postwar was killed tragically. This from the BAY OF PLENTY TIMES, dated the 26th of December 1947;

OWNER-PILOT BURNED TO DEATH

PLANE CRASHES INTO HOUSE

Dwelling At Paraparaumu

Partly Destroyed Lucky Escape For Occupants

(P.A.) Auckland, Dec. 25.

An owner-pilot was burned to death, and part of a house was destroyed by fire when his Tiger Moth aircraft, ZK-APL, flying low over Paraparaumu shortly after 6 o'clock on Wednesday evening, crashed into a rooftop and burst into flames. The pilot was Mr Jack Mervyn Gould, aged 34, married, with no children, a contractor and garage proprietor, of Paraparaumu. He had no passenger in his aeroplane.

The occupants of the house, which was divided into two flats, were not injured. Mrs F. Clewer, wife of the owner, was the only person at the time in the front flat, which was destroyed. She escaped badly shaken through a side door before the flames got a hold, Mrs A.H. Miles, who has four children, was in the back flat.

Earlier this year, Mr Gould purchased two Walrus amphibian planes and 110 Oxfords from the War Assets Realisation Board and in June made a sensational flight from Woodbourne across Cook Strait in a Walrus which had no certificate of airworthiness and which had not flown since l945. He later taxied a Walrus from Wairau Bar to Paraparaumu.

[Dave Homewood]

So, was there a big sale of his aircraft following his death?

[curtiss]

Dave - I think the Oxfords were the ones that were on Walshs' farm adjacent to Woodbourne.

[planewriting]

His widow, Margaret Gould, became National Airways Corporation's first ground hostess, at Paraparaumu Airport. There is a well known Whites Aviation photograph of her escorting young children on the tarmac. Referring to his two Walrus flying boats; he illegally flew NZ157 without a licence or C of A from Woodbourne to Paraparaumu in June 1947. In order to get the second one (NZ160) to Paraparaumu ,he taxied it from Cloudy Bay, Marlborough across Cook Strait. The voyage, on 24 July 1947, took about seven hours. (From notes in Aviation Historical Society journal December 1997). I think his wife was on board.

[madmax]

At home in Oz I have a copy of the investigation into the crash of Tiger Moth ZK-APL at Paraparaumu and seem to recall Gould's licence was suspended at the time of the accident however I'll not be able to confirm this until back home mid-December

[Peter Lewis]

According to my notes, ZK-APL hit power lines first, and then consequentially the house.

[thomarse]

Yes I did know about that Dave, and once worked with a guy who had seen it happen when in his teens and in PP for the holidays.

It would have been a very unpleasant Christmas present for many people, having occurred on Christmas Eve

Is the actual address mentioned anywhere?

Ironically, I have also encountered Jack Gould in the process of research into the history of logging in the Akatarawa Ranges

[thomarse]

Here's some more, courtesy of an interesting story by one Maurice Perry:

raumatisouth.com/assets/maurice_perry.pdf

Towards the end of the war, another sound of explosives was being heard, as Gould’s
Contractors from Paraparaumu built a road for Campbell’s sawmill along the escarpment
above Waterfall Road. A sawmill was being established at Paraparaumu and a road pushed
through into native bush in the headwaters of the Whakatikei River (a tributary of the
Akatarawa River) close to the base of Mt. Wainui. This road branched off the
Maungakotukutuku Road. The sawmill which operated at Paraparaumu, used logs from there
for some years until the supply of native timber was exhausted and the mill became
uneconomic then closed. The remnants of that road are still visible from Raumati South.

After the war a Paraparaumu resident Jack Gould, bought some surplus planes and brought
some of these to Paraparaumu. One morning in 1947, word went around that an amphibious
bi-plane was parked on Raumati beach. He had bought two Walrus amphibian aircraft at
Woodburn in Blenheim and taxied one across Cook Strait at night. Apparently there was no
certificate ofairworthiness, so flying them home was a definite no no!
On Christmas Eve 1947 we were all watching some spectacular aerobatics being undertaken
in a Tiger Moth. Unfortunately, later that day the plane crashed into a power-pole at
Paraparaumu beach, setting fire to an adjacent house and killing the pilot Jack Gould

[Dave Homewood]

From the BAY OF PLENTY TIMES, 12 JULY 1949

FATAL AIR CRASH AT PARAPARAUMU

CLAIM FOR £2744 DAMAGES

(PA.) Wellington, July 11.
A sequel to a fatal air crash at Paraparaumu on December 24, 1947, is a claim for £2744 damages brought before Mr Justice Smith in Wellington today. The plaintiffs are Frank and Louisa Clewer, whose house in Nathan Avenue was struck by an aircraft and badly damaged by fire.

The defendants are Mrs Margaret Murie Gould, widow of the pilot, Jack Mervyn Gould, an administratrix of his estate, and J. M. Gould, Ltd., contractors and aeroplane proprietors. The plaintiffs are represented by Mr W. E. Leicester, with him Mr H. R. C. Wild, and defendants by Mr H. R. Biss.

Mr Leicester said that liability had been admitted by the defendants, but the amount was in dispute. The case was adjourned until tomorrow.

[Dave Homewood]

I cannot find any follow up reports to that one above about the damages case, but it gives you a narrowing down to Nathan Avenue, Tom.

[madmax]

Hi Dave, I pretty sure the accident report I have gives the address of the house and names the owner but I'm unable to access it from here.
Cheers, Madmax

[Dave Homewood]

The owners of the house, as mentioned above, were Frank and Louisa Clewer. From Googling it looks like their house may have been 1 Nathan Avenue, Paraparaumu Beach.

[emron]

Oct 16, 2018 19:51:49 GMT 12 curtiss said:

Dave - I think the Oxfords were the ones that were on Walshs' farm adjacent to Woodbourne.

“Press”, 7 November 1947.

COOK STRAIT ROUTE APPLICATION
PLAN TO USE OXFORD PLANE

--0--

An application for a licence to operate an air freight service between Blenheim, Nelson and Wellington, using a twin-engined Airspeed Oxford aircraft, has been made to the Minister in charge of Civil Aviation (Mr F. Jones) by Mr J. M. Gould, of Paraparaumu. Recently, Mr Gould bought from the War Assets Realisation Board more than 100 Oxford aircraft declared surplus by the Royal New Zealand Air Force, and stored at Woodbourne aerodrome, near Blenheim. Two of these aircraft are reported to have been given certificates of airworthiness by the civil aviation branch of the Air Department.

Mr Gould, who is a cartage contractor, also owns some Tiger Moths and two Walrus amphibian aircraft, which are on the beach at Paraparaumu. He flew one Walrus from Woodbourne to Paraparaumu several months ago, and taxied the second across Cook Strait from the Wairau bar to the beach at Paraparaumu on July 24, taking about seven hours for the trip. Most of the Oxfords, which Mr Gould bought very cheaply, have been stripped of their equipment, and the fuselages, minus the wings, have been used by Blenheim residents for children’s playhouses and baches, and for storage purposes. One purchaser proposes to convert his fuselage into a caravan.

An air freight service is already operating across Cook Strait. The National Airways Corporation uses three Dakota aircraft between Woodbourne and Paraparaumu under charter to the Railway Department. The air freight service is co-ordinated with the South Island and North Island railway services.

[emron]

Gisborne Herald, 13 June 1947.

ORDER IGNORED
PLANE CROSSES STRAIT
---
DELIVERY OF AIRCRAFT

(P.A.) BLENHEIM, June 13.

Although warned by the station’s commanding officer that the plane was not even to be taxied on the airfield let alone flown, Mr. J. W. Gould, Paraparaumu, made a sensational take-off from Woodbourne on Wednesday and flew a Walrus amphibian across Cook Strait to his home.

Mr. Gould recently purchased two Walrus amphibians from the War Assets Realisation Board, the idea, it is understood, being to convert the amphibians to hydroplanes.

A week or so ago he announced his intention of taxing the amphibians across the Strait on a day when the weather was calm, but on Wednesday he achieved in an hour what might have taken weeks.

In doing so, however, he seems to have started something of a “flap” in that an investigation is now in progress regarding the flying of the machine with no certificate of airworthiness.

The aircraft has not been flown since 1945 when the amphibians were originally placed in storage.

Mr. Gould is a qualified pilot, but it is understood that he had never flown a Walrus before. However, he handled the machine perfectly even to taking off with a cross wind, a fact which occasioned pungent comment from the station’s personnel who witnessed the feat.

Mr. Gould arrived back at Woodbourne yesterday in connection with his many other purchases, but it remains for history to to relate how cordial was his welcome and whether he will again get his property into the air.


-------

Northern Advocate, 19 July 1947.

20 Pound Fine For Illegal Flight

(P.A.) WELLINGTON, This Day.

As a result of an unauthorised flight across Cook Strait in a Walrus amphibian on June 11. Jack Mervyn Gould, contractor and garage proprietor, appeared before Mr. J. L. Stout S.M., yesterday morning on two charges under the Air Navigation Regulations, 1933.

The charges were that on June 11 defendant flew from Woodbourne to Paraparaumu a Walrus, the personnel of which, including himself, were not provided with prescribed certificates of competence and licences, and that on the same day he flew the Walrus without it having been certified as airworthy in the prescribed manner.

THIRD CHARGE WITHDRAWN
A charge of flying the Walrus when it was not registered, or without bearing the prescribed nationality and registration marks printed upon it, was withdrawn.
Defendant pleaded guilty to the first two charges.
Sub-Inspector J. Abel said Gould had a flying licence, but it was not endorsed for the Walrus.
Before taking off he was signalled to return, but went on.
He had an employee with him.
His life and his passenger’s were at stake while he was flying, as he did not have a licence and, had he crashed at sea, the lives of other people may have been lost looking for him.

Appearing for Gould, Mr. O. C. Mazengarb K.C., denied that the flight was a foolhardy gesture.
From the War Assets Realisation Board defendant purchased two Walrus planes and 110 Oxfords and stores at Woodbourne.

REGULATIONS OUT OF DATE
He paid 50 pounds to put the Walrus in order, and his log book showed that the engine had 135 hours to go before it’s next overhaul was due.
To qualify for the Walrus defendant had to fly three circuits.
He was going on a qualifying flight when handed a letter, from Wellington forbidding him even to taxi the machine across the aerodrome.
He decided to take the air and come across, Mr Mazengarb said the regulations were out of date.

Observing that the regulations allowed for a penalty of 200 pounds and six month’s imprisonment, Mr. Stout imposed a fine of 10 pounds on each charge.

[emron]

Gisborne Herald, 26 July 1947.

ATTEMPT TODAY
COOK STRAIT CROSSING
----
WALRUS AMPHIBIAN

(P.A.) BLENHEIM, July 24.

Weather permitting, a Walrus amphibian, a sister plane to that which some weeks ago figured in an unauthorised flight from Woodbourne to Paraparaumu, will leave today from Cloudy Bay, about 12 miles from Blenheim, in an attempt to taxi across Cook Strait.

The machine, which was purchased recently from the War Assets Realisation Board by Mr. J. M. Gould, Paraparaumu, was towed to Cloudy Bay yesterday and successfully floated after considerable difficulty. The tow from Blenheim took the best part of three hours and the machine required several adjustments after it’s arrival at the beach.

Before the actual shoreline was reached a length of soft gravel had to be traversed and the plane bogged down at a point not far from the water. This necessitated a long wait until the rising tide made it waterborne and it was nearly dark before the pilot, Mr. H. G. Fairlie, an associate of Mr. Gould, took the plane away from the shore. After a taxi of several thousand yards, Mr. Fairlie turned the machine and anchored for the night, coming ashore by dinghy.

The weather for the whole of this operation was perfect and it is expected that the same conditions will apply today.
Most of the morning will be taken up with refuelling and if the sea is anything like a glassy calm as it was yesterday a start on the strange journey is expected to be made at about midday.

---0---

Gisborne Herald, 26 July 1947.

DELIVERED SAFELY
WALRUS AIRCRAFT
----
TAXIED ACROSS STRAIT
----
JOURNEY OF SEVEN HOURS

(P.A.) WELLINGTON, July 25.

Piloted by it’s owner, and carrying two passengers, a Walrus amphibian aircraft was taxied across Cook Strait from the Wairau bar yesterday in about seven hours. It reached the shore at Paraparaumu at 10.46 p.m. after an uneventful crossing of 30 miles to be welcomed by a group of residents.

The aircraft is owned by Mr. J. M. Gould, of Paraparaumu. With him on the trip were his wife and a friend, Mr. H. C. Fairlie.

Mr. Gould stated that the sea was a little rough for most of the trip, but after coming round Kapiti Island the going became smooth. There had been no trouble in the running of the aircraft, though the condition of the sea created some difficulties.
Mrs. Gould said she had dozed for the greater part of the trip. Mr. Fairlie said they did not attempt to hurry.

Some Anxiety Aroused
The amphibian’s journey had aroused a good deal of public interest and a watch for its arrival at Paraparaumu began hours beforehand. An estimate had been made that the crossing would take three hours and as it was known that the aircraft had started out between 4 and 4.30 p.m. some anxiety was aroused when the machine did not put in an appearance at Paraparaumu by 9 o’clock. An aeroplane flying over the strait reported to Air Traffic Control in Wellington that the amphibian had been sighted at 4.35 in Cloudy Bay making “fair speed.” That was the last report of the amphibian before its arrival.

The people who waited on the beach were rewarded when the amphibian came smoothly out of the darkness and ran up on the firm beach without a check.The pilot and passengers found many to congratulate them, and ask questions about the trip.

Anxious Moments at Start
There was a danger of a mishap to the amphibian before the crossing actually began. Going out to the open sea from the jetty at Wairau bar it grounded. It was floated successfully again only after some anxious moments for the occupants.

The amphibian was one of two Walrus aircraft that Mr. Gould purchased from the War Assets Realisation Board. The other Walrus Mr. Gould flew across Cook Strait recently from Woodbourne.

Last night the two machines–-the one that Mr. Gould had flown across the Strait and the other he had taxied--stood side-by-side at Paraparaumu.

[Dave Homewood]

Great to read these articles from the time. I had not realised he'd flown the first one across with no experience on type!

[Dave Homewood]

I also loved the expression, "a fact which occasioned pungent comment from the station’s personnel". Hahahaha

[emron]

Quite a comical adventure, like something out of Keystone Cops, but what’s the saying about “bold pilots?” Only 6 month’s later he was dead, following a different stunt gone wrong. Leaving a young widow to deal with the consequences and sort out the unfinished business. The Oxfords ZK-APX and -APY were returned to the Air Force, Tiger Moth ZK-ARC was sold to the Hauraki Aero Club and Walrus NZ157 and NZ160 were scrapped.

Gisborne Herald, 2 February 1948.

NO INQUIRY NEEDED
PARAPARAUMU FATALITY
----
CARELESSNESS ALLEGED

(P.A.) WELLINGTON, Jan. 31.

The magisterial inquiry into the aircraft accident at Paraparaumu on December 24 in which the pilot, Mr. J. M. Gould, lost his life, was not necessary as there could be no doubt as to the cause of the accident.
This was announced today by the Minister in charge of civil aviation, Mr. F. Jones, following his receipt of a report by the accident investigation branch of the Air Department.
The Minister said the inspector of accidents had found that the accident was the result of the aircraft striking the cross-arm of an electric power line pole while flying low in good visibility, and that this must be attributed to carelessness on the part of the pilot who had been engaging in manoeuvres at dangerously low altitudes.

---0---

Gisborne Herald, 8 August 1949.

REINSTATEMENT OF DESTROYED HOUSE

Reduction in the amount sought was awarded by Mr. Justice Smith in a Supreme Court judgment in Wellington on a claim for damages following destruction of a house and it’s contents by fire when struck by an aircraft at Paraparaumu.
The accident, which occurred on December 24, 1947, caused the death of the pilot, Jack Mervyn Gould. The owners of the house, Mr. And Mrs. Frank Clewer, claimed damages totalling Pds 2744 6s 10d from the deceased’s estate and from his widow, Mrs. M. M. Gould.
Negligence was admitted, and His Honour was asked to assess the damages, evidence on which filled over 100 typewritten foolscap sheets.
His Honour fixed damages at a total of Pds 1993 0s 1d, which included sums for reinstatement of the house and replacement of furniture and effects, and also special damages for the loss of living accommodation and shock in the case of Mrs. Clewer, who had been in the house at the time of the accident.
Prior to the hearing the defendants had paid into the court Pds 1340.

[emron]

Oct 16, 2018 19:57:28 GMT 12 planewriting said:

His widow, Margaret Gould, became National Airways Corporation's first ground hostess, at Paraparaumu Airport. There is a well known Whites Aviation photograph of her escorting young children on the tarmac. Referring to his two Walrus flying boats; he illegally flew NZ157 without a licence or C of A from Woodbourne to Paraparaumu in June 1947. In order to get the second one (NZ160) to Paraparaumu ,he taxied it from Cloudy Bay, Marlborough across Cook Strait. The voyage, on 24 July 1947, took about seven hours. (From notes in Aviation Historical Society journal December 1997). I think his wife was on board.

Ashburton Guardian, 29 April 1948.

FIRST AIR HOSTESS

The first airport hostess to be appointed in New Zealand, Mrs M. Gould, has begun her duties at Paraparaumu, says a Wellington Press Association message. Similar hostesses are to be appointed at Whenuapai and Harewood. Their duties will consist mainly in looking after women and children on arrival at airports.