Post by Dave Homewood on Nov 2, 2023 19:06:59 GMT 12
Recently I was thinking about how in the mid-1960s the government purchased a load of new aircraft for the NZDF, including the Hercules, Orions, Iroquois, Sioux and Wasps. Lots of people talk about it being the foresight of Air Vice-Marshal Ian Morrison, the then Chief of Air Force. This is true, but I was having a think about it and realised we must have had a pretty smart Minister of Defence at the time too. It would not have been too easy at that time to get the government to buy so many US products when we usually only bought British.
Anyway, I looked up to see who was Minister of Defence at the time. It was a man called Dean Eyre.
Eyre was rather interesting, he started studying to become a lawyer but two years into his university course, his money ran out, so he left and became a commercial traveller for car parts.
Then in 1936 he founded Airco (NZ) Ltd, a business importing American designed washing machines, refrigerators and other appliances which were assembled in a small factory just off Queen Street in Auckland, and selling them.
His flatmates at the time were Maurice Paykel, and Lou and Woolf Fisher. Of course they later went into the appliance business themselves! So I guess they may have been involved with Dean Eyre in his company?
In 1938 the Labour government banned imports from the USA and that wrecked his company. But the suppliers in the US had been so impressed with him that they invited him to move to Hawaii to work there for them. So he moved to Hawaii and was selling appliances there.
He was actually living in Honolulu at the time when the Japanese attacked in December 1941!
He and his family were evacuated to San Francisco, and then he joined the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve. He served in destroyers in England and the Atlantic from 1941 to 1945. He later served in the Royal New Zealand Naval Volunteer Reserve at Freetown, Sierra Leone holding the rank of Lieutenant.
He and his family returned to New Zealand when he was demobilised in 1946. Upon returning he relaunched the Airco company which later became the first New Zealand assembler of Vespa scooters.
Then in 1949 he got into politics and stood for National. He was in parliament as an MP from 1949 to 1966, and he served as New Zealand's Defence Minister from 26 September 1957 – 12 December 1957, and then again from 12 December 1960 – 12 December 1966, both times in the government of Prime Minister Keith Holyoake.
Later he became New Zealand's High Commissioner to Canada. he died 19th of May 2007, aged 93.
I just found him interesting.
Anyway, I looked up to see who was Minister of Defence at the time. It was a man called Dean Eyre.
Eyre was rather interesting, he started studying to become a lawyer but two years into his university course, his money ran out, so he left and became a commercial traveller for car parts.
Then in 1936 he founded Airco (NZ) Ltd, a business importing American designed washing machines, refrigerators and other appliances which were assembled in a small factory just off Queen Street in Auckland, and selling them.
His flatmates at the time were Maurice Paykel, and Lou and Woolf Fisher. Of course they later went into the appliance business themselves! So I guess they may have been involved with Dean Eyre in his company?
In 1938 the Labour government banned imports from the USA and that wrecked his company. But the suppliers in the US had been so impressed with him that they invited him to move to Hawaii to work there for them. So he moved to Hawaii and was selling appliances there.
He was actually living in Honolulu at the time when the Japanese attacked in December 1941!
He and his family were evacuated to San Francisco, and then he joined the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve. He served in destroyers in England and the Atlantic from 1941 to 1945. He later served in the Royal New Zealand Naval Volunteer Reserve at Freetown, Sierra Leone holding the rank of Lieutenant.
He and his family returned to New Zealand when he was demobilised in 1946. Upon returning he relaunched the Airco company which later became the first New Zealand assembler of Vespa scooters.
Then in 1949 he got into politics and stood for National. He was in parliament as an MP from 1949 to 1966, and he served as New Zealand's Defence Minister from 26 September 1957 – 12 December 1957, and then again from 12 December 1960 – 12 December 1966, both times in the government of Prime Minister Keith Holyoake.
Later he became New Zealand's High Commissioner to Canada. he died 19th of May 2007, aged 93.
I just found him interesting.
