Whites Aviation magazine

[Dave Homewood]

I picked up a copy of a magazine while in Christchurch which is entitled "WHITES" with subtitles 'Air Travel - Air Freight - Air Guide'.

It is dated May 1949 and the original price was 1/- (err, a shilling I believe).

I was aware of Leo White's aviation and aerial photography business of course but till now I never knew he'd also published a magazine. I did a websearch and found on the excellent Dictionary of New Zealand Biography page that the magazine lasted from1945 till 1971. So it must have been popular enough, and probably a nice complement to and rival of New Zealand Wings during those years.

This issue has a fair bit of travelog stuff on Fiji (lots of aerial shots) and a good deal of the magazine is articles and news on the airline industry in NZ and around the world. There are other aviation articles, one on the new idea of dropping rabbit poison from planes, etc. And lots of nice period adverts.

My particular copy also has an added bonus, the stamp on the back stating "New Zealand National Airways Corporation - Not To Be Removed From Aircraft." So I guess it once plied the main trunk routes of 1949 NZ in the shiny silver DC-3's of NAC. Cool.

Does anyone out there have more of these magazines? I'm curious to know if they covered military aviation too, or just stuck to the air travel and freight side of things?

[Peter Lewis]

I understand that the MoTAT library has a full set,

[Dave Homewood]

That's good to know if I ever need to do any research, thanks Peter

[Dave Homewood]

I have scanned some of the really nostalgic adverts for airlines and aviation products in that 1949 issue of Whites.

I hope you all like them.

I'd never heard of ANA before. I wonder what became of them, they claim to be Australia's most experienced airline.







Note the stamp on this, the back cover, which reads 'NEW ZEALAND NATIONAL AIRWAYS CORPORATION. NOT TO BE REMOVED FROM AIRCRAFT'

[corsair67]

Dave, Australian National Airlines was formed in 1936, and was close to collapse when bought out in 1957 by Ansett.........and then we all know what happened to them!

Those old adverts are excellent: I love the "mere four days of swift, luxurious flight by Constellation" to reach England!

[Dave Homewood]

Here are some more.













Last one

[Bruce]

what an amazing little piece of history you have there Dave - its often the little things like the adverts that shed light on the period. Great to see the BCPA ad, showing the DC-6s that later went to TEAL and the RNZAF.
I would certainly put my hand up for the swift 4 day flight to the UK in a BOAC or Qantas Connie! and I would love to fly back with Pan American with the "sleeperette" cabin - no deep vein thrombosis after those flights! (although this is probably with the hindsight of modern times and as an aircraft enthusiast - my Dad came out from England by BOAC Britannia and reckoned it was a long tedious business) - I'll have to get along to "Airways House" in customs St!

[Dave Homewood]

One more TEAL piece

[Peter Lewis]

The sleeperette came at a price . . .
The average wage in 1949 was around 10 pounds per week, so the fare of 496 pounds (ignoring the four shillings and five pence) works out at just under 50 weeks wages (before tax).
At the 2006 average wage of $800 per week, you'd be paying a return fare to London of $39680.00
You'd want a bit of luxury for that sort of bread.