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Post by alanw on Jun 22, 2008 19:13:25 GMT 12
Hi all Does any one have a photo/picture of the Braby that was used at Hobsonville for mooring/ on water servicing the Sunderlands. I have a pretty good idea what it looked like, but I cannot remember if the rear part (where the actual keel part was enclosed) was rounded or square I want to build a diarama (later this year ... hopefully  ) Thanks Alan |
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Post by stu on Jun 22, 2008 21:12:24 GMT 12
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Post by alanw on Jun 23, 2008 15:47:26 GMT 12
Hi Stu
Thanks for that, there is a picture in there, that shows the rear
of the braby quite well
Regards
Alan
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Post by sniff on Jun 23, 2008 19:23:36 GMT 12
Alan, is this a Braby?  When I was at Hobby, the whole lower apron was generically (generally?) called "The Braby". But from what you are alluding to, in fact it is only the sea-based docking facility? Am I right? Cheers, Tony |
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Post by alanw on Jun 23, 2008 20:03:29 GMT 12
Hi Tony That's the picture I mentioned from Stu's post Yes. As I understand it the braby was the on water servicing pontoon/dock.  The braby was attached to the pontoon (as in picture hiding behind the walkway)  Interesting you should mention the lower apron was called the Braby, when we lived at Hobby we knew it as the hard. May be there are those who could add extra light? Thanks Alan |
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Post by sniff on Jun 23, 2008 20:23:11 GMT 12
That rings true. I posted whole bunch of messages last year on the Sunderland/Hobby threads, because I couldn't find how it was spelled, let alone what it actually was. I was at Hobby from '77 to '84, but frequented the place often from '69 with the ATC. We lived in Beachhaven when I was a kid, so I regularly caught W88 (was it?) to Hobby for a spot of gliding.  |
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Post by acer on Jun 23, 2008 20:31:38 GMT 12
I've been around Hobby for the last 27 years and have always known that area as either the apron or the hard. Back in 1981 I used to fish off the NASU pontoon (where the Braby in the picture was) and there were still two NASU boats there. From memory, in the absence of flying boats, the support vessels were mainly used for picking up meat bombers in the Rangitoto channel following wet jumps.
Apparently the Hobsonville Land Company will be completely rebuilding the wharf and building facilities for future commuter ferry operations. Interestingly, they will not be removing the original wharf, because if they do that a new set of resource consents will be required to rebuild it. Instead they will completely "renovate" the existing wharf, which has definitely seen better days. So, it's a case of "grandfathers axe" to get around the considerable red tape. I also understand that the hard will be left alone, at least for the first 5 years of the development of Hobby.
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Post by alanw on Jun 23, 2008 20:52:35 GMT 12
Acer
Thanks for that info re: re-development.
All I can say is that type of re-development sucks big time.
Hobsonville Air base(all of it would be nice ) especially the flying boat area should be classified Historic Trust material.
Lots of memories there...
Thanks/Regards
Alan
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Post by Peter Lewis on Jun 23, 2008 20:57:16 GMT 12
Are these any help?   |
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Post by acer on Jun 23, 2008 21:10:31 GMT 12
All I can say is that type of re-development sucks big time. Hobsonville Air base(all of it would be nice ) especially the flying boat area should be classified Historic Trust material. Lots of memories there... I totally agree. I know you can't stop progress, but that area is just too nice to spoil with high density housing (read: the slums of the future). While development of the hard hasn't been decided, hopefully anything that does go in will be sensitive to the historic past of the area - insert Tui ad here! There are plans to keep the bomb dump area as a park/reserve too. |
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Post by acer on Jun 23, 2008 21:13:04 GMT 12
I was at Hobby from '77 to '84, but frequented the place often from '69 with the ATC. We lived in Beachhaven when I was a kid, so I regularly caught W88 (was it?) to Hobby for a spot of gliding. I am pretty sure that W88 was one of the boats that used be at NASU when I was first there, 1981-1986-ish. |
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Post by alanw on Jun 23, 2008 21:25:15 GMT 12
Hi Peter
Those are awesome. Thank you ever so much!!
Wasn't P for Percy (slightly off topic -sorry) the Sunderland donated to the Whangarei Coast Guard and evetually scrapped due to vandelism?
Reagrds
Alan
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Post by Dave Homewood on Jun 24, 2008 0:50:48 GMT 12
When I was living at Hobby that area was called the hard or the 'wet apron' (as opposed to the dry apron up top in front of the other hangars).
I've never heard the word 'braby' before and never realised that they had these floating docks for the flying boats. Really quite interesting.
I too used to fish off the pontoon at the end of the wharf. After wandering around Hobby back during the reunion in May, I was stunned how little had changed since my days there in 1990-91 (apart from the degradation due to lack of care by the new owners). It's a perfectly preserved example of a prewar Air Force station (the only one left) and to think within a year it will be destroyed seems criminal and outragious. Look how many people have lamented the loss of Wigram, surely there's good cause to save Hobsonville as a park and reserve base rather than cut it up. There will be no green space left round there soon, and that airfield would make a wonderful greenspace rather than slum neighbourhood. Very few of the buildings are slated to stay there too. Most will be bulldozed. As for the wharf, I wish they'd leave it as is, it's fantastic, really rustic and historic. Hw many great heros have walked the length of that dock I wonder.
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Post by tbf25o4 on Jun 24, 2008 11:34:54 GMT 12
The braby is the pontoon (horseshoe shaped as per peter lewis photos above) that the aircraft were towed into backwards. It was lashed to the end of the jetty and there were two one at Hobsonville and one at Lauthala Bay. The braby was primarily used for maintenance access to the flying boats or for the embarking/disembarking of VIP passengers. On the occasions that TEAL used Hobsonville they also used the braby.
Got this from John Ford who was a Sunderland captain in the early 1960s
Paul
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Post by Peter Lewis on Jun 24, 2008 20:11:56 GMT 12
Yes, NZ4114/P was the one that went to Whangarei, see this thread: rnzaf.proboards43.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=Airshows&thread=2307&page=1The shot above was taken 1st July 1967, and the Sunderland is being stripped of its engines and other gear prior to the tow to Whangarei - that's why it is the 'wrong way around' (nose first) in the Braby. Didn't they have a similar installation at Mechanics Bay for the Sandringham/Solent use? |
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Post by hairy on Jun 24, 2008 21:04:42 GMT 12
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Post by hairy on Jun 24, 2008 21:18:57 GMT 12
The photos I posted above are, I think, the right hand one in the aerial photo, whilst I have just remembered this one..............  ...............which appears to be the left hand one. |
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Post by alanw on Jun 24, 2008 21:35:15 GMT 12
Today flyernzl wrote Hi Peter Yes they did. Last time I went to MOTAT II, I saw some photos in one of the the display cabinets which show at least one/two braby's with either Solent/Sandringham. I thought I took some photos of them  I think (from memory) one of them has a picture of the Queen boarding off a braby I didnt see post by hairy ;D |
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Post by Bruce on Jun 24, 2008 22:18:36 GMT 12
One of those Braby pontoons would probably be for the Pan Am Boeing Clippers. As they had stub wing sponsons instead of floats the Braby arrangement would have to have provision for those in some way....
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Post by Dave Homewood on Jun 25, 2008 1:30:39 GMT 12
Great photos of the braby bunch there Marcus. There seems no bounds to what the hairy and flyernzl photo collections can produce!
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