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Post by gibbo on Feb 25, 2023 13:08:38 GMT 12
Looking at a FB post for 'Tairawhiti Aviation Love & Air Spotting' there's a view (dated 15th February 2023) of 1 x 40Sqn C-130 & 2 x 42Sqn KA350 on the ground @ Gisborne... so good old 42Sqn is indeed out there but as always getting very little mention...the quiet achievers!
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Post by gibbo on Feb 24, 2023 11:36:40 GMT 12
Unfortunately this has by & large been NZ's modus operandi for the last 40 odd years... from central Govt to local Govt to utility companies & a damn sight more business organisation than we'd care to admit! It all comes back to scrimping on investment. Actually IIRC the 3 extra AW109 was never officially tabled as a plan by either party, just publicly mentioned as being considered.
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Post by gibbo on Feb 23, 2023 17:35:19 GMT 12
Or maybe in 2018 RNZAF were told they could get another gearbox but being out of warranty it would cost $xyz... then bean counters looked at that & decided that with crew in short-supply they could save money by leaving one airframe nominally grounded (as I presume they can rotate the gearboxes thru airframes at heavy maintenance!?!) and hey presto, NZ only effectively has a fleet of 7... plausible? Sure, but now in 2023 we should be doing two things: - telling the bean counters where to go - turning around to the supplier and leveraging the hell out of the current situation. Agreed! Frankly I can't help feeling someone NZ's end has taken their eye off the ball and not started kicking up a bloody good stink, but then I'm just a mere mortal! Whilst I had quietly poo-pooed the idea of getting ex RAN/AA examples I'm now thinking maybe it'd be worth getting 5 or so just for the spares which AIUI would be <a fairly high percentage> in common... high enough to justify the spend. But to be honest with the Govt now having to re-write spending priorities you can kiss goodbye any such investment in the NZDF, other than hopefully some salary improvements.
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Post by gibbo on Feb 23, 2023 14:56:00 GMT 12
On the other side of the coin you’d hope that the RNZAF/MoD were leveraging this point to wrangle better service and any other deals. NHI/Airbus should at the same time also be reminded that we’ll be replacing the Sea Sprites soon and that right now the MH-60 is looking attractive. Or maybe in 2018 RNZAF were told they could get another gearbox but being out of warranty it would cost $xyz... then bean counters looked at that & decided that with crew in short-supply they could save money by leaving one airframe nominally grounded (as I presume they can rotate the gearboxes thru airframes at heavy maintenance!?!) and hey presto, NZ only effectively has a fleet of 7... plausible?
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Post by gibbo on Feb 23, 2023 8:50:31 GMT 12
The 9th airframe purchased (the attrition airframe Dave refers to) was only purchased for the rotable parts. It was never assembled and delivered as a complete aircraft. These were the only rotable parts initially purchased for the fleet. Most will have been used by now. It was apparently cheaper to do it that way than purchase the parts individually as spares. I think they did the same with the A-109. Another good example of penny pinching at the front end of a procurement process that will bite you down the track. The Macchi was the same. We got a simulator instead of the spares and support package needed to sustain the fleet. We couldn't afford both! So arguably it is possible NZ has been waiting since 2018 because we're being made to pay for not signing up to a lucrative (to the manufacturer!) spares contract? Mind you as machina mentioned, with the RNZAF being the poster boys you think they'd now be all over us like a rash for PR purposes.
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Post by gibbo on Feb 22, 2023 10:59:07 GMT 12
One of the NH90's is still awaiting a tail rotor gearbox replacement which was ordered in 2018! There will also be at least one or two others on deep servicing so a max of 5 available is about right 2018...really? If so then it's not hard to see why the ADF is pulling the plug, not so much platform performance itself. Can't blame them, that's abysmal support. Sure it wasn't the $NZ cheque bouncing?
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Post by gibbo on Feb 14, 2023 17:42:29 GMT 12
Convenient that Manawanui had a heavy lift derrick onboard to lift the "Cocaine" raft from the sea the other day Yes she's actually a very good piece of kit (the vessel)...did a walk around at an open day a couple of years back & she's well setup for her core roles. 20 years old now though... but in generally good nick.
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Post by gibbo on Feb 13, 2023 22:47:29 GMT 12
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Post by gibbo on Jan 28, 2023 12:45:23 GMT 12
Having just completed the survey, there is not much in it. not really having a say, more agreeing or disagreeing with a statement There's plenty of scope in the 'tell us why' sections that I certainly added quite a lot of comment to... get stuck in I say!
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Post by gibbo on Jan 8, 2023 20:34:46 GMT 12
Am I reading that right, an Air New Zealand KC-30? Not sure how realistic that is. A-400 can do AAR if required. The PM can catch a boat, agree with Dave that VIP should not be a big factor in the platform decision. If an arrangement can be made with AirNZ then why not, but of course VIP is not the bulk of the B757's passenger work... B757 has been doing a few flights 2022 to the UK with the Ukraine training teams... not sure I'd like to spend that long in the back of an airlifter.
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Post by gibbo on Dec 30, 2022 8:33:30 GMT 12
Thanks to Gibbo's endorsement and this thread I now have a copy of Vincent Orange's book 'Coningham' on its way to me for the princely sum of $27 including postage (thanks Aus eBay ) I'm a big fan of the late Professor Orange's work & whilst I know a bit of 'Mary' Coningham's achievements this book sounds like a great read and will be a valued part of my collection. Cool, I think you'll be glad you did... fascinating read! A real character who made good from dodgy parents! I love the family side of these stories, gives a good balance to the picture of who they were. In his case a real shame he didn't get to live longer than he did... at least he lived long enough to be lauded as he was. I agree with your comments on Vincent Orange's work... he wrote some damn good bio's!
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Post by gibbo on Dec 28, 2022 11:41:45 GMT 12
Re: "With Prejudice" by Lord Tedder. I do recommend. Tedder eventually became Allied Deputy Supreme Commander under Eisenhower. Awesome, thx oj...it's now on my 'list' Hey oj, meant to let you know I followed your recommendation & got "With Prejudice" by Lord Tedder from Akl Libraries & read it... great referral thanks, incredible insight to the man himself. Have since just completed Denis Richards book on Portal, CAS for most of WW2... gosh when we look at the likes of Portal; Tedder; Dowding; Park; Conninghan and a host of others it's very clear that the RAF had an incredibly capable leadership team during WW2.
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Post by gibbo on Dec 26, 2022 22:15:40 GMT 12
EMAC was covered when NZ2351 and NZ2353 Beech 350i were modified with multi mode radar and electro optical infrared sensors, not just for training Air Warfare Officers but also complimenting the P-8A Poseidon There's never been any 'official' statement to that effect and the MinDef major projects review released recently certainly doesn't tie EMAC to the KA350 mods. Also can't say I (as a civvy) have seen much to indicate 42Sqn being tasked specifically with 'EMAC' taskings... so I question that.
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Post by gibbo on Dec 19, 2022 20:56:28 GMT 12
Off 5 Sqdn Assn web page CO 5, fresh back from flying in Japan and Korea himself, gave an interesting brief on what the Squadron has achieved this year with the three-remaining aircraft, and a very high post-covid attrition rate for maintenance techs and aircrew, especially the former. Individuals are seeing plenty of Duty Crew as the Squadron continues to juggle operational commitments. The November copy of Air Force News has two articles showing 5 Squadron still covering the oceans from the tropics (a successful SAR of the north coast of Vanua Levu, Fiji) to the Deep South (counting whales off Campbell and Auckland Islands). CO5 also confirmed that the bulk of the P-3K2 fleet is planned to go to ‘fire bombing operations’ in the USA. Although NZ4203, the first P-3K2 retired will be going to the Air Force Museum at Wigram, where it will be displayed in the ‘K2’ configuration. I wonder what condition the sensors & consoles etc are in?... they'll be a few years old & it doesn't take long for IT gear to become obsolete but one wonders (out loud) if a subset of such gear wouldn't have been a good fit into a fixed wing EMAC platform... seems Hawker Pacific can do similar with 2 of the KA350 easily enough. However moot point I guess now as the personnel shortages are such that EMAC will not be proceeding any time soon... just hope the project survives the upcoming defence review!
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Post by gibbo on Dec 14, 2022 9:08:08 GMT 12
Beags suggested to me yesterday that it is now time for him to start a P-8 Poseidon Replacement thread....lol! Easy, 2 cessnas with hand-thrown bombs... a.l.a. NZ Herald reporting standards!
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Post by gibbo on Dec 13, 2022 22:45:38 GMT 12
Gibbo, the plans are well in hand for the new hangar to house the bigger aircraft including the two arriving soon. Funding it in these lean times is going to be the uphill battle. So there is a plan?...awesome, good to hear, doesn't need to be in place day #1 . Wonder if they had ever considered asking Lockheed Martin for a contribution... naming rights perhaps...lol! Anyway such ideas are best left to the experts eh
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Post by gibbo on Dec 13, 2022 20:17:02 GMT 12
P-3 to retire 31 Jan, five months early. Sounds like its due to manning issues. Yep...looks like crew freed-up by having a smaller 5 Sqn fleet (& the P8 having a smaller crew) will quickly find openings in the other squadrons. Good news for the crews involved.. highly capable assets that should be looked after. Bad news: EMAC project won't be a priority whilst retention is so poor... best we can hope is the planned defence review doesn't kill off the project Good news: Now that we can graphically understand the manning crisis and how far the RNZAF is away from being able to operate an ACF, we should stop seeing (for a while at least) wish-lists of ACF fleets.
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Post by gibbo on Dec 13, 2022 20:07:54 GMT 12
Good to see NZ7621 getting some TLC. Begs the question does the AF Museum have inside space to put the C130-H(NZ) & P3K2 when both descend upon them in the near future!?! I reckon a 'Lockheed Hangar' would be perfect, getting LM to provide some sponsorship to offset cost. Put the C130-H(NZ) & P3K2 + Hudson in there... the latter did after all perform both transport & maritime patrol! Anyway dreams are free...
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Post by gibbo on Dec 12, 2022 12:50:46 GMT 12
it's a clear day in Akl & if I hadn't have been in pointless meetings it would've been unmissable right over the house...grrr! Maybe not. It was at 32,000 feet and travelling at more than 950 km/h when it was over Auckland, it might have been impossible to spot. It was hear, we have clear blue sky too and I was watching the FR24 and watching the sky, and it passed without even a glimpse of it in the atmosphere. I wish they'd turn the chemtrail smoke on at least. Ah, 32k feet...ok, still would've been more fun outside looking for it rather than listening to a project manager drone on!
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Post by gibbo on Dec 12, 2022 11:08:05 GMT 12
Don't quite understand why Whenuapai wasn't buzzed but more to the point it's a clear day in Akl & if I hadn't have been in pointless meetings it would've been unmissable right over the house...grrr! I see an AW109 (Mako 02) loitering around the runway at Ohakea... suspect we can look fwd to some RNZAF official aerial images of the arrival.
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