Topdressing Super Cubs

[Peter Lewis]

The 18Feb1957 saw the next Cub 150 c/n 18-5471 being registered to Airwork as ZK-BNZ.

After assembly and testing completed, this one stayed in Christchurch with the ownership moving to  Harts Aerial Topdressing on 6May1957.

Unfortunately, ZK-BNZ had a very short life, being destroyed in a crash at Silver Peaks Station, Hindon, Otago on 9Nov1957 when it stalled during a turn while working at the Station.
The relatively inexperienced pilot Ken Paton was killed in the accident.

ZK-BNZ at Taieri, with ZK-BKA behind.

[errolmartyn]

Dec 4, 2020 14:57:41 GMT 12 Peter Lewis said:

Unfortunately, ZK-BNZ had a very short life, being destroyed in a crash at Silver Peaks Station, Hindon, Otago on 29Nov1957 when it stalled during a turn while working at the Station.
The relatively inexperienced pilot Ken Paton was killed in the accident.

Kenneth David PATON, aged 26 - killed on 9 Nov 57.

Errol

Date in original posting amended, thanks.

[delticman]

Dec 4, 2020 14:57:41 GMT 12 Peter Lewis said:

The 18Feb1957 saw the next Cub 150 c/n 18-5471 being registered to Airwork as ZK-BNZ.

After assembly and testing completed, this one stayed in Christchurch with the ownership moving to  Harts Aerial Topdressing on 6May1957.

Unfortunately, ZK-BNZ had a very short life, being destroyed in a crash at Silver Peaks Station, Hindon, Otago on 29Nov1957 when it stalled during a turn while working at the Station.
The relatively inexperienced pilot Ken Paton was killed in the accident.

ZK-BNZ at Taieri, with ZK-BKA behind.

I'm wondering if that hangar at Taieri might be in fact at Ashburton Peter. I never saw a hangar like that at Taieri in the early sixties but hangars like that were at Ardmore and Invercargill and also Ashburton but smaller.

Ray

[Peter Lewis]

Possible. I'm simply working off Neville's notes.
However, a number of those are quite obviously wrong, so I suspect that in many cases he wrote them some time after the photograph was taken.

[Peter Lewis]

Skipping over a few Fletchers and Pawnees we come to ZK-BOV. This PA18A Super Cub 150, c/n 18-6224, came on station with Airwork on 7Jan1958. It was retained 'in house' and joined the Airwork operational fleet.

On 3Aug 1960 Kevin Hickey was involved in a reported incident with this Cub at Springfield, in the Selwyn District of Canterbury.

Restored to health, ZK-BOV continued to operate under Airwork ownership until November 1966 when it was passed on to the Canterbury Gliding Club.

Moving through a number of private owners, ZK-BOV was finally destroyed in a crash into the Arahura Riverbed, Westland, on 12Aug2001.


ZK-BOV at Christchurch September 1958



and back at Airwork's base rather later

[Peter Lewis]

On the same day as ZK-BOV, Cub 150 c/n 18-6219 was registered to Airwork as ZK-BOW.

Farmers Aviation Ltd. had been formed by Bruce Aitken in 1955, starting out with Tiger Moth ZK-BJO and operating from a base at Hawera. His company took ownership of ZK-BOW in May 1958.

There is a reported incident involving Ben Buckley and ZK-BOW at Manutai on 26Apr1959. This was followed by a crash at Mahoenui, Waitomo, 20Feb1961.
Does anyone have any further information on these two events?

The remains of ZK-BOW were removed to Christchurch and rebuilt over the following twelve months, reappearing as ZK-BYV.

ZK-BOW at Milson, outside the Aerial Farming hangar



and at what looks like Paraparaumu



Here appearing in full 'Farmers Aviation' livery

[Peter Lewis]

The third Cub 150 to be registered to Airwork on 7Jan1958 was c/n 18-6243 which became ZK-BOX.

This Cub moved north to Hawkes Bay, and while I have have a note that it was operated by Wings Fertilisers out of Napier, the next registered owner after Airwork was Reeves Transport (Air Services) Ltd., Hastings, on 21Jul1958. Possibly Wings just leased the aircraft.

By September 1960 ZK-BOX had moved west to Stratford and was being used by Airspread (Taranaki) Ltd. 

On 28Feb1967 Lex Linklater was flying this Cub at Inglewood when it collided with the loader truck and was damaged.

Rebuilt, Farmers Aviation based at Hawera took ownership on 8Jul1967 and operated the aircraft until it was sold in  June 1974 to private owners J F Dixon & R Maas of Fox Glacier.


It wandered around the West Coast for a couple of years (venison recovery?) before moving north in 1979.
After a number of incidents, accidents and rebuilds it is still with us today.

ZK-BOX nice and new at Christchurch in 1958



At Bell Block, New Plymouth, 15Oct1962. Carries the pilots name 'Nev Worsley'



also at Bell Block, early 1967

[Dave Homewood]

I honestly had no idea there have been so many Super Cubs in NZ over the years. They are nearly are prolific as Cessnas.

[nobody]

Dec 9, 2020 16:58:35 GMT 12 Peter Lewis said:

Rebuilt, Farmers Aviation based at Hawera took ownership on 8Jul1967 and operated the aircraft until it was sold in  June 1974 to private owners J F Dixon & R Maas of Fox Glacier.


It wandered around the West Coast for a couple of years (venison recovery?) before moving north in 1979.
After a number of incidents, accidents and rebuilds it is still with us today.

John Dixon and Les Maas were well known hunter pilots from that era and both moved onto helicopters after the Cub.

There are a few photos of BOX in the book "Wright Goes West" and an account of the venison recovery that took place. Photos of BOX occasionally pop up on some of the hunting facebook pages.

Thanks for all the Cub pictures Peter!

[thomarse]

Dec 9, 2020 17:17:21 GMT 12 Dave Homewood said:

I honestly had no idea there have been so many Super Cubs in NZ over the years. They are nearly are prolific as Cessnas.

Hey Dave, you ain't seen nothing yet... there are heaps coming up next in the BP*s, BR*s, and BT*s

I really commend Peter for his work in documenting these, amongst other types he's covered

[madmax]

My records, which may be incomplete, indicate 82 150hp Cubs were employed on aerial work

[Dave Homewood]

Wow that is amazing.

[nobody]

The Super Cub was a revolution in aerial topdressing at the time. With the Tigers, they needed a man on the wing to turn the Tiger around at the top of the strip and someone to guide the sock into the hopper as well as the loader driver. The Cub had brakes and the hopper opening was more accessible, so topdressing became a two man operation. This coincided with bulk delivery of the superphosphate.

With the Tiger, the pilot had to wrap cheese-cloth around his face so he didn't get a mouth full of super. By the end of the day the cockpit was half full of super and the pilot was covered in it. With the Super Cub, at the end of a full day's topdressing, the pilot would have just have a light dusting of super on his overalls.

Often with the Tiger as soon as the wind got up, the flying had to stop, but with brakes and a steerable tailwheel on the Super Cub flying could continue for longer as conditions deteriorated.

These changes and with the greater loads carried by the Cub, productivity must've improved greatly.

Sure, the Super Cub is a contemporary of the Cessna 180, the early Fletcher and experiments like the Auster Agricola, but many operators could not afford the higher capital expenditure of those machines and some country and customers did not suit the larger aircraft.

[Dave Homewood]

Thanks nobody, that is an interesting insight, I have learned stuff I never knew. It all makes good sense.

[thomarse]

The Cub had a heater too....

[delticman]

Dec 10, 2020 19:44:45 GMT 12 thomarse said:

The Cub had a heater too....

They didn't have a starter motor, that was extra weight,

They only used one tank and had a big timer clock mounted on the panel, When the bell rang it was time to refuel.
They could work off especially short sited strips that bigger aircraft couldnt work off so they maintained the customer.

Before the Pawnee's arrived in 1962, Aerial Farming had twelve PA18A Super Cubs in service.

[Peter Lewis]

On 30Jan1958 Cub 150 c/n 18-6172 became ZK-BOY with Airwork.

This one also went to Hawkes Bay, and on 12May1958 was registered to Wings Fertilisers Ltd., Napier.

It appears to have had an incident-free life until being passed on to James McNutt of Waipukerau in July 1962.
After a few years of ownership with him, and subsequent use by the Hawkes Bay Gliding Club, in 1968 ZK-BOY migrated to the West Coast and had the usual Cub short but adventurous time in the venison trade with the infamous Tony Hawker.
After further West Coast adventures and rebuilds it is still active. 

ZK-BOY nice and new at Harewood



At Hastings in the early 1960s

[Peter Lewis]

PA18A Super Cub 150 c/n 18-6174 was registered to Airwork on 21Nov1957 as ZK-BOZ. The paperwork may have ben a bit in advance of the actuality, as this aircraft went to Wings Fertilisers Ltd., Napier, as a new aircraft on 12May1958.

Replaced in the Wings fleet by a Pawnee in mid-1960, flying farmer W B Patterson of Purorua, up near Russell in the Bay of Islands, was the next owner. He acquired ZK-BOZ in August 1960 and used it to topdress his own property.

Early in 1961 Bill Patterson also replaced this Cub with a Pawnee. ZK-BOZ then moved southwards to Hawera into the ownership of Farmers Aviation in March.

Jerry Lowe had an incident while flying ZK-BOZ near Hawera on 2May1966. Repaired, the Cub continued to work for Farmers Aviation until it was damaged near Taupo on 3Jul1974 when a water-tanker backed into the side of the aircraft and damaged it beyond repair.

The damaged Cub was taken back to Hawera and stored in the hangar there. Unfortunately the hangar was destroyed by fire on 6Sep1981. ZK-BOZ and six other of Bruce Aitken's aircraft perished.

ZK-BOZ nice and new at Harewood in 1958



at Bridge Pa late 1950s. Fletcher ZK-BIF in the background, and the dead Tiger Moth visible in the right rear was quite a common sight around airfields at that time.



ZK-BOZ at Wanganui, rigged as a sprayer 



Now in need of a good spruce-up



ZK-BOZ at an air show. Not the sharpest photo, but shows the colours used by Farmers Aviation

[nobody]

Interesting that X, Y and Z were all with Wings Fertilisers Ltd. I never knew that. Great info Peter.

Funny, I have that exact same photo taken at Hawera, next to the house, but as a print from a colour slide. The rudder and spinner are that dayglow orange/pink they had to apply at one point.

[madmax]

Judging by the rudder on BOZ one can see why the early 60's use of dayglo paint was short-lived.