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Post by Dave Homewood on Jun 1, 2006 22:22:49 GMT 12
Is anyone going to the HUEY OLD BOYS 2006 do?
It takes place on Saturday 24th of June 2006 at the Palmerston North Convention Centre
To register contact gregory.jane@NZDF.mil.nz
I was never on No. 3 Squadron but I woked on their gear in sections at both Auckland and Wigram. I'm sure a few old friends of mine may be there, but I doubt I'll be going along.
It's funny to thing the first crews who operated these aircraft are now old enough to be the grandfathers to the crews now operating them. There must have been many, many men and a few women who've passed through the pilots' seats of the fleet, and many many more maintenance staff. I hope they have a great commemoration.
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Post by phil on Jun 1, 2006 22:30:50 GMT 12
They are getting a new sqn standard on the saturday afternoon. AM Ferguson (ret) and AVM Hamilton (ret) will be there for the event, being ex 3 sqn pilots. I think Ferguson is actually the reviewing officer for the parade marking the presentation of the new standard.
Unfortunately for the rest of us it means a parade on a Saturday, which is a pretty rare thing for the air force!
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Post by Calum on Jun 4, 2006 11:14:05 GMT 12
Thats what your service allowance is for Phil ;D
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Post by Calum on Jun 4, 2006 11:16:19 GMT 12
It's funny to thing the first crews who operated these aircraft are now old enough to be the grandfathers to the crews now operating them. . Pretty common in the RNZAF. The Herc's and P-3s are of the same vintage. When you look back to the 1965-1970's period the RNZAF got a massive amount of new equipment in a short period of time. Iwonder thow they afforded it then. It certainil couldn't happen now |
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Post by Dave Homewood on Jun 4, 2006 11:29:09 GMT 12
We were a rich country then, I understand that the NZ dollar got to GB pounds in that early 1970's period. And we were No. 3 on the OECD list. Now we're in the third world bracket, aren't we? Or have we gone back up a bit?
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Post by Calum on Jun 4, 2006 20:29:07 GMT 12
Dunno mate, I don't live there anymore.
I do know I couldn't earn the money I get here, there...
Still there are things that seem better in NZ, compared to Australia , the public education system for one. (no factual basis on this, just impressions having a school age niece in NZ and a daughter at school here)
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Post by Dave Homewood on Jun 4, 2006 22:27:41 GMT 12
There have been a lot of comparisons done by media in recent weeks between cost of living in the two countries vs 'way of life'. It was spurred on by tax cuts on your side of the Tasman and none here in the respective budgets. However most results I saw showed it actually evens out pretty much the same on average moneywise, and we still have the sweeter, laid back lifestyle compared with Aussies they reckon.
Of course it depends entirely on your specific trade, and if you're in a specialised field you can easily see the differences in pay scales here and there. So these studies don't mean a lot in that case.
Personally I think many NZ'ers are totally losing the plot and taking on some of the awful moneygrubbing capitalist ethics now persued by many Americans and British and Asians, etc who only think about making money and not about earning a little less and having the time to themselves to enjoy the quality of life. Where has the 40 hour week gone? Wasn't Labour established around maintaining such a way of life for people? Now all they want is to build big business and crush whoever gets in its way.
Mind you, it may not be so much the average NZ'ers are changing of their own choice, it's more the population is expanding rapidly as more and more people used to that lifestyle of greed move here from abroad, and even if they think they're coming here to get away from that life, they still think that way in many cases because they suddenly become top dog where the Kiwis are too relaxed, so the locals have to try to keep up to compete or go bust. It's very sad. I hate globalisation.
This country used to be wonderfully laid back - remember the days when everything shut on the weekends so everyone had time off for a break with the family? When you holidayed in a tent or caravan, and not overseas? Where the most expensive and sophisticated electronic device in the home was the TV? And that only had two channels - each far better than the 50 or so available today combined. Oh for the 1980's. Or even better, the 1970's. Great days to grow up in NZ. I pity kids now. We were the last of the sinple era.
As for the suggestions in the press lately that more Kiwis will move to Aussie due to Howard's tax cuts, maybe so but not me. I personally have very little desire to even visit Australia and definately none to live there. The only two things that attract me there for a visit are seeing friends and seeing the Temora Hudson in the air. Other than that, and maybe a handful of other warbirds there, nup.
No offence intended to you or anyone else who'd decided to make the move, that's your choice. I'm talking about my own view of me going. I still think about that great off the cuff remark from Sir Rob Muldoon, when asked about the same situation happening in his time. What was it? “New Zealanders who emigrate to Australia raise the average IQ of both countries.”". Brilliant.
Sorry, the thread's gone wildly off track now.
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Post by Calum on Jun 6, 2006 22:54:18 GMT 12
No offence taken Dave, many of the issues you point out are certainly problems here. The death of the 40 hr week, unpaid overtime and Howards wonderful "Work Choices" legistation ( I won't even go there) Each to there own, I'm but a mere avionics tech, but the aviation industry here (particularly militry) is going through a real boom. Avionics techs (especially good ones ;D :-) like me ) are like Rocking horse poo. ;D You can't fight progress Dave :-). And I'm not always sure "it was better in my day "  |
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Post by Dave Homewood on Jun 6, 2006 23:40:56 GMT 12
I realise you can't fight progress, but all too often in life people are so caught up in progressing they forget what they left behind, and when you forget the past you forget the lessons learned from the past all too often.
That's a general view i have, not about anything specific.
Avionics boom eh? Typical, I had to become a bloody parachute packer, didn't I? S&S just seemed so much less geeky at the time, and much more beer drinking. Now look, no-one wants a parachute packed...
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Post by steve on Jun 7, 2006 1:24:15 GMT 12
"Last person to leave Godszone ...please turn out the lights!" NA just kidding my family goes back 5 generations to the 1860s ...and I'm proudly Kiwi but also admire our old mates across the ditch...not bad blokes and shelias...I see that the new co leader of the greens is a genuine aussie...enviroment minister in a future NZ govt?
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Post by corsair67 on Jun 7, 2006 15:00:49 GMT 12
It's sad to say this, but I don't think I could live in New Zealand anymore. I find there are too many doomers & gloomers there nowadays; and too many rugbyheads! Hey, I love rugby, but it's not the be all and end all of everything! Plus, Helen Clark makes me sick! ;D Don't get me wrong, I do love going back to NZ on holiday, but I guess I've been living here far too long now (nearly 17 years!) and I think I'd have trouble finding a job that would pay what I get here. Mind you, things might change in the next few years after the Work Choices shit hits the fan!  Anyway, back on topic now: if anyone goes to the Huey Boys Reunion, please take heaps of photos.  |
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Post by Bruce on Jun 7, 2006 16:46:17 GMT 12
What .... you're discussing helicopters now?....  |
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Post by corsair67 on Jun 7, 2006 17:29:43 GMT 12
Dave started going off topic first! ;D ;D ;D
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Post by Dave Homewood on Jun 7, 2006 17:53:36 GMT 12
Bull rot, it was Calum who started it Mum!
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Post by Calum on Jun 9, 2006 10:22:50 GMT 12
was not :-)
Well maybe :-)
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