RNZAF Top Dressing trials

[nzmonty]

Thanks Errol, Interesting, that's more likely to be accurate than family memories! Yes, I've just done that for my Great uncle who was killed in Cassino, so will have to twist someone else in the family to do it as you're only allowed one free one a year if memory serves.

[oj]

This film is incredible for the detail it shows and is so important to preserve as you have.
Just think about the thorough planning and engineering effort that went into making those hopper boxes for both aircraft; you can't just knock up stuff like that in a few days. The adaptations to the loading vehicle and bomb-trolley also very innovative and practical.
And did you notice the B170 had the cabin heater kit on the starboard nose door.
After a week at work, I found this to be really uplifting to the soul on a Friday night (better than beer).

[thomarse]

Why does the name Dave Hope-Cross ring a bell?

[suthg]

I knew a Fred Myers from Solway Masterton, but he was likely a son Fred BH Myers - a classmate of mine. His old man had a Humber Super Snipe = the big six, beautiful old girl in 1970!!

[suthg]

Nzmonty, I have requested two in one year. One was a Grandfather of mine, the second a month or so later, was the father of a friend of mine I requested on her behalf. I had birth and death dates and places of address, but it was still free for second search. Took three months for a reply second time. Have a go!!

[The Red Baron]

Why does the name Dave Hope-Cross ring a bell?

Did you read Aeromodellor magazine in your youf?.
Maker of fine scale model planes.

[pjw4118]

Great footage , the Avenger nav looks like it is NZBCA VP Bunny Burrows. He flew in 04 from 13 to 21 May 49 on those trials from Masterton. His pilot was F/L Wenden. They flew nine sorties of two to three hours duration each to a different sheep station.

[Dave Homewood]

Cool that you've identified Bunny. I hope he gets a chance to watch.

[baz62]

Mar 11, 2016 9:19:06 GMT 12 nzmonty said:

but looking at the record of the event they had two Avengers for the days work so the turn around was faster, you see both at the beginning when one is coming in to land.

They had at least three Avengers briefly, as NZ2506 was used as well. She ended up on her belly due to the pilot being a bit enthusiastic raising the undercarriage! And on the first day of the top dressing trials! Bet he was popular All of the Avengers were taken out of storage in 1949 to be used in the trials (according to ADF Serials).

[davidd]

As Dave H as voiced interest in the Avenger's hopper, thought I should mention that this was a standard bomb-bay fuel tank designed for Avenger-type aircraft, but heavily modified in the nether regions with a locally fabricated extension piece. They have also removed the inner bomb-bay doors to permit the outer ones to close normally about the hopper outlet. Also amazed by the rather elaborate system worked out for the Bristol Freighter super phosphate hoppers - they don't look terribly strong for the job they have to do, and the locally modified (Bedford?) trucks with slope adjusting decks are noteworthy! I think the Avengers also had additional hoppers so that while one was being filled (the hard way - by hand) the other was away with the aircraft "on the job".
Somebody has suggested that a Bristol Freighter should be able to carry a lot more than 5 tons, but I am not impressed by the flimsy-looking hoppers, which presumably have to have multiple attachments to anchor them properly to the airframe when in the loaded condition. I would have thought that this should include attachments to the upper longerons as well as at floor level, but such is not apparent. You would think that a permanent installation with filling accomplished through the roof would have been a better proposition, although this would have taken longer to install and remove. I guess the whole job was really very experimental, and they were probably thinking the same thing - perhaps the RNZAF did not really want agricultural ruffians and bush engineers butchering their near-new aircraft. The first RNZAF Hastings were also delivered with modifications incorporated to facilitate the fitting of top-dressing hoppers, but these were never taken advantage of. Still, these aircraft were ordered during the first post-war National party administration, and they tended to demonstrate great interest in the farming sector, and even more to be SEEN to be assisting in the drive to increase exports of our pastoral commodities. Also reminds me somewhat of the great concern expressed by senior RNZAF officers when another National government was keen to use "their" new C-130s to convey drums of Ivon Watkins-Dow defoliating chemicals to South Vietnam in about 1967/68 - as the Air Force knew they would be flying these aircraft for at least 20 years into the future, they could not see that carrying such cargo was compatible with a long airframe life. Seems as though the Ministry of Defence had this idea quashed in the early stages, probably for the reason postulated.
David D

[Dave Homewood]

Wow, the sight of a Handley Page Hastings flying low around the hills dropping massive loads of fertiliser is something to behold!

Very interesting about the Avenger hoppers being standard (yet modified) bomb bay fuel tanks. Were these fitted for long ferry flights over the Pacific in WWII? Does anyone have a photo of the unmodified tank?

Did the Bristol Freighter have three outlet doors underneath, one for each hopper? Or did they move the hoppers about in flight to line up over the doors. I assume they were too heavy to roll about in flight when full?

[Dave Homewood]

So Wikipedia states that the RNZAF aerial topdressing trials began on the 5th of September 1948. I had a look in Papers Past and found this was a long time coming, according to this article dated 30 November 1945, from the Ellesmere Guardian:

"Interest in the question of topdressing New Zealand hill-country from the air has been revived again with the end of the war, the shortage of experienced labour for this work, and the necessity for the immediate application of superphosphate to large tracts of sheep-grazing hill country which have been denied treatment with fertilisers during the war. These areas, which carry a large proportion of the Dominion's flocks, will in cases erode badly, or revert to scrub and fern, if early steps are not taken to re-establish a firm sole of grass, says the "Dominion." Massey Agricultural College has recently taken the initiative in an attempt to arrange for trials in aerial topdressing. The hilly Gisborne district, one of the most important sheep-farming areas in New Zealand, is vitally interested in any scheme which may save labour and prevent further erosion scars from appearing on the steeper slopes. A small committee of sheep-farmers has discussed the question of having supplies delivered to outback stations by air, as well as the general question of hill-country top-dressing."

Sadly at this stage very few newspapers on Papers Past cover 1948, all the big papers stopping at 31 Dec 1945, so there's no articles on there about the Avenger trials, yet.

[TS]

Mar 12, 2016 14:33:09 GMT 12 Dave Homewood said:

Cool that you've identified Bunny. I hope he gets a chance to watch.

Sweet I know his son Andrew. I will let him know asap.

[camtech]

Mar 12, 2016 6:52:55 GMT 12 The Red Baron said:

Why does the name Dave Hope-Cross ring a bell?

Did you read Aeromodellor magazine in your youf?.
Maker of fine scale model planes.

Also a fairly good photographer himself, if I'm thinking of the same guy. Worked for Agfa NZ at one stage, and was involved in AHSNZ as well.

[Bruce]

Mar 12, 2016 18:38:04 GMT 12 Dave Homewood said:

Did the Bristol Freighter have three outlet doors underneath, one for each hopper? Or did they move the hoppers about in flight to line up over the doors. I assume they were too heavy to roll about in flight when full?

at about 4:08 when the hoppers are loaded in, you can see openings in the floor - there appear to be 6 of them, 2 for each hopper, positioned off centre to the left. Must be to avoid the structural members under the floor. The flying shot seems to indicate they dropped the fwd and aft hoppers simultaneously, then the middle one.

[Dave Homewood]

Thanks Bruce. I will be more observant next time I watch it.

[baz62]

Mar 12, 2016 18:38:04 GMT 12 Dave Homewood said:

Does anyone have a photo of the unmodified tank?

Credit to Mark Allen M on WIX:

[Dave Homewood]

Thank you Baz!

[shorty]

When I was at Te Rapa in the mid 70's I was doing some research through the Waikato Times archives and I came across a newspaper report where a group of farmers were investigating buying some surplus Lancasters in the UK, bringing them back to NZ with the idea of using them for topdressing the hill country. NOW that would have been a sight to behold!
Needless to say the idea did not come to fruition, more's the pity.

[nzmonty]

Mar 11, 2016 20:29:13 GMT 12 thomarse said:

Why does the name Dave Hope-Cross ring a bell?

Mar 12, 2016 20:50:53 GMT 12 camtech said:

Mar 12, 2016 6:52:55 GMT 12 The Red Baron said:

Did you read Aeromodellor magazine in your youf?.
Maker of fine scale model planes.

Also a fairly good photographer himself, if I'm thinking of the same guy. Worked for Agfa NZ at one stage, and was involved in AHSNZ as well.

He was my uncle, and Henry Hope-Cross's son, passed away a few years ago sadly. Yes into awesome scale models, part owner of Airsail and was GM for Agfa and a great Photographer himself as is his Daughter (infact most of the family we're blessed with a good eye with a camera  ) also flew gliders for some time.