Post by Dave Homewood on Jun 12, 2005 14:14:41 GMT 12
I have been asked by a member, Phil (Stormbird262), if I can find anything on the use of Boeing Model 40 airliners in New Zealand. These were the first airliner types made by Boeing of the USA.
All I have found is a sad tale of New Zealand Airways on page 91 of the excellent book 'The History of New Zealand Aviation' by Ross Ewing and the late Ross Macpherson.
It says Horatio MacKay of Timaru started an airline called New Zealand Airways - "The White Star Line" - in 1928.
He had intended to set up an airline that would fly national routes from Invercargill to Auckland. However, despite already having six years of experience, the Government's Transport Coordination Board would not grant the rights to main trunk routes to MacKay, because they were not convinced of the financial ability of this fully NZ-owned company, and they also considered MacKay's choice of Boeings as a bad do.
The Board wanted the national carrier, whoever it may be, to use the "best and most most modern machines" that could be purchased. With this, they stated the aircraft had to be British.
They gave the routes instead to two newcomers to aviation - who did not even have any planes or equipment - Union Airways and Great Pacific Airways. Both had overseas financial backing and used British planes.
As MacKay had ordered the aircraft already, he tried to get three regional routes, but in the end was granted just one - Christchurch-Timaru-Cromwell-Queenstown-Dunedin.
The Controller of the TCB reckoned the Boeings were obsolete and unsafe and did not want MacKay to fly them. It ended up that the route was flown with his Spartans instead, which were as old and obsolete as the Boeings, and also as unsafe with only one engine (BUT they were British, so OK). The Boeings didn't see much, if any service.
The one route was not enough to keep his business afloat after investing in several planes, and he went bust. MacKay ended up selling the two Boeings - one being ZK-ADX, the other unregistereed because it was still unassembled after arriving on the ship, along with his airline's four Spartans and one Puss Moth.
ZK-ADX was sold to Australia, becoming VH-ADX. It crashed in New Guinea in Septemebr 1939. The other also went to Aussie and was destroyed in a hangar at Wau, New Guinea, during Japanese action in January 1942.
Horatio MacKay fought till 1960 for compensation from the Government who'd put him out of business, finally getting £2000 to cover his legal costs.
So, not a happy experience for the Boeing 40 in NZ. Does anyone know of others operating in New Zealand?
All I have found is a sad tale of New Zealand Airways on page 91 of the excellent book 'The History of New Zealand Aviation' by Ross Ewing and the late Ross Macpherson.
It says Horatio MacKay of Timaru started an airline called New Zealand Airways - "The White Star Line" - in 1928.
He had intended to set up an airline that would fly national routes from Invercargill to Auckland. However, despite already having six years of experience, the Government's Transport Coordination Board would not grant the rights to main trunk routes to MacKay, because they were not convinced of the financial ability of this fully NZ-owned company, and they also considered MacKay's choice of Boeings as a bad do.
The Board wanted the national carrier, whoever it may be, to use the "best and most most modern machines" that could be purchased. With this, they stated the aircraft had to be British.
They gave the routes instead to two newcomers to aviation - who did not even have any planes or equipment - Union Airways and Great Pacific Airways. Both had overseas financial backing and used British planes.
As MacKay had ordered the aircraft already, he tried to get three regional routes, but in the end was granted just one - Christchurch-Timaru-Cromwell-Queenstown-Dunedin.
The Controller of the TCB reckoned the Boeings were obsolete and unsafe and did not want MacKay to fly them. It ended up that the route was flown with his Spartans instead, which were as old and obsolete as the Boeings, and also as unsafe with only one engine (BUT they were British, so OK). The Boeings didn't see much, if any service.
The one route was not enough to keep his business afloat after investing in several planes, and he went bust. MacKay ended up selling the two Boeings - one being ZK-ADX, the other unregistereed because it was still unassembled after arriving on the ship, along with his airline's four Spartans and one Puss Moth.
ZK-ADX was sold to Australia, becoming VH-ADX. It crashed in New Guinea in Septemebr 1939. The other also went to Aussie and was destroyed in a hangar at Wau, New Guinea, during Japanese action in January 1942.
Horatio MacKay fought till 1960 for compensation from the Government who'd put him out of business, finally getting £2000 to cover his legal costs.
So, not a happy experience for the Boeing 40 in NZ. Does anyone know of others operating in New Zealand?
, poor dude Horation 
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, I'm not sure if there is much to find at all 
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