Homebuilts at Hinuera

[Bruce]

The SAA Waikato Thames Valley Chapter had a chapter meeting today visiting some projects in the Matamata vicinity. As one of the projects was just up the road from Mike Taylor's airstrip at Hinuera we gave people the opportunity to fly in. Hinuera is a beautiful 628 m Long private airstrip located amongst the crop fields alongside SH29 Southwest of Matamata. as it is unusual to see more than Mikes minicab (ZK-BUC) and itinerant ag aircraft on the strip, I spent some time photographing the various arrivals. Unfortunately I dont have a very big zoom lens, so "proximity technique" is the order of the day!

Below: Bruce MacDonald's Emeraude FMM, Noel Bailey's Jodel D18 JAC, John Lissington's Zenith JRL and Murray Belfields Jodel D11 MMB sit in the vegitation (Mustard Plants) near Mike's Hangar.


Case Groot brings his RV6A (ZK-RVC) from his own private strip 5.3 NM away! Haymaking was under way on the grass surrounding the strip, but the contractors kept out of the way.


After the various project visits Murray Belfield departs for Tokoroa in MMB


Noel Bailey Positions JAC for a good photo on departure:





Last to leave was Bruce MacDonald with Wharepapa South - based Super Emeraude FMM (Foxtrot Mickey Mouse)





departing off ahead of an incomiing Front:


For those interested in the Hinuera Airstrip, Mike is quite happy for visiting aircraft to drop in. It is located at 37°52'42.04"S 175°44'31.85"E
628metres long, flat, firm grass. Runway SW - NE, clear approaches both ends. Mike lives across the road on the northern side. Sometimes due to cropping it is tricky to see the actual strip, but it is parallell to the matamata Road (Northern Side) immediately south of a gravel access track. Put the co-ordinates into Google Earth for a better look.

[philip]

Looks like a fun day. I was talking to Noel briefly at Te Kowhai Saturday when I went for a tiki tour.

I've put those coordinates into my GPS. It's always handy to have private strips programmed in just in case you need to make a precautionary or even emergency landing. In the Waikato especially there are scores of private strips. My instructor dave Readman took used to make a point of showing me as many as he could on our cross countries.

Be good if there was a weblist of them all. User caution applied but in an emergency..........

This is quite a good site for private strips
homepages.paradise.net.nz/skypilot/index.html

[sleemanj]

Be good if there was a weblist of them all.

I could easily create a web accessible database where people could submit strips along with gps, photos, comments, notams etc, all the usual VFG type stuff. Thing is that there's not much point if people wouldn't use it (or if there is already something like it) as I'm in no position to be seeking out the strips.

There used to be a very simple list of gps co-ordinates, runway direction and length at the old "NZ Microlight List" (LONG since gone) when it moved to MSN groups (even longer ago the NZ Microlight List was a straight out mailing list). I don't recall it having much there, but then the list itself was never very busy (still quite early days of the net in general really).

Maybe it's a field of dreams situation, if you build it they will come

[FlyingKiwi]

Every time I've flown to Matamata I've tried to spot the Hinuera strip - I thought I had it last time but looking at your photos I think I must have been mistaken. Looks like it would be a good place to visit except my flying school doesn't allow flights to AIP unpublished airstrips. (despite the fact they let us fly into Pukekohe East which isn't even on the VNCs, and is significantly dodgier than a lot of unpublished strips!)

[fletcherfu24]

maps.google.co.nz/maps?hl=en&q=hinuera&ie=UTF8&ll=-37.878309,175.747089&spn=0.030622,0.054932&t=h&z=14

Right in the triangle of Hopkins Rd,Hinuera Rd and S.H.29 just west of Hinuera Village.

[Bruce]

Further to the Private airstrip listing idea, I have just heard that AOPA and SAA are combining resources to produce a directory of private airstrips and ammenities available at public airstrips.
If you would be willing to have your airstrip included in this directory please contact the administrator Adrienne Fillery by email to [e-mail] or telephone [phone]. A form detailing the information required will then be sent to you for completion.

[sleemanj]

They should get RAANZ and SAC onto it as well.