The two sides of Fletcher ZK-EMY

Aaron Murphy caught the Cheviot Ag-Air Fletcher FU24-954 ZK-EMY c/n 279 at Kaikoura on September the 28th.

First registered to New Zealand Aerospace Industries Ltd of Hamilton as ZK-EMY on 10-6-1980 - with first flight on 09-07-1980.

The following day it was listed to Sothern Aviation Ltd of Gore, only to be delivered to Rowley Aviation Ltd of Amberley on 17-07-1980 and registered to them on the 22nd.

Neville Somerville of Cheviot - who traded as Cheviot Ag-Air - took it over from 30-07-1993

The aircraft was registered to the Company name 'Cheviot AG-Air Ltd on 08-08-2008.

And as you can see it is still active today.

Early posts on ZK-EMY can be seen HERE.

Microlight Aircraft of New Zealand - We have an Answer to Our Question and it is a FLPHG!

Earlier this month I posted some screen shots of a strange looking microlight aircraft from Japan and I put the question out if any similar craft had been in New Zealand.  The link to that post is HERE

Blog reader and my mate Erwin Weber reckoned he had seen a Youtube video several years ago of something similar flying at the North end of Orewa Beach, and then he forwarded the link to the video to me - have a look at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpC9wHuMnT4

It turns out that this machine is a Mosquito from Swedish Aerosport mated to a Lightspeed hang glider wing to become a FLPHG (Foot Launched Powered Hang Glider).  It is powered by a 120 cc 2 stroke Husqvarna engine that produces 16 HP and that drives a pusher propeller.  You can see the layout in the photo above which is just after the point of take off, and see more detail in the screenshot below:

Also in this shot you can see the tops of the 2 legs that hang down to stop the prop hitting the ground.

In this screenshot you can see that after a flight the propeller is folded back (and the motor is stopped) for landing.  This is important because if there is still thrust on landing it will be too much for the pilot to hold and the machine will nose over.  This happens on one of the flights on the video, and we have also found another video of a similar machine nosing over at a Waitohi flyin - to the cheers of the onlookers!

However I am informed that a FLPHG is considered to be a hang glider and not a microlight, and thus comes under the Hang Gliding regulations and does not need to be registered with the CAA.

Can anyone add anything more to this story?

Cessna Skywagon ZK-SKD

 The Cessna A185F Skywagon with the manufacturers construction number of 18502479 was a 1974 build at Wichita, Kansas.

As N1759R it went immediately up to Alaska and took up duties with Peto Aviation Inc out of Anchorage by August of 1974, with a transfer to John Ellison, also of Anchorage from April of 1976.

I seems to have disappeared from the US register about October of 1981 - popping back up in August of 1988 with Dana Neace of Bethel, Alaska. 

Two further Alaskan operators took it through to November of 2006 when Jeffrey Patnode of Lewiston, Montana appears on the paperwork.

Above N1759R at Oshkosh on 26-07-2019.

N1759R prior to shipping to NZ.

It was flown from Las Vegas, Nevada to Banning, California on 19-10-2019 and was cancelled from the US register the following Day.

It was listed on the NZ register as ZK-SKD on 04-05-2021 with Sky Sports (NZ) Ltd of Masterton and replaces the Cessna 185A ZK-CBY.

Gulfstream G600 N1923E pops into Christchurch - briefly

 Captured on final into Christchurch International today (13-10-2025) was this Gulfstream Aerospace GVII-G600 N1923E c/n 73154 as hidden in the TVPX system.

After a brief stopover it departed for Auckland.

Built by Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation at Savannah, Georgia and initially registered to the Company as N654GD from February 2023.

It was delivered to Ecolab of St Paul in December 2024 and was then passed over to TVPX as N1923E.

Cirrus SR 22 ZK-WHL/2 at Springhill on 11-10-2025

Here are a couple more photos of Rodger Coleclough's Cirrus SR 22 ZK-WHL2 at Springhill last Saturday:

Just prior to touchdown.  Rodger told me that the registration was for the Williams Hotel Group and if you look closely on the tail in the photo you can see a W which is the Williams Hotels logo in matt black on black.

And a photo showing the swoopy doors.

Bell UH-1H ZK-HZX

 We have another photo from the Graeme Stratton collection showing himself at the helm of the Bell (Hagglund) UH-1H ZK-HZX c/n 11892, spraying in Kaingaroa Forest close to the Napier to Taupo road.

This was one of a single large batch of 960 Iroquois built during 1960 - 1970.

Nine RNZAF Iroquois - NZ3806 NZ3814 - came from this batch

C/n 11892 was allocated the US military seria of 69-15604.

Following its military career, about which I know nothing, it went into storage at AMARC in March of 2000.

It was retrieved from AMARC and converted by Hagglund to become a Bell (Hagglund) UH-1H and placed on the US civil register as N3061A from 03-04-2002 with Haglund Helicopters LLC and Martin R Doss of Mesa, Arizona before cancellation on 23-09-2003 as exported to New Zealand.

It became ZK-HZX2 with Lakeland Helicopters (1989) Ltd of Rotorua on 22-12-2003 until transferring to Heli Resources  (2012) Ltd on 18-04-2013.

 

Air Whanganui's Cessna Citation ZK-KGS.

 Recently added to the New Zealand civil aircraft register is this Cessna 525A Citation Jet CJ2          ZK-KGS c/n 552A-0156 of Air Whanganui Ltd.
It is seen here at Nelson on Thursday the 9th.
Photo thanks to Dan Aviation2000.

A product of Cessna Aircraft Company at Wichita, Kansas and registered to them as N522KN in May of 2003, with a change of owner to Kawasho International (USA) Ltd of New York on 20-11-2003.

A few days later this registration was cancelled and it became JA525B with Kawasho International Incorporated on 24-11-2003 and was re-listed to Auto Panther on the 27th. 

In November of 2008 title changed to Ando Shokai until cancelled from the Japanese register.

It popped up on the Australian register as VH-ZIY on 31-07-2017 with Machjet Pty Ltd of Cooroy, Queensland.

It joined the NZ register on 10-09-2025

Some Arrivals at Springhill This Morning 11-10-2025

We are back into the flyin season in the North with the Northern Aviators Club holding a Pancake Breakfast at Springhill airfield this morning from 8am.  The weather was perfect which you wouldn't have bet on recently, and more than a dozen aircraft arrived with pilots and crew eager to sample Erwin's pancakes which were yummy with maple syrup and bacon.  Springhill is pretty photogenic and here are a few of the arrivals that I photo'd:

JL and his family arrived from Whangarei in his Cherokee 6 ZK-DHG.

Brian Houghton hopped over the hill from Kaipara Flats in his Sky Arrow 480T ZK-EBR2.

John Issott slipping in nicely in the Tecnam P92 Echo ZK-CDL2 from Parakai.

A surprise was Mike Crymble in his Bolkow B208 Junior ZK-CJF, from Whangarei.

And later on, after the bacon was all scoffed, Rodger Coleclough arrived in his Cirrus SR 22 ZK-WHL, from North Shore.  Fortunately there were still plenty of pancakes!

Falcomposite LN27RG Furio ZK-WBW

An interesting visitor to Pauanui airfield today was the Hastings based Furio ZK-WBW. Originally registered back in October 2011 to a Queenstown owner it moved onto its current owner in September 2021 and is one of 5 Furios currently on the NZ register.

 

More Messenger Magnificence

As I have posted, I was out at Kaipara Flats airfield yesterday when Bruce Lynch's magnificent Miles Messenger ZK-AKE2 flew off some of its test flying hours:

With the somewhat sameness of many modern sport aircraft that are optimised for performance, it is a real privilege to see something SO different with so many quirky bits, and so many neat angles to observe..

On take off....

Overhead....

On short finals....

And over the airfield perimeter.  The sound is also quite loud with a four into one exhaust and no muffler.

This is likely to be my last post on Bruce's Messenger for a while.  If you are sick of so many photos of it maybe you CAN blame the messenger!