More pics from Taupo

A reasonably long time resident at Taupo, inactive, is this Bell 222 JA9568 (c/n 47074).
This was originally N18097 before moving to Japan. It came to NZ and was registered here as ZK-HZD2 on 20-11-2003 for Aircraft Maintenance Taupo Ltd. It was never marked as such, and was cancelled from the register on 17-12-2004 as withdrawn. It has been used as a spare parts department to keep the Taupo based Search & Rescue Services Ltd Bell 222B ZK-HZQ active.
Pic taken on 23-11-2011.


Remainder of original blog removed at aircraft owners request 02-04-2012.

Question time # 142 resolved

It is indeed a Naval N3N-3. It has the c/n 2878 and the US registration of N45296, no NZ registration for a while yet.
This airframe is located near Waimate
They are almost always mistaken for the Boeing Stearman.
Its internal structure is very different from the Stearman. They have a square frame built up from angular sections with ribs and stringers added to give the rounded shape on the fuselage

Below I have nicked a photo from Bill Larkin and from the Aero-Web Org site.
It shows the Naval N3N-3 in the foreground and the Boeing N2S Stearman behind.
The most obvious differences are:-
Engine firewall shape.
Vertical tailplane. Shape, larger, and single strut on the Naval & wire braced on the Stearman.
Undercarriage exposed and braced on Naval. Single faired unit on Stearman
Wheels. Bigger and narrower on the Naval. (Naval often operated with single large float
under fuselage and smaller floats on outer wing).
Four ailerons on the Naval with interconnecting push rods behind the wing "N" struts.

Check out http://www.warbirdalley.com/n3n.htm for more on the history of these Naval N3N's.

Well done Planecrazy4.
Flick me your postal address & I will send chocolate fish.

Squirrel crash today - video clip of ZK-HIG

Helicopter crash at the Auckland Viaduct this morning. See :-

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/video.cfm?c_id=1&gal_objectid=10768105&gallery_id=122790

And some snaps of ZK-HIG in action:

Rural fire fighter training at Ardmore, March 2006, MRC photo

 

Returning from a spray job, April 2011, MRC photo

Question time # 142

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Feilding Aerodrome 19-11-11, and VP 1's of New Zealand Addendum (2)

After overnighting at Feilding on my road trip to Wellington, I travelled to Feilding Aerodrome at Taonui where I had arranged with a couple of homebuiders to meet and photo their aeroplanes.

Tony Udy has been building his Zenith CH 200 ZK-UDY for many years and first registered it on 20/8/87. However it only flew about a year ago. He has made a very nice job of it.

At the other end of the aerodrome John Waugh opened up his hangar for me to photo his VP 1 ZK-EEM to which he has added a raised turtledeck and a canopy. It is now named "Red Shoes".

And in the back of ZK-UDY's hangar was Feilding's other resident VP 1 ZK-DGW which is owned by Bill Hedley of Palmerston North.

While I was at Feilding I ran into Les Rogers who has been building his RV 4 ZK-LDR, also for many years. Les showed us his newly painted aircraft which is nearly completed.

On Safaris in Tokoroa

A road trip to Wellington last Friday/Saturday on safari had me visiting Bruce Belfield who is the New Zealand agent for Canadian Home Rotors Safari helicopters.

In Bruce's hangar at Tokoroa's Amisfield Airfield were half of New Zealand's 10 strong Safari helicopter fleet. Photo's above are ZK-IQP (in the foreground) owned by Otorini Farms of Otorohanga, then Bruce's own ZK-HXJ, ZK-HIV owned by Craig Goddard of Te Kuiti, and ZK-IRH which is owned by Reece Hawkins and was down from Whangarei for some maintenance. And the fifth Safari was ZK-ISH which was in a damaged state awaiting rebuild by Bruce. Observant readers will notice that ZK-HIV is different from the others. This is because it has a Robinson R 22 canopy.

And this photo shows the comparason between the Bell 47 version Safari and the R 22 version Safari outside Bruce's hangar in the late afternoon sun.

The Flybaby again.

Here with an update on the earlier posting on these two Sky Babies which can be seen at http://nzcivair.blogspot.com/2011/07/bowers-at-oamaru.html3
Above is what will become ZK-CFB2 in due course. It was built by Bela Morosi, an 80 year old, at Solon, Ohio over a thirty year period and has been given a manufacturers date of August 2003. It has the total airframe time of 3 hours. The engine has three hours since overhaul. It now carries the name "Snoz". It will in due course appear in pseudo militay markings. (probably as NZ3096 - which comes from its US registration of N3096Z : not from the RNZAF P40E NZ3096)

Above and below is ZK-OFB complete in all its beauty. Still with is US markings (minus the "N" preffix) under its tail. It now carries this new Squadron badge.

Two D models

Here we have two Hughes 369D model helicopters. Both photos were taken on the same day (05-11-2011) by two travelling enthusiasts. First Pic was shot at Omaka by Andy Heap and the lower one was taken at Tekapo by Blue bus.

ZK-HRF2 with its c/n of 119-0627D is the younger of the two by about a month. It served in the USA as N58355 from late 1979 until heading over to Japan in mid 1986 to become JA9436 . It became ZK-HRF with Rotor Flite NZ Ltd on 11-07-05 and went over to Gisborne Helicopters, then to Helicopters Hawkes Bay in 2007; to Heavy Jet in 2010 and then Wairarapa Helicopters from that October. Its current listed owner is Precision Helicopters Ltd of Urenui from 01-01-2011.

ZK-HVT2 has a c/n of 109-0586D and spent time in Australia as VH-SCQ from mid 1980 until mid 1983 when it nipped up to PNG and became P2-AHE for Rotor Work Pty Ltd at Mount Hagen. It was cancelled from the PNG register in 1993 as sold in NZ but did not appear on the register here until 06-10-2000 with Jame Scott of Fox Glacier. Reading between these lines I would say it sat around at Fox awaiting a rebuilt for some time. It is still with James, trading here as Tekapo Helicopters and is seen on its relatively new pad beside highway 8, just South of the military camp.

New aircraft type for Aoraki Mount Cook Skiplanes

Not yet publicly announced, but noticed on the helicopter platform at the Aoraki Mount Cook Skiplane Airfield recently was this latest fleet addition.

I believe they are available in quickbuild kitset form over the counter.

No stage or final inspections required.

No pilots licence required.

Cessna 182T ZK-MAR

Cessna 182T ZK-MAR made its way onto the NZ register in the second quarter of 2010 and resides in Rotorua.

Thanks to Betty S for sharing these great shots of ZK-MAR on safari!

Molesworth, April 2011

Acheron, April 2011