Saturday, 10 June 2023

A stopover at Kaikoura today

CMM hit Kaikoura late in the afternoon today (Saturday the 10th) and captured this selection of aircraft.

Auster 5D ZK-BMD c/n 1035 Joined the Royal Air Force as NJ635 in 1944, then the UK civil market as G-ALZM in March 1950.
After arrival in NZ and became ZK-BMD from 02-11-1955.
By 2005 after something like fifteen previous owners it was with Bob and Eileen Yates at Christchurch.
Listed for sale on TradeMe in mid-2009 it soon sold to current owners Guy Redfern and Fiona Nimmo of Muzzle Station - tucked away between the Inland and the Seaward Kaikoura Ranges.
Previously mentioned  Here
Pacific Helicopters (2016) Ltd's Eurocopter EC 130 B4 ZK-HBE4 c/n 3541 has been Kaikoura based since 2019.
 
Below is the GCH Aviation Ltd's Eurocopter EC 130 B4 ZK-IGF c/n 4228
 Previously mentioned  Here  , Here , and  Here

Kaikoura is a bit of a hot spot for Gippsland GA8 Airvans.

 Air Kaikoura Aero Club operate two Gippsland GA8 Airvans
Above we see ZK-EHS2 c/n GA8-11-170 which has been on line since November 2018
Below is ZK-ORC c/n GA8-02-017 which joined them in May 2020. 
This one has previously served as ZK-SAF2 and ZK-FSS2.

Nearby, South Pacific Helicopters operate two Airvans under the Wings Over Whales name.
Above we have ZK-FSR c/n GA8-06-099 which they have had since July of 2018.
Several previous mentions Here
Below is ZK-KBZ c/n GA8-03-024 started with Wings Over Whales back in February of 2003.

Cessna 172R ZK-NAO

 The Cessna 172R Skyhawk N2378E c/n 17280533 was cranked out in 10-1998 by the Cessna Aircraft Company at Independence, Kansas. and was shipped to the New Zealand agents Flightline Aviation Ltd (Papakura) and registered as ZK-JKB on 19-10-1998.
 It first flew here on 29-10-1998 and was taken on by the Massey Aviation School of Aviation at Palmerston North from 12-05-1999.

It is seen below at Ardmore on 19-03-2000.
Interestingly it was cancelled as exported on 16-01-2004.
Only to be re-registered on 22-01-2004 to Premi-Air Aviation Ltd of Auckland.
It then went to a series of operators in quick succession.
Auckland Aero Club (Inc) from 22-01-2004.
Icelandic Holdings Ltd of Auckland from 15-11-2004.
Skylease Ltd, Auckland from 17-06-2005.
Auckland Flight Training Ltd, Ardmore from 17-03-2006.
CTC Aviation Training (NZ) Ltd at Hamilton from 10-10-2006.

Then Tecnam Ltd, Papakura from 27-07-2010.
Todd Agri Ltd out of Murchison from 29-04-2011.

It was sold and re-registered as ZK-NAO2 to the Nelson Aviation College Ltd at Motueka from 27-03-2019

It was spotted today at Christchurch International by Tony McFarlin.
It arrived in from Paraparaumu on Thursday.

The first allocation of the ZK-NAO registration was carried on a Fokker F27 Srs 500 Combi between August 1973 and November 2012.


Friday, 9 June 2023

Two New Bristells at Gordonton

A couple of much delayed Bristell NG 5s have arrived in New Zealand and been registered to the New Zealand agents Anderson Aviation NZ Ltd (on 27/4/23).  Thanks to Martin Henton we now have photos of them at Gordonton:

ZK-NGO (c/n 655/2023) is Martin Henton's demonstrator so you will see it around.  Both of the new NG 5s have Rotax 915 power.

A drone view looks great!

And the other new NG 5 is ZK-EAC2 (c/n 656/2023) which is going to a Waihi Beach owner.

Two very nice aircraft!  Thanks for the photos Martin.



Thursday, 8 June 2023

Hawker Siddeley 748 ZK-CWJ.

 Following the 1957 Defence White Paper the UK Ministry of Defence terminated almost all manned military aircraft development. This prompted Avro in 1958 to concentrate on the civil market. 

With the Vickers Viscount already in service Avro worked on a design for the regional airline market and came up with another 'Douglas DC-3 replacement'. Also with the Fokker F27 Friendship already in service it was decided to build a more rugged aircraft with short field performance if required. It was a low wing aircraft with a sturdy undercarriage and twin Rolls Royce Dart engines.

This lead to the Avro 748 design being publicly announce on 09-01-1959 with the prototype first flying on 24-06-1960. 

Also around this time there was a Government push to rationalise the aviation industry in the UK with  Avro becoming part of the Hawker Siddeley Group. This changed the designation of the Avro 748 to that of the Hawker Siddeley 748 (later to British Aerospace and BAe Systems).

Mount Cook Airlines first 748 Series 242 was construction number 1647 and first flew on 05-09-1968 from Woodford, Manchester and was allocated the New Zealand registration of ZK-CWJ on 16-09-1968, 

It was on show during the 1968 Farnborough Air Show as seen in the photo below.

Note it has "NEW ZEALANDS" above the MOUNT COOK AIRLINES titles.Above as seen at Farnborough 21-09-1968.

It was ferried out to NZ reaching Christchurch on 05-10-1968 and is seen below taxiing to the terminal.

Below we have Captain Geoff Williams.
In house this aircraft was often referred to as 'Captain William's Jallopy'
Its first day of service was on 25-10-1968 when it flew from Christchurch to Timaru and Oamaru
John Evans, Geoff Williams and Alastair McLeod.
Both photos from the South Canterbury Museum collection.

Above at Invercargill on 11-02-1969
The script " The Mount Cook Lily" is in small letters on the tail below the ranunculus flower.

At Christchurch 11-06-1969 without the 'NEW ZEALANDS" fuselage script

John Mounce captured it at Christchurch on 11-11-1970.

At Palmerston North from Phillip Capper in 1973 with the MCA titles now with a slight lean on.

From 07-02-1978 it became part of the Mount Cook Group Ltd but life continued the same - including a short lease to Polynesian Airlines in mid-1981.

At Mount Cook on 01-07-1978 from Peter Lewis with the letter 'J' on the nosewheel undercarriage door.

ZK-CWJ seems to have had a reasonably uneventful life - apart from a minor wing tip strike on a building at Wellington Airport - and the incident below on 20-03-1988.
Briefly - due to an industrial dispute at Auckland Airport ZK-CWJ dropped a load of passenger at Ardmore and then whilst taxiing over towards Airwork for a fuel top up went off onto the grass with the starboard undercarriage sinking in soft ground and the propeller striking the ground.
Three views, one above and two below, show it in distress at Ardmore on 20-03-1988.

Note the new colour scheme above with the lily being larger and lower on the vertical tail, plus 'WJ' now on the nosewheel door and the AORAKI name lower on the fuselage below the cockpit.

It did good work on the Chatham Islands run and is seen above outside the Tuuta Airport terminal building on 13-10-1992. Its final Chathams run was on 20-01-1996.

It was withdrawn from use and stored at Christchurch for a few months before being sold to Clewer Aviation from 28-05-1997. It ferried out to Norfolk Island on 29-05-1997 and continued on through Brisbane ending up at Southend in the UK on 07-06-1997 with its NZ registration being cancelled on 30-07-1997. 
Its story becomes a little convoluted from here on - but it goes something like this.
It picked up the UK registration of G-ORCP the same day (30-07-1997); then being listed to Aerospace Express Ltd of Durban, South Africa the following day as ZS-OCF. It was converted to a freighter in early 1998 for lease operations by Airwork Pty Ltd on a freight run from Johannesburg to Bloemfontein. Withdrawn from use on 18-10-2002 it was ferried back to Southend and its ZS registration was cancelled on 13-12-2002.
It then took up its old UK registration of G-ORCP from 02-01-2003 with Emerald Airways of Leeds until the Company's AOC was suspended on 04-05-2006.

As G-ORCP at Edinburgh on 01-11-2003.

At Liverpool on 01-05-2004.
On 16-10-2006 it passed to International Air Parts Ltd and was later flown out to Bangladesh on lease to Best Aviation and then leased on to Bismillah Airlines from 24-06-2009 as S2-AEE.

Blackpool on 21-04-2007 before moving to Bangladesh.

S2-AEE finally at rest at Cox's Bazaar, Bangladesh on 10-02-2018 from Raihan Ahmep.

There are plans to bring her home !
Mount Cook Airlines eventually acquire eight 748s being ZK-CWJ, ZK-DES, ZK-MCA, ZK-MCB,     ZK-MCF, ZK-MCH, ZK-MCJ and ZK-MCP.
The first to be sold overseas was ZK-MCA in November 1995 and the last was ZK-DES in February of 1998.

Wednesday, 7 June 2023

Kitplanes for Africa Explorer ZK-MSC

Recently registered was this Kitplanes for Africa Explorer ZK-MSC, photographed at Solo Wings in Tauranga by Mark Pattenden:

ZK-MSC (c/n 159-01-12) was registered to UGO Earthworks of Te Puke on 1/6/23.  It was previously registered ZU-MSC in South Africa so it wasn't very hard to apply its new rego.

It is actually our second Kitplanes for Africa Explorer, the first being ZK-EHK2 which is registered to an owner at Masterton, but I haven't seen a photo of it to date. 


Tuesday, 6 June 2023

AS350B2 ZK-IWE

Noted at Ardmore today was the former Glacier Southern Lakes Helicopters' AS350B2 ZK-IWE which was sold to Hamilton based HeliCorp in March this year.    It was originally imported from the US back in 2016.



 

Monday, 5 June 2023

A Sad Ending at Whangarei

Across the airfield from where I was at Hangar 10 at Whangarei there were the sad remains of an aircraft that will probably not be there much longer as it is destined to become a practice for the Airport Fire Service:

I reckon it is the remains of Alpi Pioneer ZK-CIR which I understand ditched in the Whangarei Harbour and was cancelled from the register on 22/6/18.

Here it is in happier times at Whangarei on 2/3/15.


Zlin Savage ZK-ZSC at Nelson

 Zlin Aviation Savage ZK-ZSC c/n 281 was an import by Tim Harrison of Sports Aircraft New Zealand Ltd of Wellsford and registered here on 23-10-2014. Initially sold to Michael Gordon of Tauranga from February 2016 and then to private owners from December of 2017.

It arrived into Nelson late last month and is seen here thanks to Bill Mannix parked in the GA park on Saturday the third.

Air New Zealand Old and NEO at Whangarei

When I was at Whangarei last week, and after the fog had lifted, an Air New Zealand Q 300 arrived and landed:

I was pleased to see it was ZK-NEO still in the old teal colours.

This was probably one of the last times I will get to photo the old Air New Zealand colours as I understand the remaining teal tailed Q 300s are being repainted at Woodbourne.


Saturday, 3 June 2023

A couple of helicopters at Pauanui

Making a brief stop at Pauanui airfield today was Agusta Bell 206B ZK-IEI2 which was one of 6 imported by Volation Ltd from the UAE in 2022 and was onsold to an Auckland owner in 2023.


Also visiting from Mechanics Bay was the Heli Me EC130T2 ZK-INX which is now in an all black scheme.   This was originally imported new in 2017 as ZK-HJW5,  becoming INX in 2022.