A Couple of ex-Oz Vans at Ardmore - 25-6-2020

In addition to the warbirds that I have posted from Ardmore last week, there were a couple of "new" Vans aircraft that were shipped to New Zealand from Australia recently:

RV 6 ZK-SJC (c/n 24846) was registered to Steve J Chilcott of Auckland on 9/6/20.  Steve was working on re-assembling his new aircraft when I visited (you can just see him in the cockpit).  Steve has also built Jodel D 18 ZK-SCJ and Menestrel ZK-TBS, and also has a Tipsy Nipper project underway.

The RV 6 was built in Australia as VH-COB.

And the other "new" Vans aircraft was a RV 7 ex VH-BZV that will become ZK-RVS3 in due course.

Glenorchy via CMM

CMM has made it to Glenorchy and the only action to be found was - well - with Action Helicopters

 Above we have the Squirrels ZK-ITM and ZK-HGQ on the hard outside their hangar.

 The Eurocopter AS 350 B3 ZK-ITM (c/n 4735) came in from Chile in 2009.

For some more pics of this colour scheme click HERE.

 Eurocopter AS 350 B2 ZK-HGQ5 (c/n 3140) was listed to Action Helicopters last December and carries "Heli Glenorchy" titles.

Action Helicopters also list the Aerospatiale AS 355 F1 Twin Squirrel ZK-HML2 and the Eurocopter AS 350 B2 ZK-HYA3.

Fridays Jets at NZCH

A surprise catch on Friday at Christchurch International were these two executive jet movements.

Below we see both of them against the backdrop of the GCH Aviation facility.

Above we have the Falcon 50 N115MF powering away bound for Wellington. 

This is c/n 330 and has been listed with Delaware Trust Co Trustees since 24-10-2018.

Earlier in the day it had flown from Wellington to Auckland and then down to Christchurch.

If memory serves me this has been in Country since late 2018 for Catley aviation of Wellington.

Departing a little later was the Bombardier Global Express BD700 N148QS c/n 9648 which had arrived from Honolulu on the 25th.

 It is listed with Netjets Sales Inc.

It was heading back to Honolulu and then on to Monterey in California and then to Chicago.

Warbirds WW 1 Aircraft at Ardmore - 25-6-2020

I was fortunate in my timing of arriving at the Warbirds WW 1 hangar as Frank Parker was just about to lock up, but he opened the side door and showed me around briefly.

Frank told me that they were working on their Siemens-Schukert D IV replica ZK-SSW to get it ready for CAA inspection so a first flight could be in the near future.  The wheel covers have now been painted black and white.

There was a very interesting collection collection of old aircraft in the pristine hangar.  Here the nose of Frank's Bristol Scout Model D replica, the black Fokker Triplane replica, the tail of the Ryan ST 3KR and it was the first time I had seen the Keith Park Bristol F2B Fighter replica ZK-PRK.  Frank said they are very pleased with how the Bristol Fighter is performing.

P 40E Kittyhawk at Pioneer Aero 25-6-2020

Across the other side of Ardmore from Avspecs, another WW 2 aircraft restoration is also making good progress at Pioneer Aero:

Curtis P 40E Kittyhawk #41-13570 had the fuselage mated with the wings on 9 June and as can be seen it is now sitting on its undercarriage and has the engine fitted.  I understand that it is for a customer in Italy and that it will be completed this year.

Spitfire LF Mk XVI ZK-NLJ at Avspecs 25-6-2020

I was able to visit Ardmore yesterday (for the first time this year!) and there were some very interesting aircraft to see.

The first was Spitfire LF Mk XVI ZK-NLJ/TB252 at Avspecs which is coming together nicely.  Warren Denholm was working on stuff in the cockpit and he told me that the aircraft is booked in to the paint shop in July.

Van's RV 14s of New Zealand

The second and final new type of sport aircraft to be registered in New Zealand in 2018 was the Van's RV 14:

The Vans RV 14 is the latest offering from Van's Aircraft.  It was designed by Dick Van Grundsven based on the RV 10 and it has the same wing profile as the RV 10.  It is said to have the cruising qualities of the RV 10, the sport flying and aerobatics capabilities of the RV 7 and the best features of the RV 12 kit with accurate matched hole tooling and ready to plug in systems such as the wiring loom.  And it is bigger than the RV 7 for larger American sized pilots and passengers.  It can be built is a tailwheel RV 14 or a tri-gear RV 14A and its canopy is only available as forward hinged.  According to the Van's Aircraft counter as at 25 June 128 RV 14/14As have flown to date.

Specifications for the RV 14 are:  length 21 feet 1 inch (9 inches longer than the RV 7), wingspan 27 feet (2 feet longer than the RV 7) and the wing area is 126.1 square feet.  Empty weight is around 1,240 pounds (562 Kg) and the MAUW in New Zealand is 2,050 pounds (930 Kg).  The standard power is a Lycoming IO 390 engine of 210 HP.  With this engine the cruise speed is over 200 mph (175 knots) while the stall speed is around 53 mph (46 knots).

We have had two RV 14s registered in New Zealand to date:

Our first RV 14 was built in Australia as VH-VNX2 by Chad Boot of Elizabeth Bay NSW and it was first registered to him on 2/3/18.  In November 2018 it was ferried across the Tasman. on 7/11/18 from Coff's Harbour to Lord Howe Island then Norfolk Island, and on 8/11/18 from Norfolk Island to Kerikeri and on to Ardmore.  It is photos above at Ardmore soon after arrival on 8/11/18.

It was registered ZK-VNX (c/n 140381) on 13/11 18 to the RV 14 Syndicate of Auckland.  It is photo'd at Pauanui on 10/6/10.

Meanwhile down in Waimate Roger Small had taken delivery of an early RV 14 kit and was beavering away on it.  Roger told me that he built his RV 14 over a period of 5 years and 7 months, and it was registered ZK-LBK (c/n 140075) to him on 25/7/19.  The LBK is for Leighbank Farm which is Roger's farm and where he hangars his aircraft.  I reckon the RV 14 logo on the tail is nicer than the one on ZK-VNX.

Its first flight was from Waimate Aerodrome on 23/9/19 flown by Roger who said that as he built it he felt he needed to take responsibility for the test flying.  He has now flown off 30 hours of the test flying schedule and says that the aircraft flies beautifully.  Thanks very much for the photos Roger.

We undoubtedly will see more RV 14s in New Zealand and I am aware of one more being built at Whitianga and an RV 14A underway in Christchurch.  I wonder what Van's will come up with next?

Airdrome Aeroplanes Fokker E III Replicas (Only One) of New Zealand

Carrying on to to 2018, and not many new types of new sport aircraft to go, the first new type for the year was the Airdrome Aeroplanes Fokker E III Eindecker replica:

We have had other Airdrome Aeroplanes types registered here (Bleriot XI, Morane Type L, Fokker D IV, several Fokker D VIIs and a Fokker Triplane that I will post about as a 2020 registration).  They are a mix of 3/4 scale and full scale aircraft.  All have been built from kits supplied from Robert Baslee's Airdrome Aeroplanes of Holden, Missouri.  And we will see more of them in time.

The Airdrome Aeroplanes 3/4 scale Fokker E III replica comes as a very complete quick build kit of modern materials.  The aircraft is built from aluminium sheet and tubing that is mainly blind rivetted and the airframe is covered with doped fabric that is also supplied with the kit.  The name Eindecker translates as "single wing" from the German and the replica features ailerons instead of the wing warping of the original WW 1 aircraft.  The original Eindecker was the first aircraft of WW 1 to be fitted with an interrupter gear which allowed its single machine gun to fire through the propellor arc without hitting the propellor, and this resulted in "the Fokker scourge" when Eindeckers gained air superiority over the RFC and French aircraft between August 1915 and February 1916.

The specifications for the 3/4 scale replica Fokker E III Eindecker are:  length 18 feet (5.49 metres), wingspan 30 feet (9.15 metres) and the wing area is 96 square feet.  The empty weight is quoted as 238 pounds (108 Kg) but I think that may be optimistic, and the MAUW in New Zealand is 467 pounds (212 Kg).  The typical engine is a 52 HP Rotax 503 and with this power plant the cruise speed is 57 mph (50 knots) but the Vne is only 63 mph! (55 knots), and the stall speed is quoted as 28 mph (24 knots).

We have had only one Airdrome Aeroplanes Fokker E III replica in New Zealand to date:

Russell and Ross Brodie built their Fokker E II replica ZK-EII2 (c/n 37/15) at Rangitata Island where it was registered to East Canterbury Aviation Ltd on 30/8/18.  It is powered by a Rotax 503 engine.  It is painted to represent the original Eindecker E II serial number 37/15 from 1915 and I believe that the famous WW 1 German pilots Max Immelman and Oswald Boelke both flew the aircraft.  (The original 37/15 was an E II and the Airdrome Aeroplanes replica is of an E III, but both the E II and the E III were very similar).

The cockpit looks suitably World War One-ish.

In this photo Ross Brodie flies the Eindecker replica at the 2019 SAANZ flyin at Ashburton on 11/2/19.  Russell told me that the aircraft is challenging to fly and needs constant attention. 

There is a video of Ross flying the aircraft from Rangitata Island HERE

N185MW's trip to NZ.

Check out this link that covers the journey of the Cessna A185F N185MW c/n 18503956.

https://www.facebook.com/wrongwaytoaustralia/

N185MW as spied by Andy Heap at Omaka on 09-06-2020.

Parting shots from Wanaka by CMM 22-06-2020.

CMM is moving on from Wanaka to points further south.

 Looks like a cool one !

Cessna 172L ZK-DAW (17259737) from NSK Farming Ltd in the Haka Valley.

 Listed with Aylesbury Aircraft Leasing Ltd since mid-2017 - after nearly 40 years with the Wards out of Rangiora - is this Cessna A185F Skywagon ZK-DSO (c/n 18502282).

 And speaking of the Wards - above we have their Piper PA-32R-300 Lance ZK-EIB (c/n 32R-7780548).

The final offering from Wanaka for CMM is the Cessna R182 Skylane RG ZK-MRG (c/n R18201738) of Don Nicholson of Hamilton.

All have been mentioned on this site previously.

Rangiora this day. Monday 22-06-2020

A trial pie run today found a couple of victims.

 Above we have the as yet unregistered Arnold Gallagher Special ZK-CZE.

Arnold began this project about ten years ago based around a Cessna 150 fuselage imported from the USA. The wings, also are ex Cessna but modified to constant chord and the engine as you can see is a Rotec radial.

Sadly Arnold died on May the 9th with a memorial service being held at Rangiora on Saturday last.

Alas the project is incomplete but it is intended that the project will be completed by others.

 Snorting in from the north was the Hughes 369D ZK-HUW (c/n 1280415D).

A low angle shot of the Wittman W8 Tailwind ZK-RET (c/n AACA/386) shows the wing shape nicely.

Built by Ray Thurston of Blenheim it first flew on 20-12-1980.

It has been listed with service Brands Ltd of Kaiapoi since September of 2018.

Departing earth is the locally based Rainbow Skyreach BushCat ZK-ZOZ (c/n CH148B).

Christchurch this day. Monday 22-06-2020

Boeing 777-312ER Airbus A350-941 9V-SWS  (c/n 34584  158) has been with Singapore Airlines since mid-2008. November of 2017,

 GCH Aviation Ltd's Beech C90A King Air ZK-FDN (c/n LJ-1606) in its 'NZ Flying Doctor Service' livery.

And their Cessna 441 Conquest II ZK-NFD2 (c/n 4410141) has been with the Company since 2001.

It's giving the Starlings a bit of a hurry along.

 Air New Zealand's Airbus A320-232 ZK-OXG (c/n 6460) carried out its first revenue flight for ANZ on 27-02-2015.

Helicopters & Others at Taupo

A visit to Taupo today revealed a lot of helicopter activity on the airfield including R44 ZK-HAZ2 which interestingly changed ownership today to Bay Heliwork of Hastings.   This was imported in 2011 from Australia.

Another all white R44 is ZK-ICP which belongs to a local Taupo private owner.   This was imported from Australia in 2012.

Registered to Velocity2 Aviation of Taupo is Guimbal Cabri 2 ZK-IIJ2 which arrived from Germany in 2015.

And yet another R44 is ZK-ITB which hasnt featured on this blog before.  This was imported from Australia in 2014 for Central Tree Harvesters of Taupo

Also not blogged before is the very sleek Robin R3000/160 ZK-TZV which is registered to a Taupo private owner, and arrived from Sweden back in 2005.

Skyreach Bushcats ZK-ZIP and ZK-ZKM

Following my post on the Rainbow Skyreach BushCat ZK-ZIP2 at Paraparaumu, the New Zealand BushCat agent Kevin Mattson has sent in a couple of photos of the two recently registered BushCats taken at his airstrip at Taupiri near Ngaruawahia:

Kevin Mattson's own BushCat ZK-ZKM which is registered to BushCat Aviation NZ Ltd,

and both BushCats ZK-ZKM and ZK-ZIP2, which is registered to M L Robinson of Blenheim.

Thanks for the photos Kevin.

Skyreach Bushcat ZK-ZIP at Paraparaumu - 20-6-2020

The new Rainbow Skyreach BushCat ZK-ZIP2 was photo'd by Tim Gorman at Paraparaumu today, presumably on delivery to its new owner at Blenheim.

Thanks for the photo Tim.

Dedalius Model 1 Aircraft (Only One) of New Zealand

The last new type of sport aircraft to be registered in New Zealand in 2017 was the unique Dedalius Model 1:

Allan Fillery of Wellsford has built a unique aircraft with his Dedalius Model 1, not only a unique airframe but amazingly it is powered by a radial engine that Allan designed and built himself.  The engine is a 4 litre 7 cylinder radial with side valves to cut down the frontal area.  I understand from Allan that it produces 130 HP.

There is a You Tube video of Allan running the engine on a test rig HERE

The airframe of the Dedalius Model 1 is based on a Zenith CH 701 with rounded corners on the fuselage.  I don't have the specifications for it but the MAUW is 599 Kg (1,320 pounds)

I caught up with Allan and his Dedalius at Kerikeri on 20/11/18.  In this shot you can see the nice job of the engine installation.

Then Allan taxied his plane out of the hangar for some more shots.  The engine sounded really good.

ZK-SVR (c/n 109-731-788) was registered to Allan Fillery of Wellsford on 27/10/17.

A great achievement!

More from the East Coast

Further sightings from our travels on the East Coast of the North Island included the latest addition to Gisborne based Eagle Flight Training fleet,  Diamond DA40 ZK-TTC.  This was imported from the US in December 2019 and acquired by Eagle this June.

Down at Napier the vintage 1962 MS880B Rallye ZK-BZZ was parked out while its engine was receiving attention.   It was purchased by a Waipukurau owner in May 2020.

Also parked up at Napier was the Airscapade DC3 ZK-JGB2 which has been Omaka based for the past 5 years

A late afternoon visit to Hastings before the rain arrived offered the Lowe Corp Hawkes Bay Rescue helicopter, BK117B-2 ZK-HIQ5,  which was acquired in 2018 and is based at Hawkes Bay Hospital

And the latest addition to the busy Air Hawkes Bay fleet  (May 2020) is Cessna 152 ZK-TOC,  previously with NZICPA at Whanganui.    It has consequently lost its Silver Fern tail emblem.

Wairoa HB

A visit to the usually quiet Wairoa airfield in Hawkes Bay today revealed some activity at the various agricultural operators based at the airfield.

Formed in 2016 by taking over the former Ashworth Helicopters base Charteris Choppers (alias Wairoa Aviation) operates Hughes 369D ZK-HHG2,  which has been in NZ since 1992 after import from Bahrain

And AS350B-3 ZK-HRB4 which was imported from Norway in October 2019

HHG has been christened "Harry" and HRB  "Wilson"

Across the field Farmers Air have based PAC 750XL ZK-XLC2 in Wairoa and it was busy topdressing a nearby farm

Visiting from Napier was the Air Napier PA31-310 ZK-NPR which has been operated by the company since 2000