From the depths of my shoe box came these two very interesting photos taken outside the Otago Aero Club building at Taieri.
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We have ZK-ABO on the left with the number14 on the rudder,
ZK-AAW to the right number 15
In the center, more distant is ZK-ACD.
And the NZPAF DH60 873 (I think) beyond.
Below same scene, same day, engines running and ground helpers holding the wing struts with others taxying out.
Left to right we have ZK-ABQ, ZK-AAW, ZK-ACD and NZPAF873.
I think that is ZK-ACI in front of ZK-AAW.
Photos possibly by A E Philips.
Below is an extract nicked from
South Island Air Pageant
And Inaugural Meeting of The Otago Aero Club
Otago Air Port, North Taieri, 21st of February 1931 |
____________Aircraft_Participant_____________ | ______Pilot_and_Crew______ |
DH60 Moth of the NZPAF, Wigram | | |
DH50A of the NZPAF, Wigram | 135 | |
Gloster Grebe of the NZPAF, Wigram | NZ50_ | |
Bristol F2B Fighter of the NZPAF | | |
DH60 Moth | ZK- | S/Ldr Jim Findlay |
Avro Avian | | |
Simmons Spartan | ZK- | F/Lt Tiny White |
The Programme | | Time | | | 8.45am | Formation Flight Over City | | 10.00am | Heats: All Transport Race First Heat Winner - F/Lt Tiny White
Second Heat Winner - S/Ldr Jim Findlay
Third Heat Winner - F/O Ted Olsen | | 11.00am | Heats: Otago Aerial Derby (Five miles) First Heat Winner - S/Ldr Malcolm McGregor
Second Heat Winner - F/O J.H.M. Smith
Third Heat Winner - S/Ldr Jim Findlay | | 12.00 noon | Formation Flight Over City | | 1.30pm | Grand Parade and Landing Competition Landing Winner - S/Ldr Malcolm McGregor | | 1.50pm | Formation Flying and Aerial Drill | | 2.15pm | Landing Competition for Club Trained Pilots | | 2.45pm | Aerobatics and Inverted Flying | | 3.00pm | Final of the All Transport Race Winner - F/O Ted Olsen
Second Place - S/Ldr Jim Findlay
Third Place - F/Lt Tiny White Parachute Descent | | 3.20pm | Aerobatic Competition Joint Equal Winners - S/Ldr Malcolm McGregor and F/O Ted Olsen | | 3.45pm | Height Estimating Competition | | 4.00pm | Final of the Otago Aerial Derby Winner - S/Ldr Jim Findlay
Second Place - S/Ldr Malcolm McGregor
Third Place - F/O J.H.M. Smith
| | 4.20pm | Aerial Dog Fight S/Ldr Malcolm McGregor vs Captain Maurice Buckley | | 4.30pm | Bombing the Baby Winner - S/Ldr Jim Findlay
Second Place - F/Lt Tiny White
Third Place - Ronald Sinclair | | 4.50pm | Balloon Chasing (weather permitting) |
Notes:
This pageant marked the opening of Taieri Aerodrome, aka Otago Air Port. This was the Otago Aero Club's new home base after moving from their old field at Green Island, and this was also the club's first official meeting at Taieri. This event is reported to have had perfect weather. Nine aircraft from the Canterbury region took part, six of them from the Air Force aerodrome at Sockburn, and three from the Canterbury Aero Club. Aircraft also attended from the Otago, Southland, Wairarapa, Wellington and Marlborough Aero Clubs The formation flight of eleven aeroplanes over the city of Dunedin was led by Wing Commander Grant Dalton, the Air Director. One of the participants and competitors was Oscar Garden. The crowd was around 10,000 people. Music for the event was provided by the Band if the 1st Battalion, Otago Regiment On Monday 23rd of February 1931, while en route back to Wigram Aerodrome, Sockburn, two of the NZPAF aeroplanes crashed near Silverton, the homestead of Mr. J.M.H. Tripp, 14 miles from Geraldine. The DH60 wooden Moth that had won the Aerial Derby when flown by S/Ldr Jim Findlay at the pageant was being flown back to Christchurch by Flight Sergeant S. Simpson (the Chief Mechanic at Wigram aerodrome), He and his passenger, Flight Sergeant L.A.C. Dini were shaken but unhurt.
__ The other aircraft was a DH60M Metal Moth flown by Wing Commander Grant Dalton. He and his unnamed passenger were also shaken but unhurt. It was reported that the cause of both accidents remained unknown but the atmospheric conditions were particularly bad with thunder, lightning and low clouds, and severe air pockets. The Metal Moth was the first to strike the ground, breaking the undercarriage and causing other damage. The wooden Moth crashed only seconds later, wrecking the undercarriage which was pushed up through the flooring of the pilot's seat and breaking the propeller. They came down in a "tussocky, wind swept waste" of a field a quarter of a mile from the homestead. The wooden Moth was eventually trucked back to Wigram, and the Metal Moth repaired in the fieild to allow it to be flown back to base. Other aircraft also suffered on the homeward trip from the pageant. Captain Jerry Steadman and his passenger Mr. C.C. Waite in the Wellington Aero Club's Spartan (ZK-ABL) were forced to land in a paddock due to the weather conditions, and the aircraft overturned and smashed its propeller. they were unhurt. Mr Jamieson, who'd been flying with the in a Moth, turned back and landed safely next to the overturned Spartan. Two other aircraft travelling with them, one flown by Ron Sinclair of Masterton and the other by F. McDonald of Wellington carried on to Blenheim, and only just made it to the airfield with very low fuel left. Source: Details gleaned from the official souvenir programme of the event and several newspaper articles via Papers Past
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Below are two interesting links to the ODT pages of the day.
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