Waipukurau flyin. Cessna 180B ZK-LMW.

Jordan Elvy caught this interesting Cessna's at yesterday's dawn fly in at Waipukurau. 

Cessna 180B ZK-LMW c/n 50543 was a product of 1953 and listed to Cessna Aircraft on 22-05-1959 and a few days later became HI-51 with Grenada Co, Puerto Liberatado, Dominican Republic. It crashed on delivery on Acklin Island in the Bahamas and was returned to the USA for rebuild and became N9306R on 10-10-1960 to Aircraft Ferry Company of Mami, Florida - who had been the listed owner for its initial delivery.

It then had five more owners before its last flight in the US on 04-12-1982. I suspect it arrived in NZ in a damaged state and was re-worked by Aeromotive Overhauls Ltd of Hamilton - to whom it became ZK-LMW on 11-09-1984.

Below we see ZK-LMW at Kairanga on 01-04-2004.

It had at least eight more owner/operators before being acquired by Richard W Coop of Okepuha Station near Mahia on 07-05-2013. 

Richard re-registered it using his initials for it to become ZK-RWC2 from 10-06-2013.

Here we have two photos of it as ZK-RWC2 taken at Omaka on 06-02-2021.

Note the "Skywaka 180" on the lower fin - nice touch.

Richard then re-registered it back to its original ZK-LMW on 16-03-2023.

Does this leave the way clear for a ZK-RWC3 ?

Below as seen at Waipukurau on Sunday last from Jordan Elvy.

With hard to see - revised livery on its fin.