Hughes helicopter fly in at Hanmer 15-02-2025

 Bill Hales of Woodbank, on the outskirts of Hanmer Springs, hosted a fly in of Hughes Helicopters last weekend. Main day being 16-02-2025.

Below we have three of the visiting helicopters.

Just in from Te Anau was the MDHC 600N NOTAR ZK-IJD2 c/n RN029 of Fiordland Helicopters Ltd.

A product of MD Helicopters of Mesa, Arizona in 1998 as N603BP and was delivered to the U.S. Border Patrol Air Operations out of El Paso, Texas on 16-12-1998.

In May of 2002 it transferred to the U.S. Customs & Border Protection Air & Maritime Operations, Department of Homeland Security, Washington, DC.

It was withdrawn from service in August 2010 and went into storage at the Aerospace Maintenance And Regeneration Group (AMARC) facility in Tucson, Arizona.

 'Regenerated' in March 2012 it became N2638S for the Dale County Sheriffs Office in Ozark, Alabama.

This US registration was cancelled on 28-09-2016 and it was shipped into Mount Maunganui for its NZ certification to ZK-IJD for Amalgamated Helicopters NZ Ltd on 04-10-2016.

Ownership moved to Fiordland Helicopters Ltd at Te Anau on 29-10-2024.

As you can see it still carries the "SHERIFF" and fleet number "4" from its final operator in the USA.

Half a dozen Hughes/Schweizer 269's made it for the weekend.

Above is the Hughes 2969C ZK-HGP c/n 73-0221 as listed to Trap And Trigger Ltd of Upper Hutt since December of 2022. 

This came new to New Zealand in late 1973.

A little more of its history can be seen  HERE

The MDHI 369E ZK-HAC3 c/n 0561E has been with Wanaka Helicopters Ltd since 11-09-2020.

It did however have a life in the USA initially as N70551 with MD Helicopters Inc of Mesa, Arizona from August of 2001 before taking up the N691F marks with the City of Oklahoma City Police Department from January 2003.

Its US registration was cancelled o 21-08-2014 for its move to NZ where it became ZK-HGF7 from 29-08-2014 with Alister Yeoman of Ashburton and then on to The Hangar Company (Ashburton) Ltd on 29-09-2016.

The Te Anau Helicopter Services Ltd had it briefly in 2016 before returning it to The Hangar Company.

Wanaka Helicopters Ltd picked it up from September 2020 and re-registered it as ZK-HAC4 on 18-09-2020.