Random Rotorcraft - McCulloch J-2 ZK-RCK

I have never seen this gyrocopter but it has been registered here since December 1999.  I was talking to my mate about early microlights and he sent me some photos, with this one also.  It was taken at Tauranga in the early 2000s.

ZK-RCK (c/n 073) is ex N4363G.  I had not seen a photo of it in this colour scheme and more modern photos of it show it in a 1970s factory colour scheme.  It is still registered and is in storage in Auckland I believe, and the owner intends to get it flying again sometime.

Thanks for the photo Ralph.

Microlight Aircraft of New Zealand - A Call For Information About Microlight/Ultralight Flying During the Period 1978 to 1981

Following Pete James' Easy Riser heroics in 1977/78 and Richard Brett's twin pusher biplane there must have been other want to be microlight/ultralight flyers in New Zealand.  The hang gliding scene was quite strong from the late 1960s and the New Zealand Hang Gliding Association was formed in 1974 and some of these people would have been candidates.  

I don't know what types these earliest powered microlights would have been but they could have included the Australian built Skycraft Scout which was introduced in Sydney from 1976, or from the US the ultralights that would have been available included the Kasperwing (introduced from 1976), the Chiota Weedhopper and the Pterodactyl Fledgeling  (both introduced from 1977), the Goldwing (from 1979) and the Mitchell Wing (from 1980).

We can infer that there must have been some microlights here because the the Civil Aviation Division of the Ministry of Transport didn't want to know about them, but did introduce a rule that if a flying machine was less than 150 Kg empty, a would be microlight pilot only needed to apply for a Student Pilots License (a paper form only) and then go flying with no rules about instruction and also not have to register his flying machine!  This was the situation in New Zealand between 1978 and late 1981 when the Microlight Aircraft Association of New Zealand (MAANZ) was formed.

So my question to readers of this blog is:  What can you tell me about microlight flying in New Zealand between 1978 and 1981?  You can send your answers as Comments to this post, or by email to the blog boss, Dave Paull paulldj@xtra.co.nz  You can keep any comments as Anonymous if you want but if you have any information I would love to talk further about it.  Over to you!

Could we have had an unregistered Chiota Weedhopper in New Zealand? (Photo of a US machine).

Microlight Aircraft of New Zealand - Richard Brett's Twin Pusher Biplane

In my earlier post on Pete James’ powered Easy Riser microlight, I quoted Pete as saying that “he thinks he was the first to fly a powered microlight aircraft in New Zealand and that was in late 1977 although he does know of another guy who was experimenting with powered microlights at Raglan around the same time”. 

After quite a bit of sleuthing it turns out that the guy at Raglan was Richard (Dick) Brett who had built his own design of microlight that was pretty amazing for that time (around 1977).  Of course that was at the time when microlight aircraft did not have to be registered and CAA didn’t really know what to do with them. 

Richard Brett came from England in 1919 when he was 16 and studied at Flock House near Bulls.  He later married during the depression and the family moved to the East Coast where he helped with building a mill.  He was a self trained engineer and blacksmith and he served during WW2 with the RNZAF as a driver/mechanic.  He was interested in aircraft early on after the war and in Gisborne in the early 1950s he built a gyro glider that was registered ZK-GAO in November 1954.  It was the first gyro glider to be registered in New Zealand.  I was particularly interested in the rotors which were built up like an aircraft wing with a spar and many ribs – this was pioneering stuff.  It is listed in the CAA records as a Rotating Wing Glider.  A gyro glider is towed behind a car on a tow rope after the rotor blades are first manually rotated.  However due to pilot error (there was no-one to teach the pilot how to fly a gyro glider back then), ZK-GAO was badly damaged on one such tow (maybe its first tow?) when the blades hit the ground and it was written off and cancelled from the register in July 1957. 

Richard Brett later moved to Raglan where he built his second flying machine in the mid 1970s.  Remember this was in the very early days of microlight aircraft and I think it is pretty remarkable what he came up with.  At that time people like Pete James were going down the route of fixing an engine onto an existing hang glider design which was probably more likely to succeed but Richard Brett really pushed the boat out! 

The aircraft he came up with was like a small regular taildragger but it was a biplane with twin pusher motors!  I understand these engines were Briggs and Stratton 2 stroke lawn mower engines and you can certainly see in one of the photos that they blew a lot of smoke!  I am not sure what he covered it with but I have heard a report that it was quite loose but tightened up in the sun! 

The history of the aircraft flying is a bit hazy.  I know it was assembled at Te Kowhai sometime in the late 1970s, and attempts were made to fly it.  It did make some hops in ground effect as I understand and possibly ended up in a hedge.  Can anyone add anything more to this? 

Richard Brett’s twin engined pusher biplane microlight at Raglan in the late 1970s I think.

An engine start of one of the 2 stroke Briggs and Stratton engines.  That is Richard Brett in the blue jersey.  It is a pity that we don’t have a better photo of him.

I have contacted Richard Brett’s family and they have lost track of what eventually happened to the microlight.  Never the less this was a pioneering attempt at very early microlight flying in New Zealand, and Richard Brett deserves recognition for his work. 

Thanks to Dale and Dave Brett, and Graeme Stratton for their help with this post, and for the photos. 

The magnificent Stinson ZK-STN

 After an overnight stop at Kaikoura on Friday, the Whitianga based, Stinson 108-3 Flying Station Wagon ZK-STN c/n 108-3585 cruised quietly on down to Rangiora yesterday (Saturday the 26th) .

This is a really nice piece of kit from 1948.

With its Franklin engine on display.

And with a couple of mod cons fitted.

After lunch at the CRAC Club House they headed on down to Alexandra.

A lovely flying machine.

My late Friday Pie Run.

 I dropped into Rangiora today - Saturday the 26th - for my Friday Pie Run and found a couple of aircraft worthy of more attention.

Surprise catch was the Roy Hill Fletcher FU24-950 c/n 241 ZK-EGS. 

Rumours from the 'Club House' are that it has been sold to a North Island operator.

See Here for more on this Fletcher.

Over from Hokitika for the day was the Robinson R44 Raven II ZK-HLI8 c/n 13075.

This came in new to NZ to become ZK-IZA from 24-11-2010 - with a re-registration to ZK-IWF on 09-05-2012. As such it joined Buttle Properties 05 Ltd of Darfield from 10-10-2016.

They re-registered it as ZK-HLI8 a week later. 

From 20-02-2019 it changed from the Company name to Charles and Susan Buttle.

Current operator, Henry Adams Contracting Ltd of Hokitika took it on from 30-11-2023.

Tie-Upp Aviation's latest addition is this Cessna A152 Aerobat ZK-TIE c/n A1520917 which joined them on 28-01-2025 after importation from the USA.

I believe it has a full IFR instrument fit out.

See a previous mention HERE

Queen Air ZK-CIA still on duty.

 The Beechcraft 65-B80 Queen Air ZK-CIA2  c/n LD-430 was photographed by 
Antonio McDonald yesterday. 

 - proof that ZK-CIA is 'alive and well'........

Well - in a paddock at least.

Now at Roy's Hill, SH.50, Hawkes Bay.

It has previously spent time at a property up the Napier-Taihape Road and when no longer needed, it was moved to its current location.

ZK-CIA2 has had a previous mention HERE 

A Flight to Pauanui on 24-07-2025

The lovely weather over the country due to the mid-winter high also attracted several members of the Northern Aviators Club for lunch to Pauanui yesterday.  Neil Wright had a spare seat in his Allegro 2000 ZK-DCU and so we set off just after 10am from Kaipara Flats airfield in spectacular conditions.  We headed in a fairly direct course around the Eastern tip of Waiheke Island and across the Firth of Thames - that is a lot of over water flight but as usual the Rotax didn't miss a beat.  It was the first time I had flown into Pauanui and it is very scenic:

Downwind around the Tairua Hill, which I see is actually Mt Paku with Pauanui behind.

Then line up on Runway 25 over the beach.  I had arranged with Richard Currie and it was nice to catch up with him briefly.  I guess all the aircraft there were old hat to him but it was nice for me to see some different aircraft that had flown in for lunch.

Bill Izard had flown up from Taupo in his Falco ZK-TBD in 37 minutes!

It was the first time I had seen Gary Thorne's RV 12 ZK-VGT, up from Rotorua.

It is a while since I have seen a Tecnam Astore, and we only have 3 of them.  Here ZK-RGH in spectacular metallic blue.

And the highlight of the day!  A Jodel, being Barry Divehall's D 11 ZK-KCD up from Tauranga.

Thanks for the great flights Neil.

At Nelson today 24-07-2025

 From Bill Mannix at Nelson today we see that the Cessna 182P Skylane ZK-MGU c/n 18263111 was in town from Rangiora.

This Cessna 182P Skylane ZK-MGU (c/n 18263111) is a 1974 model, initially listed in the USA as N7327N It immediately moved to Australian skies as VH-MHH from September 1974 until ferrying into Christchurch via Auckland and Norfolk Island on 19 and 20-09-1994.

It was registered to Gordon MacPhee as ZK-MGO on 01-11-1994. Gordon re-registered it as ZK-MGU on 11-08-1997 before selling it to the E C Mackintosh Trust of Taumarunui from 21-09-1998.

It was on sold to its current owner Tony Antonievich of Auckland on 30-01-2001.

Hopper Developments of Orewa then took it on from 20-12-2016, followed by Kevin Mills of Warkworth from 19-05-2021.

Current owner Don Laming listed it from 29-11-2023.

Savannah S ZK-PIG/4 at Paraparaumu Today 24-07-2025

Jordan Elvy was at Paraparaumu airport around lunchtime today when the Omaka based Savannah S ZK-PIG4 dropped in for lunch.  It has not featured on the blog previously:

ZK-PIG4 (c/n 21-05-54-0783) was registered to A P Black of Blenheim on 22-08-23.  Thanks for the photo Jordan.

Microlight Aircraft of New Zealand - Pete James' Easy Riser

 

Like all of the early ultralight aircraft in the US, the Easy Riser was developed from a hang glider, in this case the Icarus 1 which was designed by the teenage Taras Kiceniuk Jr in the early 1970s.  It differed from other early hang gliders which used flexible Rogallo wings, in that it was a rigid swept biplane wing design and like all the others it was foot launched off a convenient hill.  John Moody of Wisconsin bought an Icarus kit but there weren't many convenient hills there, so in 1975 he bolted a 10 HP go cart engine onto his Easy Riser and he was away!  Here is a good video about the Easy Riser ultralight:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFwU9O1wjgQ&t=25s  

I think the first powered microlight aircraft to fly in New Zealand was Pete James’ Easy Riser which was powered by a two stroke McCulloch 101 engine out of a go cart.  I saw Pete attempting to fly it at Te Kowhai in late 1977 when he started the engine and then ran down the runway and raised his feet before sinking back onto the ground on his knees some distance later.  I did not appreciate the historical significance of these hops at the time and it would be fair to say that I was not that impressed.  Many years later I had the opportunity to talk to Pete and he explained to me that these hops were when he was experimenting with making his own propeller, and he eventually was successful and flew quite successfully at Te Kowhai.

I also remember that day having a great feed of mussels that Max Clear had bought back to Te Kowhai after flying out to the West Coast near Raglan and gathering them from the rocks.  Yum!

Pete told me that he was originally a hang gliding enthusiast and he attended a hang gliding contest at Stanmore Park in Australia in 1976 where he saw a factory built Easy Riser flying with an engine and he took photos of it which guided him in his own engine installation.  Back in New Zealand he bought a damaged Easy Riser and rebuilt it, and then fitted the engine. 

Pete thinks he was the first to fly a powered microlight aircraft in New Zealand and that was in late 1977 although he does know of another guy who was experimenting with powered microlights at Raglan around the same time. 

After successfully flying locally around Te Kowhai Pete flew his powered Easy Riser cross country to Raglan and return in early 1978.  But disaster struck on his return to Te Kowhai when he was unsettled by a thermal and his weight shifted backwards resulting in him entering a multiple turn spin.  Fortunately he was spinning with a low descent rate like a sycamore seed and he came down near the hangars at Te Kowhai.  Onlooker rushed across to help but remarkably Pete extricated himself and walked away!  Pete then rebuilt the Easy Riser, which was not badly damaged, but the same thing happened when he was flying it off the Kaimais and this time the machine was badly damaged and not repaired.

However Pete was not deterred from microlight flying and some years later in the late 1980s he bought a factory built UFM Easy Riser off a Dutch gentleman from Christchurch which had a 7.5 HP Hirth engine.  He registered it as ZK-FWA on 13/2/90  and fitted with a tricycle undercarriage and it photo'd below at Waitohi the early 1990s.  It was cancelled from the register as withdrawn on 30/8/96 then re-registered on 8/4/97, then cancelled again (finally) as withdrawn on 10/11/05.  It is now on display at the South Canterbury Aviation Heritage Centre at Timaru airport.

Pete James was a pioneer in the fledgling microlight movement in New Zealand and he now works as the Queenstown Base Chief Engineer for Salus Aviation (who purchased the helicopter division of Airwork).  He is an IA and LAME and has worked in the aviation industry for 50 years.

Thanks to Pete James for the early Easy Riser photos.  They are photos of photos and quite enlarged, so the quality is not very good.  Does anyone out there know of the original photos so we can get them in better quality? 

Robinson R44 II ZK-HLB 6

Outside Heliflite at Ardmore this morning was Robinson R44 II ZK-HLB6 which is a brand new example imported for a Darfield owner.

 

Ex RNZAF Hercules Now With Coulson Aviation as Aerial Firebombers

This is from the Coulson Aviation Facebook page:

After travelling more than 7,000 miles across the Pacific, the third former RNZAF C-130 has officially touched down in Thermal, California. Reunited with her two other sister kiwi birds already at the Coulson hangar. From a rainy windswept landing in Auckland to warm cinnamon buns shared in the flight deck, this ferry flight was more than a relocation - it was the closing of one chapter, and the beginning of another. These aircraft have had a humble but heroic life delivering aid, supplies, and support across the globe. And despite the miles and years, they are strong. These aircraft have been meticulously maintained and clearly well loved. They are absolute rockstars in the sky and we are excited to carry that same humanitarian spirit into a new mission: aerial firefighting.

We’re honored to carry the legacy forward, and we hope to make the Kiwis proud.

Successful Kiwi Birds to the Coulson Hangar:

N4312L (ex NZ7004)

N4053L (ex NZ7002)

N4313L (ex NZ7005)

N4054L (ex NZ7003) To be Delivered

#CoulsonAviation

Guimbal Cabri G2 ZK-IAL

 Noted at the Christchurch Helicopter Ltd.'s facility on Sunday the 20th was this Guimbal Cabri G2  ZK-IAL2 /n 1159 which is listed to the Ototara Trust of Auckland.

It has been in Christchurch for some time and has been noted flying in the Lake Tekapo region recently.

It was originally listed to the Ototara Trust from new as ZK-IAF2 on 07-10-2016 but was re- registered as ZK-IAL2 in March this year apon the arrival of  c/n 1349 which became ZK-IAF3 from11-03-2025 for IAF Ltd of Auckland.

Lear 60 VH-AND visits Auckland

Learjet 60 VH-AND5 c/n 60-281 arrived into Auckland as 'Medic 78' from Manado, Indonesia and Cairns on Friday the 18th.

It departed on Saturday to Brisbane and Darwin.

Over the years it has spent time as N5013U, OE-GTF, D-CGTF, OH-GVE, ES-LVC and D-CFAG.

It became VH-AND5 for Gee Bee Jet Pte Ltd of Singapore on 17-05-2017 and has been operated by Seletar Jet Charter Pty Ltd since 23-10-2018.

At Nelson earlier today -Sunday the 20th

 Three notables as seen at Nelson today - snapped by Bill Mannix. 

The Kaikoura Aero Club (Inc)'s Gippsland GA-8 Airvan ZK-EHS2 c/n GA8-11-170 arrived on the 17th and sits minus its rudder.

Briefly into Nelson from Paraparaumu and the Golden Bay area was John Leighton's Vans RV-7A ZK-ECE2  c/n 73638. After about an hour on the ground it motored back over to Paraparaumu.

The Eurocopter EC 120 B Colibri ZK-INN c/n 1570 dropped into Nelson from Motueka via the far north of the South Island. And departed back to Motueka this afternoon.

It is still listed with Independent Helicopters Ltd of Christchurch.

All three have been covered previously on these pages.

A Short Flight in a Maule from Kaipara Flats Today

We have had a LOT of rain in the North over the last few weeks but today there was sunshine, and surprisingly the airfield at Kaipara Flats was relatively dry and quite flyable, especially if the aircraft was STOL and had decent sized tyres.  Martin Farrand was heading out in his "new" Maule Strata Rocket and was happy to take me for a short flight:

ZK-DON ready to go in the sun.

The panel is typical 1970s - this is a 1973 built aircraft.

It was silky smooth up there and here is the view over the nose to Sandspit and on to Kawau Island.

Back to Kaipara Flats airfield, here on short finals.

The Strata Rocket is a nice aircraft and very stable.

Then off, showing its STOL capabilities, to North Shore and then Dargaville for lunch.

Thanks very much for the flight Martin.

Yaks Coming Back!

At JEM Aviation (aka Yak Central, Southern Hemisphere) they have made great progress in returning a couple of Yaks to the air after their accidents:

ZK-VVS Full Noise of Fighter Flights/Graham Frew is now back flying again with a different Full Noise and 35 fuselage logo and no registration visible.

While the ex Arthur Dovey ZK-YYY now owned by the Omaka Fighter Collection Ltd, has had a new starboard wing made and mated with the port wing.  But it is shown here temporarily sitting on the wings of yet another Yak that is at JEM Aviation- the syndicate owned Yak 9V that is also being worked on.  ZK-YYY still has a way to go yet.

You can see a previous post on both of these aircraft with their histories HERE

ZK-WBL into Rangiora on 14-07-2025

 The first decent day for yonks on Monday the 14th gave me the urge to visit Rangiora.

It is always nice to hear the sound of a Cessna 185 in the circuit - It turned out to be the Anderson Family Trusts A185F ZK-WBL c/n 18503177 up from Queenstown.

As N93094 it was exported from The States to Sweden to become SE-IRI in December 1984.

This registration was cancelled on 03-07-2007 and it popped up in Bruce Drakes hangar at Barradale/Fernside and was allocated the NZ registration of ZK-JNH3 on 15-09-2008. 

Its rebuild took some time (over three years) so it became 'Just Not Happening' in Bruce's phonetic language. 

Nearing the end of the rebuild it was going to be re-registered - a couple of options where ZK-ORB for 'BRO' spelled backwards and ZK-JGF for 'Just Good Friend'.

At the end of the day, it became ZK-WBL on 21-06-2012 and ultimately went to the Anderson Family Trust at Queenstown from 06-12-2019.

I am still wondering what the WBL stands for ! 

A Couple of Replacement Tecnam P2008s for the NZ Airline Academy

A couple of ex Australian Tecnam P2008s have flown into New Zealand presumably to replace some of the NZAA P2008s lost in recent storms at Oamaru:

Mark Mabey photo'd VH-OFK2 (c/n 156) at Ardmore on Saturday 12 July.

While VH-AFZ3 (c/n 196) flew into Oamaru on the same day via Kerikeri and overnighting at Wanganui (thanks to Jordan Elvy for the info).

Earlier this year NZAA's P2008s ZK-TCT, ZK-TKT and ZK-TZT were cancelled after sustaining major damage in a storm at Oamaru on 4/3/25, and also ZK-TOT2 was cancelled after being damaged in a storm back in 8/5/24.