Pilatus PC-12/45 ZK-PLZ departs our shores.

 The Pilatus PC-12/45 ZK-PLZ (c/n 445) was ferried from Blenheim (Woodbourne) to Ardmore on Wednesday the 14th of January for final preparations before heading offshore to Canada.

Pilatus PC-12/45 c/n 445 was manufactured by Pilatus Aircraft Ltd at Stans, Switzerland and was issued the factory test registration of HB-FSC on 17-01-2002.

It was delivered to India for Tata Iron & Steel Co of Jamshedpur on 15-04-2002 to become VT-TSA from 03-05-2002. 

The aircraft was returned to Pilatus in late October of 2003 and is seen above (thanks to Chris Haag & Airliners.com) at Bern-Belp in 31-10-2003.

Pilatus re-registered it as HB-FPN on 18-11-2003 - its original Swiss registration having been reallocated to another airframe.

It was then flown to Australia to become VH-JMU3 on 13-02-2004.

Its first Australian owner was Jeffrey McCloy of Gateshead, NSW with a title change to J R Tours Pty Ltd from 12-04-2006.

Above we have VH-JMU3 at Redcliffe, Queensland on 17-04-2007 by Tony Arbon.

Further ownership changes had it with Ocean Dynamics Air Pty Ltd of Ascot, Queensland from 18-06-2007, followed by the CNR Group Holdings PTE Ltd of Singapore to be operated by Aviation Partners Pty Ltd of Manly, NSW from 21-06-2011. 

The final Australian owner being Todd Kelly (V8 Super car driver) of Patterson Lakes, NSW.

It was ferried from Melbourne/Essenden to Wellington on 30-04-2015 - then up to Feilding to Avcraft for its NZ certification to became ZK-PLZ on 28-05-2015 for Sounds Air Travel & Tourism Ltd of Picton.

It was delivered from Feilding to its Woodbourne base on 30-05-2015 with its first revenue flight from Blenheim to Taupo on 02-06-2015.

The photo above shows it at Taupo on 20-02-2016 with full Sounds Air titles on the upper fuselage and their insignia on the fin.

It was flown over to Coolangatta in early August 2016 for a repaint to its current 'Executive' scheme and returned to Auckland, Nelson and Feilding on 15-08-2016

This morning - 15-01-2026 - ZK-PLZ hopped over to Auckland International for clearance formalities and then departed for Apia.

The new owners are due to pick up the aircraft from Honolulu.

Thanks to Lord Nelson for a heads up on this departure.