06 February 2025

Busy Barrier Air

Four of Barrier Air's Cessna 208B Grand Caravans were in action at Auckland on 3 February 2025...

Cessna Grand Caravan EX, ZK-SDA, off to Whitianga as GBA713


Cessna Grand Caravan, ZK-SDC, off to Great Barrier Island as GB109

Cessna Grand Caravan, ZK-SDD, off to Kaitaia as GB715

Cessna Grand Caravan, ZK-SDE, off to Great Barrier Island as GB593

05 February 2025

Saabs at Auckland

Air Chathams' Saab 340 ZK-CIT off to Whanganui as 3C 704 on 3 February 2025

Air Chathams' Saab 340 ZK-CIY off to Whakatāne as 3C 824 on 3 February 2025

 

04 February 2025

Air Chathams Farewells AWP

Yesterday Air Chathams' staff had an opportunity to farewell the company's classic, nearly 80 year old Douglas DC-3 ZK-AWP. A couple of scenic flights were operated from Auckland before the plane departed for Ardmore for some brief work in preparation for its ferry flight to Darwin. It then flew to Matamata where it will do crew training before leaving the country, at this stage on Saturday.

Unfortunately the Auckland heat haze played havoc with the photos landing and taking off.

A full history of ZK-AWP can be found here : 


Douglas DC-3 ZK-AWP landing in the heat haze at Auckland with the first staff flight on 3 February 2025



An unexpected change of taxi way and I had to sprint to the car to change lens

Missed the side on shot

Departing on the second staff flight


And better shots on the return 





About to depart for Ardmore and Matamata 

 

03 February 2025

Hercules Farewell

Farewell to the RNZAF's Lockheed C130H Hercules over Auckland on 3 February 2025









 

Whakatāne back on the Sunair Network

 

Sunair reintroduced Whakatāne to its network on the 3rd of February 2025 with their Piper Aztec ZK-MTY operating as SUNAIR 17Y calling at Whakatāne on a morning flight from Gisborne to Hamilton.

It appears Sunair no longer operates flights between Ardmore and Great Barrier Island.


A Tauranga airline, Sunair, has made its official debut here in the Eastern Bay Of Plenty. Sunair will be providing weekday flight services to Napier, Gisborne and Hamilton. The airline was officially welcomed in the bay yesterday with a ribbon cutting ceremony and local iwi Ngāti Awa and Hapū Taiwhakaea blessing the plane for flight. Kawerau and Whakatāne Mayor's Faylene Tunui and Victor Luca,  Whakatāne District Councilors as well as tourism staff were in attendance.  Sunair Owner, Dan Power said that he is looking forward to providing this service for Eastern Bay residents and sees a wide variety of potential in this new partnership. The current running plane has been referred to as small but mighty. The six seater aircraft provides the essential room needed for the quick flights with potential room to accommodate pets. Although the plane currently only covers three destinations, there is work on international connector flights that can allow people travelling from Whakatane to link up with Hamilton's Jetstar flights to Australia. Power has so far said this is in the works for July. The flights that connect to Jetstar are aiming to be offered at a discounted rate. Whakatāne Mayor, Victor Luca, is excited for not only the tourism aspect this could bring to the Eastern Bay, but the natural disaster safety opportunities. When making a speech at the ceremony Mayor Luca expressed how the potential to have supplies and support operating in the case of severe road closures is an exciting step for our coastal region.

Souce : Radio 1XX News Facebook page





01 February 2025

Masterton - Will it be a Goer?

With a $17 million investment in Masterton’s airport, the council says it may attract interest from commercial airlines but they would need to fly on their own two wings. Hood Aerodrome is undergoing a major upgrade to allow Civil Aviation Authority certification and use by a regional air service, with completion expected by late this year. Masterton District Council chief executive Kym Fell said the asset lost close to $500,000 annually because the airport was not optimised to its full potential. In such a context, he believed ratepayers would not be inclined to subsidise an air service. “There would be no appetite, I would suggest, for us to underwrite an airline or to contribute towards underwriting a number of [passenger] seats. “Any new airline that would look to come in here would need to do their own due diligence and it would need to stack up for them. “That’s really a risk that the airline would need to take.” However, once the aerodrome was certified, the council could enter into commercial negotiations with an airline and increase the opportunity to generate incremental revenue, he said. Commercial considerations could underpin the deal, such as offering incentives to support passenger services. That might include the likes of a reduced landing fee component or a peppercorn rental for the terminal, Fell said. “From an economic development [and] destination perspective, we would contribute towards some marketing. A big focus is to reduce the reliance on ratepayer funding because it’s a great asset for our region and not just Masterton.” Murray Cole, a seasoned expert in global aviation and former airport and regional airline owner, recommended that the district’s ratepayer money should not be used to subsidise a commercial airline. “The whole idea of the council providing a significant ratepayers’ subsidy to an airline – it’s uneconomic for both parties and unfair on ratepayers.” Cole said he knew “the tricks and formulas” commercial operators applied when they went to councils to get an economic underwriter. Other smaller regional airports that invested heavily in infrastructure upgrades had suffered financially and needed significant aid to support them, he said. “They’ve all done the same thing as Masterton is now talking about.” In 2023, documents obtained by the Taxpayers’ Union under the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act revealed that several councils paid out millions of ratepayer dollars to subsidise a regional airline. Group spokesperson Alex Murphy said ratepayers in the Kāpiti Coast, Whakatāne and Whanganui districts paid more than $2m in corporate “welfare” to maintain regular flight services to Auckland using Air Chathams. If these routes were financially viable and demand was plentiful, airlines would pick them up without the need for council subsidies, Murphy said at the time. Masterton mayor Gary Caffell said the council was willing to talk to any airline company interested in coming to Masterton. “We’re not into subsidising and costing our ratepayers any extra money, but we’re certainly looking to turn Hood from a non-profit into making money,” he said. A business survey conducted last year by Destination Wairarapa to gauge public interest in the return of passenger air travel to Wairarapa received overwhelming support from businesses and residents. A total of 677 residents responded to the survey, 91% of whom said they were likely to use an air service from Masterton’s Hood Aerodrome.

Sourc : https://www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/360551842/ratepayer-cash-air-service-unlikely-council-boss-says

31 January 2025

A sad 24 hours

Sad news over the last 24 hours with the mid-air collision in Washington DC and also an air crash in South Sudan that has New Zealand connections.

Former Eagle Air/Air New Zealand Link Beech 1900D ZK-EAF, (c/n UE-429) became 5X-RHB and was destroyed aftrecrashing upon takeoff from Unity oilfield airport on a flight to Juba, South Sudan, killing 20 of the 21 people aboard.  

Sad news for all the families of those who died in these two accidents


Beech 1900 ZK-EAF arriving into Taupo on 14 November 2015

28 January 2025

It's Official - AWP is set to fly away

 


Some weeks ago I heard the rumour that Air Chathams' DC-3 was going. However, in doing this blog or our domestic airlines I don't want to get into rumour and speculation and I prefer not to publish information before I get the okay from the airline concerned or they put it out themselves... 

Today it has happened, the news that New Zealand's most historic Douglas DC-3 ZK-AWP has been sold in Australia... This from Air Chathams' Facebook page today...

Haere rā to our Douglas DC-3 

This weekend marks not only the last stop on the DC-3 summer tiki tour but also your final chance to step onboard this iconic Kiwi treasure before it spreads its wings and heads to Australia.

After years of gracing our skies, this beauty will soon bid farewell to Air Chathams. While it’s bittersweet to see her go, we’re thrilled to offer you one last chance to enjoy a truly once-in-a-lifetime experience (from Whakatāne this weekend). 

My history of AWP's service can be found here : 

Some nice ground to air photos can be found here : 

Perhaps this sad event is a sign of the struggles our regional airlines have to remain viable. Thanks Craig, Duane and team for gracing our skies with AWP over the last 12 years.


27 January 2025

Exotic Visitor

Cayman Island registered Airbus A319-153N ACJ, VP-CRR, was at Auckland on 22 January 2025


 

25 January 2025

Four Beechcraft at WLG

The air ambulances were busy at Wellington on 22 January 2025...

New Zealand Flying Doctor Service's Beech C90A King Air ZK-FDN

Air Wanganui's Beechcraft B200 King Air ZK-PMJ

NZ Air Ambulance Services' Beechcraft B200 King Air ZK-RSQ  which is operated by Skyline Aviation

Taranaki Air Ambulance Trust's Beech C90A King Air ZK-ZZA which is operated by Skyline Aviation

 

24 January 2025

Kai moana from Kaikoura

Flying seafood into Wellington on 22 January 2025 was Wings Over Whales' Gippsland GA8 Airvan ZK-KBZ. I must admit I was fairly surprised as I was expecting it to be an Air Kaikoura Airvan - they have a regular freight service. Does Wings over Whales also operate freight flights to Wellington or is this part of the Air Kaikoura operation?

 

23 January 2025

Air New Zealand Modelling MZG

Air New Zealand's newest ATR 72, ZK-MZG, had to wait for a gate at Wellington yesterday, parking on a taxiway and then back tracking to its gate which meant I was able to get good and my first shots of it


Air New Zealand's ATR 72-600 ZK-MZG at Wellington on 22 January 2025




 

21 January 2025

Air Chathams to withdraw from Norfolk Island...

 


Sad news from the latest issue of Chatters...


Air Chathams has officially announced that it will not be extending its flight service to Norfolk Island past April 2025. After this date any flights to Norfolk Island will operate on a charter basis only, working directly with tour companies wanting to fly groups over peak travel periods for predominately the leisure market. As with so many challenges in aviation, since the pandemic, rebuilding passenger numbers on the Norfolk Island route has proven difficult, as travel costs and operational expenses have increased significantly. Adding to these challenges is Air Chathams’ turboprop aircraft not being able to match the lower operating costs of jet aircraft that serve other nearby South Pacific destinations, preventing the airline from discounting airfares further to boost demand without negatively impacting route sustainability to Norfolk Island.

20 January 2025

Masterton Upgrade Well Underway

 


This piece from the Wairarapa Times Age gives some hope for regional expansion for Air Chathams... The full article includes photos and a video clip of the work in progress... https://www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/360548321/airports-17-million-upgrade-takes-flight-again

Delays to Masterton airport upgrades could be a blessing in disguise as potential regional air service operators wait in a holding pattern. Work was now continuing apace on the $17 million upgrade of Hood Aerodrome with completion expected later in the year. Last year was a rough year for regional air service operators with passenger numbers falling away and some operators cutting routes.Air Chathams had long shown an interest in establishing an air link from Masterton to Auckland and its management had been keeping a close eye on developments at Hood.Early last year the regional airline was hoping the council would finish its upgrade by the end of the year. Air Chathams chief commercial officer Duane Emeny said the industry experienced a “huge drop in demand” last winter so the original plans for Hood’s upgrade completion late last year would not have been timely. “It's probably a little bit of a blessing in disguise in some ways because we were pushing pretty hard for the council to get a lot of that airport infrastructure stuff underway faster and the certification work done faster. It's just taken a bit of a pause the second half of last year when we realised through discussions with council that November wasn't going to be realistic.” Emeny said passenger numbers had improved this month compared to January the previous year and they were hoping for better economic conditions later in the year. “We strongly believe that the growth in the last decade in the Wairarapa has been quite significant. It’s at a point where it could support air services and it could help enhance that growth over the next 10 years.” Masterton Mayor Gary Caffell said once the airport upgrades were finished and they had the required certifications, the council would likely have discussions with possible operators to run regular connection services in and out of the region. "We're always happy to talk to anybody who's keen to do anything in that regard. We are optimistic something will happen." The airstrip has been widened by seven metres. The widening of Hood’s runway from 23 metres to 30 metres was completed in December. Masterton District Council senior project manager Lisa Neill said ongoing work included installing runway lighting. “Trenching and laying of conduit is under way. Lighting equipment is in transit and installation will begin in mid-March. In December, PCL and Elite Drainage were selected following an open tender process to undertake the installation of key infrastructure, including water, wastewater, power, roading, and taxiways, for the planned hangar development.” The project was greenlit during the pandemic when $10 million in funding was secured to upgrade the safety features and infrastructure of the aerodrome through the Government’s Kānoa Regional Economic Development fund. The council was contributing $7 million towards the project. Work was continuing on gaining CAA certification which would allow commonly used regional aircraft to use the airport.

18 January 2025

A Question from 1994

I am slowly scanning all my negatives into digital. The 25th of January 1994 was an interesting day at Hokitika... It was marijuana season and the Police were busy with a Jetranger and Wilga...  There was aerial surveying going on, helicopter topdressing, and 

Police 3, Bell Jetranger ZK-HWF

Also tied up with the Police operation was PZL Wilga ZK-PZL


Kaipara Excavators' Cessna 402 ZK-FXS

Westair's Cessna 337 was used as an air ambulance
Helicopters (NZ)'s Aerospatiale Lama ZK-HNQ

Aerial Mapping's Rockwell Commander 690