Up in Smoke

Sad news from the Nelson area today, veteran Cessna 185 ZK-CAK went up in smoke.

The Stuff report said  Emergency services were alerted to the incident about 1.26pm on Tuesday afternoon, where a Cessna was found engulfed in flames at the Malibu Park airfield in the Teapot Valley near Wakefield... The spokesman said the fire had “totally destroyed" the aircraft... Aircraft owner Jason Deer said the fire was caused by an engineering mishap while the aircraft was undergoing annual maintenance at Malibu Park. Deer said it was a very hard loss to take, as it was the 17th Cessna 185 ever built, and the first of its type registered in New Zealand. “It just had its 60th birthday last week ... she was my pride and joy.”

For the full report see : https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/125154416/light-aircraft-destroyed-by-fire-at-rural-nelson-airfield

ZK-CAK saw service with two airlines, Nelson-based Golden Coast Airways Ltd from August 1961 to May 1963 and then to Wairoa-based Cookson Airspread Ltd which operated it until May 1983.

ZK-CAK seen above photographed at Nelson shortly after its arrival and below after at it was repainted in Golden Coast Airways colour scheme, taken at Ardmore.

For more on Golden Coast Airways see http://3rdlevelnz.blogspot.com/2011/03/from-hamilton-to-greymouth-golden-coast.html

Two views of Cessna 185, ZK-CAK... at Wellington above and below at Fielding on 18 August 1979

For more on Cookson Air see http://3rdlevelnz.blogspot.com/2010/12/wairoas-cookson-airspread-part-1.html

My last photo of ZK-CAK was taken at Hokitika on 5 July 2010