DLA - let the repair job begin

 

Thanks to Mike C who sent in these pics of Islander ZK-DLA back at Ardmore. The photos were taken on 17 February 2013.

It's an ill wind that blows no good...

Due to a breakdown I ended up having to fly out of Taupo back to Auckland on Thursday afternoon (14th of February) so I managed a couple of hours with my book and camera at Taupo airport... and the wind was a pleasant southerly

Scoop of the day for me was Fly My Sky's Hughes 500D ZK-HNT which was out of a test flight.

Passing through Taupo on training were Massey University's Diamond DA 40 ZK-MTI and Bay Flight's Cessna 152 ZK-UVW.

 

Out for, presumably a scenic, was Air Charter Taupo's Cessna U206F ZK-ERQ

 

A couple of classic Pipers... Piper PA24-250 Commanche ZK-BAZ took off just as I was about to leave and Piper PA28-140 Cherokee ZK-CNU was out on a local.

 

 

Parachute jump ships operating was Skydive Taupo's Pacific Aerospace 750XL ZK-SDT and Taupo Tandem Skydiving's GAF N22C Nomad ZK-SNZ.

 

Life's a Beech - Arriving from Wellington was All Black Beech 1900 ZK-EAK while the ride home to Auckland was ZK-EAI.

 

 



DLA is back...

Fly My Sky's Islander ZK-DLA was flown from Great Barrier Island to Ardmore yesterday... for a photo see https://www.facebook.com/AACNZ/info?ref=ts#!/photo.php?fbid=478951775486330&set=a.454210281293813.93318.450472051667636&type=1&theater

Closing the Door on NZ Aviation History

SINCE THIS POST WAS WRITTEN THE CAA REGISTER IS BACK ON LINE!


It looks as if the ownership details on the New Zealand aircraft register have gone for good... I found this on the CAA website this morning



Information about aircraft ownership history is no longer available for searching on the CAA web site.

This action follows a recent Privacy Act complaint made by a member of the aviation community. The CAA has accepted a recommendation of the Privacy Commissioner to change the way in which access to that information is now obtained.

Access to information about previous aircraft ownership must now be made by request. You may request access to this information by emailing oia@caa.govt.nz, or writing to the address below.

Coordinator Official Information
Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand
PO Box 3555
Wellington 6140
New Zealand

It will assist the CAA to process your request in a timely manner if you detail the aircraft you are enquiring about and explain what information you require.


Below is some of what I posted on this blog the 8th of December... 

Of late I have been working on posts regarding the history of two early airlines that operated to Gisborne, Dominion Airlines and Gisborne Air Transport. As part of that I have been looking again at the Leo White’s book Wingspread. This early New Zealand aviation history is really the story of not only planes but also people. It strikes me this has always been the way in the New Zealand aviation community.

As I wander around the airports and airfields of New Zealand I have met so many interesting people who have only been too happy to share their own interest in their aircraft or the companies they own or work for. My own interest is particularly in the New Zealand’s small airlines. Since starting my blog I have had a number of emails from people and numerous comments from people who I have met who have enjoyed what I have tried to put together of the past and appreciated that I am trying to get the news of what has been happening today as today’s news is tomorrow’s history.

With the New Zealand airline scene there is not a lot of sources of information. One of the major sources of these was the New Zealand civil aircraft register. This made available the aircraft details and ownership details. In recent months the historical ownership details were removed. In recent days the current ownership details were removed after a complaint/complaints were made to the Privacy Commissioner. This is a huge loss to the aviation community and especially to those who record aviation news and history.

Of course I can understand the concerns of the person(s) who made the complaint(s). Their full names and addresses were readily available and from what I understand this led to unsolicited mail and email. But then again, none of us are immune from this… we all to varying degrees get plagued by telemarketers, spam emails, and many, like myself, because of the position I hold, end up getting mail, emails and telephone calls from others who use the public information for an end to which it was not intended. To an extent this is a fact of life of the communication age.

On the other hand the question that should be asked is, “Is it in the public interest for this information to be released?” For the good of the public, the answer is no. For the curiosity of the public, or those members of the aviation community who are interested the answer is yes. The Privacy Act is well intentioned and rightly seeks to protect people’s privacy. However, it does, I believe, inadvertently have the effect of destroying the bonds of community. The decision by the CAA’s interpretation of the Privacy Act will have a sad impact on the aviation community and the recording of aviation history because it will separate planes from people. Such privacy issues are joining the ranks of OSH and security issues in making it harder and harder to an armchair aviation enthusiast.

Ideally I would have liked to have seen CAA continue to put the register out with a simplified ownership details, for example an initial, a surname, a town/district/city. Hopefully that would have mitigated a lot of the concerns. Where once I would have labelled a photo “Whitianga based Cherokee ZK-ABC…” or “J Blogg’s Piper Cherokee ZK-ABS…” now it will be just “Cherokee ZK-ABC.” One wonders if I should purge all names and company names from my blog?

 

The outcome today is sadly not just about information, it is about community.

 

End of Service

Sadly Flight Hauraki have ended their service from North Shore to Whangarei and Kerikeri. The last flight operated on the 12th of February 2013. The service was pioneered by Salt Air in May 2008 and featured a connecting bus service from North Shore to Britomart on the Auckland busway. The service was taken over by Flight Hauraki on the 1st of November 2012.

Flight Hauraki's charter and scenic business continues as normal.

 

A profile of Flight Hauraki can be found at http://3rdlevelnz.blogspot.co.nz/2012/10/flight-hauraki-new-zealands-newest.html

A pictorial account of a flight can be found at http://3rdlevelnz.blogspot.co.nz/2012/11/flight-haurakis-scenic-world.html

Helicopter Me and Air New Zealand

 

New Zealand-based helicopter tour company Helicopter Me has expanded its offerings of helicopter tours in the Auckland area The organization has a full repertoire of tours including city and coastal scenic tours, fly in and dine outs, and several helicopter adventure tours. In addition, Helicopter Me recently partnered with Air New Zealand and Alert Taxis to offer travelers helicopter taxi service to and from the Auckland Airport. Helicopter Me is the only helicopter tour operator with a base at the Auckland Airport. This gives them the ability to offer convenient helicopter taxi service instead of waiting around for ground transportation. For couples wanting the movie star treatment, the Fly In Dine Out Helicopter Tours continue to be extremely popular. Options for the Fly In Dine Out tours include:  

• Mudbrick Vineyard – Includes a flight across the majestic Hauraki Gulf and dining at the celebrated Mudbrick Vineyard Restaurant.
• Cable Bay – Fly over Rangitoto Island before landing on Waiheke Island to enjoy a meal at Cable Bay Restaurant.  
• Cable Bay Waiheke – Includes a helicopter ride to Cable Bay followed by a stylish landing at the award-winning Cable Bay Vineyard, and a beautiful dining experience at Cable Bay Restaurant. 
• Earthsong Great Barrier Island – Soar over the Hauraki Gulf and Great Barrier before landing at the 5-star Earthsong Lodge to enjoy an award-winning lunch in paradise.

Helicopter Me spokesman Richard Poppelwell stated, “Helicopter Me experiences are designed to be something you remember for the rest of your life. We design each tour to with the goal that guests will be talking about the memories they made for years to come.” To learn more about Helicopter Me, and to book a tour, visit them on the Internet at: http://www.helicopterme.co.nz/Fly+In+Dine+Out.html

About Helicopter Me

Helicopter Me is the leading Helicopters NZ tour operator in Auckland, New Zealand.

The organization is the fully owned and operated tourism brand of North Shore Helicopters Limited (NSH), one of New Zealand’s largest and most respected helicopter companies, established in 1983. Helicopter Me and NSH is owned by brothers, Richard and Stuart Poppelwell, who have vast experience in the aviation and corporate worlds.

 

Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/prwebauckland-new-zealand/helicopter-tours/prweb10425959.htm

DLA flies again - albeit under a helicopter

Fly My Sky's Britten Norman Islander ZK-DLA took to the skies from Okiwi today, the 14th of February 2013, on the first stage of her journey back to the mainland after its incident (see http://3rdlevelnz.blogspot.co.nz/2013/02/wtf.html and http://3rdlevelnz.blogspot.co.nz/2013/01/bad-luck-for-island-airline.html)

Yesterday the engines were stripped in preparation for the lift. Employed for the task was Beck Helicopter's Bell (Garlick) UH-1B ZK-HHB. The lift took place at about 1230 today. The Islander is ultimately bound for Ardmore. Does anyone know if it got there today???

Many thanks to Kevin Burke for these photos of the lift from Okiwi...

Kevin also captured this 172 at Okiwi today - there's always someone to give a bit of JIB

Retired Trainers at Masterton

More from Masterton on the 19th of January 2013...

 

North American Harvards

 

 

ZK-ENF

ZK-ENG

ZK-JJA

ZK-ENJ

ZK-MJN

ZK-WAR

ZK-TVI

 Yak 52s...

ZK-KGB

ZK-PTE

ZK-YAK

ZK-YNZ

ZK-YXO

ZK-ZAH

 AESL Airtourers

ZK-LDG

ZK-XXI

Vincent's J32 ZK-VAI "Enters service"

Vincent Aviation's Jetstream 32EP ZK-VAI, ex VH-OTP, made its first recorded flights on behalf of Eagle Air 11 February when it was pressed into service under charter to the Air NZ Link carrier.  ZK-VAI positioned from Wellington to Hamilton where it then conducted a flight to Palmerston North, then to Wellington, back to Palmerston North, onwards to Hamilton and finally finishing up in Auckland.

The aircraft was delivered to Wellington under its VH markings on 26 September 2012 still wearing the colours of the Philippine operator it flew with as RP-C863.  It was placed on the NZ register 09 November and was noted making perhaps its first flight under ZK markings from Wellington to Woodbourne and return on 14 December.

Jets at Masterton...

More from Wings over Wairarapa on 19 January 2013

The beautiful lines of the Aero L-39C Albatros as seen on ZK-TCS (above) ZK-VLK (below) and  ZK-WLM (second below)

 

Two de Havilland DH115 Vampires - Above, Mark T55 model ZK-RVM and below a Mark 35W model, ZK-VAM

 

The nice lines of De Havilland DH 112 Venom Mk 1 ZK-VNM which didn't land 

The RNZAF Vampire replacement, BAC-167 Strikemaster Mk88 ZK-STR