THE M.A.C. FLYER - The Marlborough Aero Club
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Oct. 2020
Vol No. 62
THE M.A.C. FLYER
Frost Fighting Helicopter Landings at Omaka
OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF THE MARLBOROUGH AERO CLUB INC.
P.O. Box 73, Blenheim, 7240
Tel: (03) 578 5073
Email: fly@marlboroughaeroclub.co.nz
www.marlboroughaeroclub.co.nz
M.A.C. Marlborough Aero Club
PATRON PRESIDENT VICE PRESIDENT
John Sinclair Paul Hally Michael Lagunowitsch
Ph: 03 578 7110 Ph: 021 269 3933 Ph: 027 563 8591
HON. SECRETARY CLUB CAPTAIN CFI
Victoria Lewis Paul Dalley Sharn Davies
Ph: 027 458 9115 Ph: 022 330 0697 Ph: 03 578 5073
COMMITTEE
Mike Rutherford, Grant Jolley, Marty Nicoll,
Graham Bloomfield, Chris Clark
Check out our new website –
www.jemaviation.co.nz
Annual Inspections, ARA / BRA’s, repairs, modifications
and rebuilds – we can handle it all!
Ph. (03) 578 3063
Mob. 021 504 048
Email cjaviator@gmail.com
Hangar 22b, Aviation Heritage Centre Airpark,
Omaka Aerodrome,
Blenheim, NZ
2
Club Email Addresses
President president@marlboroughaeroclub.co.nz
Vice President vp@marlboroughaeroclub.co.nz
Honorary Secretary honsec@marlboroughaeroclub.co.nz
Club Captain clubcaptain@marlboroughaeroclub.co.nz
Sharn cfi@marlboroughaeroclub.co.nz
Dan dan@marlboroughaeroclub.co.nz
Ben ben@marlboroughaeroclub.co.nz
Office – General fly@marlboroughaeroclub.co.nz
Office – Accounts accounts@marlboroughaeroclub.co.nz
Clubhouse clubhouse@marlboroughaeroclub.co.nz
UPCOMING EVENTS
Alpine Regionals (Omaka) 20-22 Nov 2020
Fizzy Friday 27 November 2020
MAC Cocktail Party 28 November 2020**
Mitchison Cup 12-13 December 2020
Christmas Friday 18 December 2020
HBBPC 6 February 2021
Classic Fighters Airshow Easter 2021
Nationals / Australian Wings (Omaka) Feb 2022
** Please note date changed to 28 Nov at 6 pm due to conflicting events.
NOTE: FLIGHT OFFICE IS CLOSED FROM MIDDAY ON WEDNESDAY
23 DECEMBER 2020 AND IS REOPENING MONDAY 4 JANUARY 2021.
3
PRESIDENT’S REPORT
Another month of wind and I think I even spied an odd day or two at the be-
ginning of the month with snow on the surrounding hills! A couple of decent
frosts right at the end of September saw an influx of helicopters swarm into
Omaka for frost protection, somewhere in the vicinity of 100 odd helicopters
according to the Control Tower, although not all came into Omaka.
Despite numerous helicopters uplifting fuel from Omaka or using the airfield
as a parking spot, it was interesting to note that not one person paid the
published landing fee. Fortunately, our astute MAC staff used our new sys-
tem to capture aircraft registrations and came up with a comprehensive list
of many of those that did use our field. Subsequently they have been sent
invoices at $25/landing – pleasing that some have paid already.
With the Club Competitions over, the Wings dinner was held in Nigel’s hangar
once again (thanks Nigel). Despite it being a long weekend, there was a
good turnout by 60 plus people for the night. A little bit of an error on our
part in that when the date was selected for the dinner many months ago –
we all overlooked the Stat holidays…..so we will definitely take this into ac-
count for the future. It looked like everyone enjoyed the night and well done
all the recipients of trophies and those of you who achieved flying mile-
stones. I did get asked by someone why I didn’t do a lot of handshaking with
those that were presented a certificate or cup! Through my flying I interact
with many people almost daily, from all over the country, so I made the deci-
sion to err on the side of caution given the current climate. This years aircraft
for the evening’s backdrop was Ed Hazlett’s and Zac Dillion’s newly acquired
Cub ZK-BQX, which was brought new by the Club back in 1955 or 56. Great
to see another ex MAC aircraft back on the field permanently.
4
President’s Report Continued….
Well done Dan who passed his B-Category Instructors rating earlier this
month. This will be a huge asset for the club as Sharn can now offload
some of those checks that only he has been able to do in the past. Being
able to share some of the workload will allow Sharn to focus a little more
on the administrative side of the CFI role.
Now if you glance over towards the 07 windsock – something is missing.
The once iconic Marlborough Helicopters rust tank that has been a part of
the weeds for many many years HAS GONE!! I just hope it doesn’t come
back to haunt us as a pot or pan in years to come. I know a number of
you will be quite saddened by the loss but I can assure you it has gone to
a good place.
The Clubhouse Bar has been a little quieter than usual for the month of Octo-
ber, so it would be great to see this historic building frequented by a few more
patrons over the coming months. The two previous months saw record num-
bers and I’m informed by the Club House manager that she was going
through a keg of beer every weekend. So come along and support the bar,
enjoy the sun and tell your lies. The Clubhouse kitchen dishwasher decided to
do its last tour of duty a couple of weekends ago and so yet another piece of
history has joined the MH tank and been sent to the knackers yard’. The kitch-
en is now sporting a sparkly new machine thanks to Pip and Al Marshall who
removed the old and replaced with the new. The years of greasy plates, fat,
oils and everything else that normally get washed down a sink have also tak-
en their toll on the gully system. Fortunately, the pipes are in fairly good nick
5
President’s Report Continued….
after a camera was sent on a journey to inspect them, but there will have to
be some remedial or replacement work carried out on the gully trap area
out the back.
This years closure of the flight office and much needed RnR by the Instruc-
tors and Office Staff will be midday 23rd Dec – 3 January (inclusive). We will
reopen for business on the 4th. You will need to talk to one of the instructors
should you wish to do flying of the MAC aircraft during this period. The bar
will be open during this period – exactly what days will be confirmed by Pip
separately a bit closer to the time.
Still to come this year – Regionals, Mitchison Cup contest, Cocktail party and
some fizzy Fridays. Early next year Healthy Bastard’s and of course the Air-
show. These events will all be addressed elsewhere so keep the diary
handy.
The month of November will see the airfield cropped for hay. This will possi-
bly make the taxiway’s harder to discern until there is a bit of regrowth so
take care and watch out for the wayward itinerant who may get a bit lost
taxiing around on the airfield. Also with the airfield mowed - to those of you
who can afford an aircraft but not the fuel and will therefore be tempted to
take the shortest taxi distance from A – B on the field – any areas off the taxi-
ways or runways will potentially be littered with rabbit holes…
That’s it from me this month, safe flying everyone.
Paul Hally
6
CFI’S REPORT
Well everyone, as our illustrious CFI was on annual leave, there won't be a
CFI report for this month. So was Sharn reclining on a beach with Brydie
and sipping cocktails? Oh no he wasn’t! He participated in the Whaka100.
For those of you who may not know, the Whaka100 has gained the reputa-
tion as one of the toughest 100 km mountain bike marathons in New Zea-
land, and one of the toughest single day mountain bike marathons in the
Southern Hemisphere. It is a fantastic achievement just to complete and
Sharn and his teammate finished in just over 8 hours. It makes me tired just
thinking about it. Rather fitting that his team’s name is Fork N Tyred. Please
congratulate him on this achievement. (note from your Editor)
7
FIRST SOLO
Jarah Timms 8 October 2020
NEW B CAT INSTRUCTOR RATING
Dan Coleman 8 October 2020
8
FLYING HOURS
Oct-20
Non Pro Dual Solo Private Hire Total
DMF 0.9 26.5 3.5 6 36.9
EQH 28.5 1.1 29.6
EBH 1.5 1.2 4.33 7.03
OMR 10.8 2 7.2 20
COX
WAA 11.1 5.9 0.9 17.9
DNF 2.1 0.9 0.5 3.5
Total 0.9 80.5 14.6 18.93 114.93
Inst Hire 15.9
Total for Month 130.83
YTD 01/04/2020 - 31/10/2020
Non Pro Dual Solo Private Hire Total
DMF 2.7 159.7 28.6 24 215
EQH 6.5 190.1 26.5 14.5 237.6
EBH 0.16 9.15 1.75 18.98 30.04
OMR 1.8 54 10.2 31.8 97.8
COX 0 13.6 0.25 0 13.85
WAA 0.2 85.9 22.6 21.9 130.6
DNF 0.8 11.1 2 2.2 16.1
Total 12.16 523.55 91.9 113.38 740.99
Inst Hire 57.35
Total for Year 798.34
9
A NOTE FROM THE CLUBHOUSE
There is a lot happening at the MAC Clubhouse/Bar in the coming months
so I have attached a list of important events so you can pencil these dates
in on the calendar.
REGIONALS 20th – 22nd NOV
There are some great events on at the Clubhouse/Bar over the Regionals
weekend, be sure to register and enjoy these. You can either be compet-
ing or supporting. Everyone is welcome. Check with the CFI or Flight Office
for further details.
FIZZY FRIDAY 27th NOV
The end of month tradition. Some things don’t change.
MAC ANNUAL COCKTAIL PARTY 28th NOV*
The big one, the one you have all been waiting for………..the annual event
not to be missed! This year will be all aviation themed cocktails, think
1920’s, coupe glasses, cherries and maybe even a little fire! Of course,
teamed with some delicious food. Dress up and say goodbye to 2020 with
a fabulous cocktail. Yeeehah! ** Please note date changed to Saturday 28
November at 6 pm due to conflicting events.
10A Note From The Clubhouse continued…..
MITCHISON CUP 12th DEC
It has been over 10 years since the greatest two Aero Club’s battled it out for
this trophy. Come and be a part of it and make sure we keep the cup where
it belongs! Keep the date free, details coming soon……….
CHRISTMAS FRIDAY 18th DEC
It’s is just like Fizzy Friday, but it’s Christmas Friday. Slightly earlier due to Christ-
mas Day falling on a Friday, so mark the calendar so you don’t miss it.
11WINGS DINNER 2020
Congratulations to all of the Trophy Winners and those with Flying Achievements! For a
complete list , please see p. 14 following the photos of the night.
12More pictures can be found on our Facebook page!!!
132020 Wings Dinner Trophy Winners
Joan Hall Cup (Junior Landing) Frank Hartland
Renwick Cup (Non-instrument Circuits) Yazad Irani
Les Roberts Cup (Basic Panel – IF) Yazad Irani
Marlborough Airwoman’s Trophy Matthew Judd
(Upper Air Work - Student)
Safe Air Trophy (PPL Low Flying) Yazad Irani
MAA Trophy (Pre-flight and Circuits) Joshua Gregory
Shand Trophy (FLWOP) Russell Young
Piper Trophy (Most Aggregate Points) Yazad Irani
Spence Cup (Most Improved Student) David McGrath
RB Memorial Trophy Neville and Tessa Sutherland
(Member given most to the club)
2020 Wings Dinner Flying Achievements
PPLs Corrie Pickering
Martin Soulek
Nathan Edwards
David Jimenez
CPL Zac Dillon
B-Cat Instructor Rating Dan Coleman
First Solos Thomas Van Asch
Tony Wytenburg
India Lambeth
Robert Yardley
David McGrath
Derek Lilley
Yat Leung Lam
Kimberly Price
Harry Newman-Woods
Peter Gurr
Sam Wakelin
Jared Henn
Joel Tomasi
Eric Null
Benjamin Lewis
Scott Donald
Leander Bahlsen
Matthew Judd
Frank Harland
Jarrah Timms
14HERITAGE AVIATION UPDATE
By Graham Orphan
OMAKA MOSQUITO UPDATE
The major mission to recover the large sections of the Mosquito airframe
was scheduled for the weekend of 26th-27th September. This was a huge
team effort with Warren and the AvSpecs team taking the lead on the criti-
cal management of the disassembly of the major sections of the air-
frame. As most of you will know, if this is not handled just right, the fuselage
will break in half and that will be that! Thankfully, with the correct bespoke
equipment made available by Warren, the Omaka based crew of dedicat-
ed aviation-tragics, and the expertise of the team from Muscles Lifting, the
splitting of the fuselage from the wing went well and the two sections came
away cleanly, allowing each to be loaded onto individual semi-trailers for
the trip to Omaka.
The fuselage is carefully lifted from the wing in preparation for the move to Omaka.
The journey of the fuselage across the Whangamoa range was completed
on the Saturday evening with the wing arriving at noon the following day.
Bill Reid had very kindly offered space in his hangar to house the Mosquito
whilst the necessary remedial work is carried out by Al Marshall, Gavin
Conroy, and the extended team of helpers. The wing and fuselage are on
castors so these major sections can be moved out of the way when Bill
wants to bring the Anson out for local flying.Heritage Aviation Update continued…...
You can barely see Bill's Anson hiding behind the Mosquito (wing tip visible to the left). The refurbishment
needed to make the Mosquito displayable is considerable, but thankfully, John Smith did his job well in pro-
tecting the aeroplane so that it can be made presentable again.
A few weeks after arrival, the worst part of the Mosquito fabric, covering the upper starboard wing,
has been removed to reveal a mostly healthy plywood surface, requiring little more than a few scarf
repairs and the re-filling of the screw holes. Al Marshall lends a scale to the task in this image!
At the time of writing, the refurbishment process is continuing towards the
day when the Mosquito will be once again presentable and will be installed
in the Omaka AHC for all to see. Well done to Al, Gavin, and to everyone
who has helped maintain the momentum from Mapua to the present time.
16Heritage Aviation Update continued…...
THE OTHER OMAKA BLERIOT
Yes it is true. Omaka has a chance of becoming home to a SECOND Bleriot
monoplane, this one being the flying example that has entertained our air-
show visitors for the past three events. The aircraft was built in Canterbury by a
keen Classic Fighters Airshow spectator and supporter who thought he'd like
to go a little further and participate in the event by creating something extra
special for the show in the form of a replica of the famous aircraft that Louis
Bleriot used to make the first aerial crossing of the English Channel in a heavier
than air aircraft in 1909. Owner-builder Gert van Kruiningen always thought
the Bleriot belonged here at Omaka and now a syndicate is being formed to
operate the aircraft here on a permanent basis. The syndicate provides for
seven shares, most of which have already been spoken for, including one by
Gert who is keen to stay involved with the aircraft. The Bleriot uses a 1928 Velie
radial engine giving a sense of period accuracy to the aircraft even though it
is a decade younger than those engines originally used. Anyone interested in
becoming involved in the Bleriot syndicate can get in touch by calling Gra-
ham on 021 683 954 or by e-mail to graham.cwd@gmail.com.
17Heritage Aviation Update continued…...
ABOUT OMAKA'S UNIQUE 'PIONEER TRANSPORT
At the Classic Fighters Airshow, the Bleriot has traditionally formed a key part
of the unique 'Pioneer Transport Race' involving Penny Farthing bicycles, vet-
eran cars etc. and is usually one of three veteran aircraft performing. Of
course, it does not take long to conclude that assembling THREE Edwardian-
era aeroplanes anywhere on the planet for a 'Magnificent Men' style event
is just not that easy to do but we have been able to do so by including the
taxying replica built by MAC members for the 1968 Omaka air pageant,
which later went derelict in Christchurch and was brought back years later in
appalling condition and stored in the hangar roof. It was subsequently ac-
quired by the CF Airshow team with a view to repairing it (and in fact largely
replacing much of the structure) for use at the biennial airshow event. The
key entertainment ingredient built into the craft in 1968 was its 'party trick'
that saw its back break in front of the crowd and this has been carried out
very well by suitably vaudevillian-oriented members of our community.
The third place in the early aeroplane slot has been filled by three different
machines from other parts of the country (Pither, de Pischoff and Pieten-
pol!!). Hopefully a third resident machine from this era will come to the fore
at Omaka at some time in the future to further secure the Pioneer Race as
another 'Only at Omaka' experience.
18Heritage Aviation Update continued…...
P-40 EVENING
Held on the evening of 14th October, we were delighted to be able to host
a gathering of interested people, keen to view a presentation by John Saun-
ders, Mike Nicholls and Dave McDonald on the subject of the P-40 Kittyhawk.
The occasion celebrated the arrival of the two P-40s that had been rescued
by the late John Smith back in the 1960s, both of which are now resident at
Omaka and both of which were joined by John's ongoing P-40E restoration,
now an advanced fuselage with many other items of the aircraft complet-
ed.
For this occasion the AHC welcomed the membership of the RAeS and the
Marlborough Aero Club to learn more about these exciting P-40 activities
and it really was a remarkable sight to see three examples of the classic
fighter under one roof in John's hangar. An appreciative group of around
100 enjoyed the extremely knowledgeable input from both John (pictured
above, addressing the group from the right hand corner) and Mike covering
different aspects of the Smith P-40s as well as the technical side of the P-40
design, all of this covered very well (despite some minor tech issues which
did not adversely affect the enjoyment of the presentation). After the hang-
ar discussion, many visitors migrated to the AHC foyer for refreshments and
the discussion continued for some time afterwards. Many thanks to John,
Mike, Lisa, Dave, along with Jo and the AHC team and all who helped make
this the great evening that it was!
19Heritage Aviation Update continued…...
Tiger Topics
Whilst many members of the Omaka community have become involved in the re-
covery and refurbishment of the Mosquito and the P-40N Kittyhawk that have
come over from Mapua to eventually be displayed in the AHC, work has also
commenced on the third machine to arrive for display at the museum. This is John
Smith's own personal aircraft, his Tiger Moth ZK-BQB. The Tiger has been in store for
a period in the MAW hangar but the fuselage has now moved to the Classic
Wings hangar where John Evans has commenced a sensitive cleaning and pre-
serving process (with a few small repair jobs) as part of the preparation for the air-
craft going on display when space becomes available in the museum.
For anyone familiar with Tiger Moths, this aircraft truly is an eye-opener since it must
surely be one of the last Tigers on the planet to still be wearing its original factory
fabric covering, this evidenced by the lace-up belly covering. The Tiger essentially
went into deep storage at around 20 years of age, before the restoration trend
caught up with it and as a consequence, still boasts virtually all of the military
equipment that would have been carried when it flew in the RNZAF, including a
lighting system that none of us have ever seen before (only a very small small per-
centage of military Tigers carried lighting). For these reasons, it has been agreed
that it would be almost criminal to restore the aircraft when it really is such a time-
capsule and needs to be preserved to retain all of those original ways of doing
things, and the Smith family are keen to see this biplane element of John's winged
legacy remain just as it was when he was flying it.
Of course, for many of us, the natural default setting when confronted with an air-
craft like this, is to strip it, and lovingly restore it to flying condition, however we are
lucky enough to have two flying Tigers already on the field and three more under
restoration, along with numerous other vintage types, so we have those bases
pretty well covered!
20NEW AVIATION BOOK
Oscar Garden
A Tale of One Man's Love of Flying
One day in 1930, a man walked into a department store in London and
bought an aeroplane. Having just learned to fly, Oscar Garden dreamed of
flying to Australia. In his newly purchase aeroplane, he did just that. This ad-
venture and myriad others this risk-taker embarked on are recounted in this
book.
Oscar's love of flying saw him joy riding to many places in the world, includ-
ing New Zealand, South Africa, and up through Africa to Palestine. While
based in London he joined British Airways and Imperial Airways flying flying
boats across the Empire. Finally, he came to rest in Auckland, New Zealand,
after delivering the Awarua, the second of New Zealand's flying boats, used
during World War II for communication and travel, reducing New Zealand's
isolation. He became Chief Pilot for TEAL, the New Zealand airline, for half of
the war years and beyond, and eventually resigned due to serious disagree-
ment over management and political agendas.
This biography describes Oscar Garden's fascinating journey through these
episodes. Follow the link below to pre-order: https://www.bookreps.co.nz/
catalogue/subject/product-details/oscar-garden
2122
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