When I was asked to pen a reflective piece on the 40th Anniversary fly-in at Taumarunui, I wondered how mere words could possibly paint a word picture of such an evocative and nostalgic event.
But, for those of you who have never experienced such an aviation gathering, imagine the setting. Clear blue skies, a soft gentle breeze, the sun shining on picture book cumulus, green lush hills surrounding the long wide springy grass runway and the happy rustic peasant folk tilling the fields; an almost John Constable pastoral scene.
Row upon row of de Havilland DH-82s, DHC-1 Chipmunks, Piper Cubs, Austers, a DH-83 Fox Moth, DH-84 Dragon, DHC-2 Beaver, a Stearman, plus many other interesting machines. In all, 15 DH-82s made their way to Taumarunui for the three-day event with the total number of all types reaching about 70. Approximately half were vintage/classic aircraft which included a muster of five DHC-1 Chipmunks.
As one sat with old chums looking out over the Tiger Moth parking area, it could have been a scene straight from the 1950s. Only the attire of the many visitors, the parked cars and the cell-phones gave away that it was 2009 and 74 years since the DH-82 first flew and 84 since the original DH-60 ‘Moth’ took to the skies.
And the sounds of yester-year. In the distance the rising cadence of a trio of Tigers traversing a canyon between two snowy-white cumuli, the aerial playground of our youth. On the ground, the staccato bursts of power as pilots skillfully taxied their gleaming aircraft to their parking spots. Then the ‘tinkling’ from their ancient engines as the cylinders slowly cooled.
And the voices drifting clearly across the grass:
“Switches off…throttle closed…suck in…throttle set…contact…chocks away!”
The happy greetings as old chums from all over the country renewed their fellowship and discussed their aircraft, their offspring and their life during the past year.
And the smells as one lay on the soft warm grass just soaking up the ambience of hot oil, a whiff of benzene as the fueling trailer moved about with its traditional 44 gallon drum and hand pump. The delicious odours of food wafting from the hangar.
I also like, despite it being a ‘Tiger Moth Club’ event, how very welcome are the many supporters who fly in with their more modern ‘tin’ aeroplanes and interesting other types such as Neville Hay’s Cri Cri, Les Marshall’s lovely Ryan, a Stinson Voyager and Derek Williams’ Harvard, et al.
A highlight for me was Stan Smith’s gorgeous Fox Moth, a type I enjoyed flying back in the ’50s, and his historic DH Dragon; the actual airframe which friends of mine flew in New Guinea during the ’50s.
My wife and I enjoyed the Friday evening at the High School hostel BBQ and must commend Jeannette Lei and Kevin Vile of Taumarunui Aero Club, and their many helpers for the great dinner on Saturday Night.
And so the days passed in an easy-going fashion with aircraft constantly in the air during the competitions and coming and going on sorties to local airstrips to take advantage of the superb weather and gentle winds. The local people also enjoyed the annual fly-in which was a treat for groups of elderly residents from two rest homes. Many of these folk recalled the very early years when Tiger Moths began aerial topdressing in the district.
At one stage amidst the jovial atmosphere, I experienced a strange pang of melancholy as a formation of Tigers passed overhead and faded slowly into the distance; the beat of their engines caressing the sky, before all was again silent. It was only later that I realized why this feeling of sadness had intruded. It was the memory of some of my early flying companions, now long departed, from half a century ago when we too loved our Tiger Moths and our many formation flights together on trips to other clubs and at air pageants. I was a teenage lad again, and proud to be sitting as number two in our Vic or Finger-four formations…I could feel again the throttle in my left hand, easing it forward and back as my wingtip edged in to about a half a span as I followed our leader’s hand commands.
The throbbimg of the Gipsy Major, the airflow whistling and keening past the struts and wires…the sheer joy of being young and trusted to be part of the team….
But the moment passed and I returned to 2009 when a familiar voice chuckled in my ear:
“Gidday Fearless, you old reprobate. What are you up to these days?”
So once again I was joyful to be alive and living in such a grand country and to be a part of our nation’s aviation heritage.
Merrie cheers from:
Mike Feeney,
Hamilton,
New Zealand.
Bruce and David Harding had just arrived in their father's, Richmond Harding, yellow Tiger, ZK-AUZ. Here Bruce (facing) is chatting with old chums about their flight from Wamganui. AUZ can be fitted with a hopper in the front cockpit to enable it to carry out aerial topdressing operations at air displays and suchlike.
A general scene with Stan Smith's wonderfully restored DH-84 'Dragon' featured. He also had his simply gorgeous DH-83 Fox Moth on display.
A very rare sight was the formation sequence with ZK-AUZ, flown by Wanganui Aero Work pilot Bruce Harding and Taumarunui Cresco pilot Kevin Erni. Kevin did well to manage this as the two types could hardly be more different. The 130 bhp topdressing Tigers could, under good conditions, carry three 187 lb bags of superphosphate (0.25 tonne). The 750 shp Cresco routinely hauls a two tonne payload. Eight times the load at twice the speed of the DH-82. Mind you, at about 1.5 million apiece, the Cresco is a tad more capital intensive than the Tiger was in its heyday. But on just six times the horsepower of the DH-82, the Cresco is a staggering 16 times more productive than our first ag. machines.
There are three reasons why I have included this image. It is a rather jolly shot of Karen Erni, a particularly nice person who hosted my wife and I during the weekend and who is most tolerant when her husband Kevin and I sit up half the night discussing the aerial topdressing industry. Secondly, because of the DHC-2 Beaver. It is my all-time favourite machine of all the ag. types I have flown. I was just 22 when I began topdressing in this wonderful aircraft and 50 the last time I operated one on topdressing ops. And thirdly, because some readers of the Aerohub website may as well know what 54 years of working involvement in aviation does to a chap...not a pretty sight I am afraid troops!
