New Zealand News

The RNZAF’s Skyhawks are the A-4K and the TA-4K type and most are based at Ohakea Base in the southern North Island. Following a $NZ140 million project Kahu upgrade (airframe mods and avionics work) the fighter bombers now have an economic life of about ten years.

In chapter seven of the White Paper, entitled “The Way Ahead”, It is stated that one possibility would be to explore “the opportunities for shared operations with Australia. ”

The Paper also says the Skyhawks are “less relevant to low level contingencies in the South Pacific than they may be to the security of Australia. They take part regularly in exercises in Australia, SE Asia and elsewhere. They are a credible contribution to collective security operations at the mid-level range of conventional warfare, providing a combat option that depends more on weaponry than on manpower. ”

The Paper also says “geography makes it inevitable that the potential contribution to Australia’s security will have an important weight in assessing the value and level of a capability. The options of sharing, joint operation, collaborative procurement, common training and the development of true ANZAC capabilities are worth consideration and discussion between the two defence forces before recommendations are framed. ”

In conclusion, it notes that this country’s economic difficulties has seen defence spending, usually about 2% of gross domes- tic product, drop to 1. 8% “and it is likely to fall further. ” In a preface to the White Paper, Prime Minister Jim Bolger says a country which does not “maintain an adequate defence capability is a burden to its friends and is unable to promote its own security or that of others. ” Before last October’s general election, the National Party- now the Government – signalled that NZ’s defence policies were “too isolationist in their thrust and that we would bring New Zealand back to its correct place in the international community. ”

The Paper signals a wish to regain United States military cooperation.

Following the release of the Defence White Paper, fears were expressed that the Ohakea air base would become redundant if the Government decided to mothball 75 Squadron and its Skyhawks. Some Skyhawks were bought in 1970, others second hand from the RAN in 1984. The Ohakea base public relations officer, Sally Bowler, was quoted as saying Ohakea’s remaining 14 Squadron would not survive the Skyhawk mothballing because 14 Sqdn trained pilots on Strikemasters and the recently purchased Aermacchis before advancing to the Skyhawks. Ohakea had 781 personnel.

Geary for Tourism Board

Norman Geary, a former chief executive of Air New Zealand, will chair the newly created New Zealand Tourism Board. He has left the Christchurch based Mount Cook Group where he was chief executive. The Tourism Board would be a dynamic organisation and Mr Geary would bring it a wealth of knowledge. The Board took over from the Tourism Department on 1 July.

The airline and tourism company which carries many Australians throughout this country has a new general manager, Peter Clark. Mount Cook is now a wholly owned subsidiary of ANZ.

New Look for Link Airlines

Air New Zealand’s domestic fleet of 737s and aircraft of regional carriers Air Nelson and Bagle Air have had their identities repackaged. The domestic wing of the airline is now known as Air New Zealand National (shades of the pre-merger National Airways Corporation) and the regional operators now fly under the umbrella identity of Air New Zealand Link.

Norm Thompsom, general manager Air New Zealand National, says the new identities signalled a stronger alliance between the domestic and regional carriers. The move would also enhance the marketing of New Zealand tourism overseas. Air Nelson’s fleet of Saab, Metroliner and Pipers are being repainted in Air New Zealand’s colours of teal, blue and white and feature the Air New Zealand Link identity on the fuselage and tail.

Before his unexpected resignation as Air New Zealand’s chief executive, Jim Scott said the airline would be a keen bidder for a stake in Australian Airlines if Air NZ was allowed to stop in Australia to and from other destinations. And there are no indications since Mr Scott’s abrupt departure that Air New Zealand’s view on Australian Airlines has changed.

The Australian Government’s decision to sell 100% of Australian Airlines and 49% of Qantas has created a lot of interest in several Pacific rim nations.

Mr Scott said Air New Zealand was more likely to buy a stake in Australian Airlines than in Qantas. He said having an interest in the domestic carrier would fit with Air New Zealand’s strategy of forming alliances which could be used to increase tourism to both countries either side of the Tasman. However, to be a serious contender, Air New Zealand needed Australian landing rights that allow it to pick up and put down passengers on flights that do not terminate in Australia. Air New Zealand wanted that freedom so it could market New Zealand and Australia as a package and increase tourism to both countries.

At present Air New Zealand has to overfly Queensland every day, a situation which Mr Scott said represented one of the most obvious failures to harmonise since the start of the Closer Economic Relations Agreement. Unless Air New Zealand could get so-called “beyond rights”, there was little point in having a stake in an Australian domestic airline.

Earlier, Mr Scott, in a speech to the Royal Aeronautical Society’s annual symposium in Wellington, said Air New Zealand was having to carry a significant number of customers over Australia to New Zealand, take them back across the Tasman for their Australian part of their South Pacific experience, bring them back across the Tasman to Auckland and fly them over the land mass of Australia again. “That has got to be economic suicide if it continues,” he declared.

The governments of Australia and New Zealand had to conclude a beyond-rights treaty which would encourage a commercially driven change to the relationship between Air New Zealand and Qantas. (Qantas, of course, has a 19. 9% interest in ANZ).

767 Crews Go North

Air New Zealand international flight and cabin members based in Christchurch are moving to Auckland, the airline’s head base. An airline public affairs officer said cabin crew who staff Boe- ing 767s from Christchurch had recently moved north. Thirty-six flight crew have just over a year to relocate in Auckland. Christchurch is no longer an operating base for Air New Zealand’s international division. A public affairs officer said the move to Auckland was to improve the airline’s efficiency.

Direct NZ/Chile Flights?

New Zealand and Chile have signed a draft agreement allowing for direct flights between the two countries, either non-stop or through Tahiti or Rarotonga. At present the only direct route to South America, tracking over part of Antarctica, is to Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Weather Sell-off

The Airways Corporation looks set to take over the Mete- orological Service aviation weather forecasting service.

The Transport Minister, Mr Storey, says the possible sale was under discussion with the corporation. The Goverment, added the minister, felt it should not be the owner of two competing weather forecasting services. Andrew Makin. the Airways Corporation chief executive, says the proposal to provide a special weather service for the aviation industry had been received “enthusiastically” by customers. The aviation weather forecasting business had a turnover of about $NZ5m a year.

Helicopter Manual “Misquotes Rule”

Helicopter pilots appeared to have a free hand if weather conditions required them to fly at less than 500ft, an air accident report says. The operations specifications and associated manuals of each helicopter pilot licensed for scenic flights should be reviewed by the Transport Ministry, says the report on a 1989 crash at Fox Glacier (South Island) in which two Singaporeans died.

The report concluded that the operations manual accompanying the Hughes 369HS aircraft misquoted Civil Aviation Regulation 38. The regulation specifies no flying less than 500ft above the highest point of the terrain. But the manual failed to include an instruction to further maintain that height within a radius of 2,000ft of a fine extending vertically below the craft.

The air accident report said it was possible that a strong tailwind gust as the helicopter, piloted by 22 year old Wayne Črawford, was descending in a turn resulted in a sudden loss of engine power. Meanwhile another helicopter was in the news recently – a prison inmate pays to hire a two seater Robinson R22 to practice takeoffs and landings. The prisoner, Brent Vern Harkerss, has hired a helicopter five times since late 1989 when he was first admitted to Rolleston prison near Christchurch. Every 90 days the inmate has to make three takeoffs and landings in order to keep his pilot’s licence current. The prison-bound pilot, serving a 41⁄2 year sentence after his conviction for the drugs-related manslaughter of a man, is due for release in a year.

50 World-Wide Inquiries on F27s

Air New Zealand has had more than 50 inquiries from various parts of the world about its 15 Fokker Friendships, withdrawn from service nine months ago.

Some of the 44 seat 500 series models were flown north from Christchurch, where the F27s are stored, to Woodbourne airport near Blenheim, to make room for Royal Australian Air Force and United States National Science Foundation Hercules. Air New Zealand has contracts worth more than $NZ25m to carry out maintenance and other engineering work on the Lockheed transports.

“A group from the Philippines has inspected some of the F27s at Christchurch”, said Mr John Mounce, at Air New Zealand’s Engineering Base at Auckland’s Mangere airport.

Wind Caused 767 Mishap

The flight crew of an Air New Zealand 767 which departed the runway while landing in torrential rain at Nadi have been exonerated by the airline after an internal investigation. The 767 was carrying 162 people when it skidded off the runway and sank to the wheel axles in mud during March. The airline inquiry found the aircraft was hit by a sudden blast of wind as it touched down.