The History of New Zealand Aviation
written by Ross Ewing & Ross Macpherson

This jointly-written history is the culmination of five years’ work and marks the contribution of countless New Zealanders to the cause of aviation, both military and civil, at home and abroad, and both in the air and on the ground. Their combined achievements have made the writing of this book possible. It is a general text on New Zealand aviation, and is aimed not just at those with a specialist interest but also at those with a passing interest in the subject in the hope that it will stimulate them further.

The idea of compiling a joint civil-military history of New Zealand aviation first arose in the late 1970s, at a time when New Zealand aviation seemed to becoming apart at the seams. Our concern at this development was one of the main reasons for pressing ahead with what turned out to be a massive project. Other reasons were that from an early age we both had become very interested in flying and in aircraft of all kinds and wished to share this interest.

A genuine and careful effort has been made to put events of the past – both good and bad – in true perspective, and to account for the present in a way that will, hopefully, prevent the mistakes of the past from being made again. This pragmatism is today very much the essence of New Zealand aviation.

This book is not all-inclusive, nor is it designed as an enthusiast’s detailed reference text. The scope of this history – spanning over 130 years of aerial endeavour has allowed us to focus only on the highlights and, regrettably, some fascinating subjects have been merely touched on. In many cases it has been necessary to summarise a subject that would have easily formed a chapter on its own.

Every measure has been taken to check the accuracy and completeness of the various topics. Knowing that it is virtually impossible to achieve 100 percent accuracy, we apologise in advance for any slips of the pen, for any inaccuracies and for any important omissions.

The writing of this book would not have been possible but for the help of a large number of people and organisations. In particular we are indebted to staff at the various libraries and museums visited while collecting photographs and information. Especially we wish to thank the Alexander Turnbull Library in Wellington, the Hocken Library in Dunedin, the Auckland War Institute and Museum, the Auckland Public Library and the RNZAF Museum at Wigram. We also wish to thank various public relations staffs for their helpfulness – especially those of the Royal New Zealand Air Force and their Central Photographic Establishment. A great debt is also owed to aviation historians David Duxbury and Errol Martyn for their inimitable depth of knowledge, their frank comments on the manuscript and for their selfless assistance; to author Janic Geelen for his knowledge – given so freely – his experience and for his untiring enthusiasm; to Sir Richard Bolt for kindly agreeing to write the Foreword; and to the authors’ wives to whom the book is dedicated.

Much gratitude is also owed to the book’s publishers, without whom it simply would not have ‘got off the ground’. We thank Heinemann Managing Director David Heap for persuasively pursuing the project in the first instance; and David Ling for his continual drive, patience and assistance, his quiet encouragement, and for the very professional way in which he has so successfully directed our combined efforts.

Finally, and to reiterate, one of the main purposes of this book is to stimulate interest in New Zealand aviation both past and present. If this book encourages the reader to pursue in more detail some aspect that has been touched on herein, or to become involved in aviation in some physical way, then we will have succeeded.

Ross Ewing
Ross Macpherson