< PreviousKiwiFlyer Magazine Issue 96 30 Celebrating 54 Years of Aircraft Sales and Acquisitions D ENNIS T HOMPSON I NTERNATIONAL L IMITED Visit us at Harvard Lane, Ardmore Airport, Papakura. www.DtiAircraftSales.com 2 1974 PIPER PA31-350 CHIEFTAIN ZK-VIP 10 place commuter with crew door. 14,526 hrs since new. Engines 777 and 1550 hrs since major o/h April 2015 / June 2014. Currently on AOC Part 135. Upgraded avionics, PBN Approved, S-TEC auto-pilot. 2581 lbs usefull. ADS-B compliant. Hot props. Offer invited. Immediate delivery! 1992 PIPER PA34-220T SENECA III ZK-WIW Less than 4000 hrs since new. Late KB engines both 2000 hours since new/reman 2019. New Interior 2022. 6 place club seating. Co-pilot instruments. IFR. ADS-B. PBN. SERIOUS OFFERS INVITED. 1957 de HAVILLAND BEAVER Mk 1 ZK-AMA 6039 hrs TTSN. Very low airframe time. On floats or wheels. Dual controls. ADS-B compliant. Maintained & operated CAR Part 135. Price reduced to US$440,000 +GST if sold in NZ. PIPER CHEROKEE PA28-140 COMING SOON Sample photo shown. Enquire now. 2004 CIRRUS SR22-G2 ZK-WHL Only 1854 hrs TTSN on Airframe and Props approx. 754 hrs since top overhaul. Recent 100 hr Inspection by Airlift North Shore. Immediate Delivery. NZ$495,000 incl. GST (if any). Ask about our export price. 2011 CESSNA 162 SKYCATCHER ZK-SKC 1600 hrs since new. Reduced to $60,000 plus GST Spares package available. Contact Dennis: P. 09 298 6249 | M. 0294 923 160 E. dennis@dtiaircraftsales.com Visit us at Harvard Lane, Ardmore Airport, Papakura. 4 5 1 3 1 5 UNDER CONTRACT 2 4 6 6 3 Wings over Wairarapa DHC-1 Chipmunk.Richard Hood’s Pitts S-1A now has smoke generators. Tiger Moth pair put on a graceful display.Red and blue here, but also in green and yellow. NZAero’s SuperPac 750XL II is brand new off the production line at Hamilton.1965 Gulf Almac Cobra was faster than the Pitts. Obligatory ‘bombing’ at the conclusion of the weekend. CW GC GC PLRPLR PLR PLR31 2023 z9 demonstration of their new SuperPac 750XL II and Wairarapa Helicopters demonstrated their Hughes 369D. The RNZAF Super King Air 350 arrived before a marvellous display by John Luff in his DH 112 Venom. Spectators then got to enjoy the arrival of the Black Falcons aerobatic team from RNZAF Ohakea in their T-6C Texan IIs who were accompanied by Brendon Deere’s immaculately restored Mk IX Spitfire that is also based at Ohakea. A very impressive combined aerobatic display ensued. Next to take off was Bevan Dewes again, this time in a local Chipmunk and quite famous as being the aircraft that Prince Phillip did his initial flight training in (it has a royal cypher on the front fuselage). Bevan was followed by local Tiger Moths ZK-BFS and ZK-ANL and Bill Reid’s Avro Anson Mk. 1 from Omaka. The Rural Co-operative’s Air Tractor flew next in a great display, complete with white and pink smoke from the spray arms. Then we had the graceful (excepting the noise) aerobatics of the Roaring Forties team of five Harvards. Doug Brooker and his Spitfire came next, followed by BAC Strikemaster NZ6372 now owned by Charles Davis and the only flying Strikemaster in New Zealand. In keeping with tradition, the last flight for the day was a combined airfield attack bombing display by the Harvards, Corsair and Anson. Due to wind levels, the WWI aircraft of The Vintage Aviator Limited that were scheduled to display, sadly, had to remain grounded. Feedback from those attending the festival was very positive, particularly considering that Saturday’s flying was cancelled. Everyone was impressed with the aircraft performances and people I spoke to also said (and I strongly agree) how brilliant the commentary by Peter Anderson was. He made very interesting comments throughout as well as inviting other speakers to commentate with him in order to highlight additional details of particular events. The organisers of the Wings over Wairarapa Air Festival have estimated that more than 12,000 people attended the event. Congratulations are due to Ron Mark and his team of helpers for staging such a successful show despite the unfavourable weather conditions. Clive Wilkinson F K Always wanted to fly? We’re here to make those dreams become a reality. Our experienced Fixed wing and Gyrocopter Instructors will work with you, no matter your current skill level, to get you to where you want to be. Recreational Flying is Serious Fun ! Buy a Trial Flight online today Ph 0800 359 249 www.aviationcentre.co.nz Dakota Way, Tauranga Airport www.solidus.industries NZ STOCKISTS Patented Kiwi Made Spray Nozzles Improved Chemical Delivery Better Spray Drift Control Less Ground Time Tried and Proven 027 473 1403 | GlennKeane@xtra.co.nzKiwiFlyer Magazine Issue 96 32 Every year taildragger enthusiasts gather at Bridge Pa and Waipukurau aerodromes for a weekend of flying, in 2023 on the 28 th and 29 th of October. Clive Wilkinson went along to partake in the enjoyment and writes of an excellent couple of days here. The Taildragger Fly-in at Bridge Pa and Waipukurau has been an annual event at both airfields for quite a few years now and is always well worth going along to as plenty of aircraft with a good variety of types makes for a wonderful weekend of flying. When I arrived at Bridge Pa airfield at about 8am, aircraft had already started to gather beside the Hawkes Bay and East Coast Aero Club. Although they were all from the Hawkes Bay area it was good to see the large range of types including a Grimmer Skylux, Piper Super Cubs, Zlin Savage, Just Aircraft SuperSTOL, Stearman, Gypsy Moth, Gardan Minicabs, Vans RV-4, ICP Savannah, Rand KR- 2, Sonex, Tiger Moths, Zenith Zodiac, Milholland Legal Eagle, Piper Tomahawk, and a Cessna Bird Dog. All pilots that were entering into the day’s events gathered in the HB&EC clubrooms where they were given a run-down of the events for the day by Club CFI Dominic Mak. The first event was a STOL competition: each entrant would have Taildragger Fly-in Weekend Plenty of variety here and plenty of smiles in the images on the next page are both confirmation of a most successful weekend of aviation camaraderie. two sets of take-offs and landings from a reference line with the scores based on the best take-off and landing set. For the landing the main gear had to be on or beyond the reference line. Due to the variation in size of the aircraft, the STOL competition was split into 3 different classes, C or Cub class, B or Biplane class and H or Heavy Class. The winners of the three trophies were: C class - Hayden Faukner in Zlin Savage ZK-SCA, B class - Jerry Chisum in Gipsy Moth ZK-ADT and H class - Rob Mackley in Cessna Bird Dog ZK-DOG. Next on the agenda for the day was the bombing competition where competitors have two passes at a minimum of 250 ft Event Report contributed by Clive Wilkinson ICP Savannah S and ICP Ventura. Factory or custom build options and full build support available. Contact your NZ ICP light sport aircraft agent Philip Seale at Westwind Aviation on 021 747494 www.lightsportaircraft.co.nzJan and Jerry Chisum in front of their Gipsy Moth. Judges: (L) Callum Sutherland, (R) Jason Wynharris. Ross MacDonald and Super Cub ZK-KSS. John and Lyn White at their farm strip. 33 2023 z9 www.rotorcraft.co.nz Maintenance | Avionics | Maintenance Control | Rebuilds Your locally owned and operated helicopter specialists Hamilton Airport 07 843 4925KiwiFlyer Magazine Issue 96 34 and try to land a flour bomb on the deck of a truck. First equal winners of this event were Gavin Grimmer in Grimmer Skylux ZK-SLX and Caroline in Cessna Bird Dog ZK-DOG. A particular highlight for me personally was being offered two flights in Jan and Jerry’s Tiger Moth ZK-BMY. I also had the opportunity to be part of the bombing competition. It is always wonderful to have a Tiger Moth flight but two in one day is much better, so thanks to you both. Sunday morning started for me at the Bridge Pa HB&EC Aero Clubrooms as the pilots involved in the days flying at Waipukurau viewed live coverage of the Rugby World Cup final between New Zealand and South Africa. A sad start to the day but things could only improve. I travelled to Waipukurau by car and on arrival it was good to see most of the aircraft that had competed the day before had already arrived ready for the first event of the day which was the Cub Spot Landing competition. The competition involved each of the 13 aircraft involved making two landings to a monitored landing line. The winners were: In the Cub Class - Ross Macdonald, 1metre off in Super Cub ZK-KSS, and in the non-Cub Class, Guy Laver who was spot on the mark in C185 ZK-CHL. With competition for the day completed pilots prepared for a fly around the farming area of Hawkes Bay. This included landing at two farm strips, the first owned by John and Lyn White and the second owned by James Butler. Once again, I was delighted to be offered a flight by Jerry Chisum, this time in his Gipsy Moth, my first time in a Gipsy Moth and a flight that I will cherish. For readers that do not know the history of ZK-ADT, it was owned by Jan Chisum’s father, Stanley White in England as G-AAJO. In 1934 he flew from England to Sydney, Australia, which took him 6 weeks, including 10 days of no flying due to a case of malaria. In 1935, after being shipped to Auckland it was flown to Bridge Pa where it is still based in Jan and Jerry Chisum’s hangar on the airfield. This year’s event was a great weekend of competition flying, made even better for me with the flight experiences I enjoyed. I am looking forward to next year’s taildragger fly-in as always and sincerely thank the organisers at both airfields for their efforts over the weekend. Clive Wilkinson Clive Wilkinson and Gypsy Moth ADT. 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Alex 022 588 0942 Brad 027 634 1030 sales@slingaircraft.nz www.slingaircraft.nz Sling 2 LSA, Sling TSi, Sling High Wing35 2023 #9 Milholland Legal EaglePiper PA-18A-150 Super CubGardan GY-20 Minicab Tiger MothICP Savannah SBoeing Stearman Cessna Bird DogJust Aircraft SuperSTOLCessna 185C touched right on the markKiwiFlyer Magazine Issue 96 36 In this issue we bring you the final piece of Gerhard Schmid’s story of Flying Officer Grant Cox, a young New Zealand Lancaster Bomber pilot who died on his third bombing mission during WWII. In part one we followed Grant as he went through his training, left New Zealand, fell in love and married while stationed in Canada, then sailed to England to do his bit for the war effort. Part two looked at Grant’s time in England as he worked towards operational flying of Lancaster bombers, and we introduced a young German night fighter pilot, Ober Lieutenant Peter Paul Ehrhardt. We learnt of the carpet bombing of German cities and the weapons and tactics Germany used to try to prevent this. F/O Grant Cox and his crew are about to meet Oblt. Peter Ehrhardt. Aviation History contributed by Gerhard Schmid England Flying Officer Grant Cox slowly walks around the Lancaster III JB129/G, the obligatory exterior check, before every flight. Meanwhile, his crew has arrived - Flight Engineer Sgt. G.F. Lowe, Navigator Sgt. E.G. Grundy, Radio Operator Sgt. E. Peacock, Bombardier Pilot Officer E.W. Mellander and the two gunners Sgt. K. Finch and Sgt. W. Broderick. Another hasty cigarette, then the seven comrades climb into the Lancaster. They and the machine form a well-trained, functioning unit. One by one the four Rolls Royce Merlin engines are started, countless aircraft on the parking bays do the same. The whole RAF base shakes under the roar of the heavy engines. One Lancaster after another rises into the air with a deafening roar; heavy loads being dragged into the evening sky over England. The clock shows 18:49 as Grant Cox pushes the four thrust levers of his Lancaster forward and joins the stream. 811 bombers, launched from various British bases, move east at a speed of around 200 knots (about 360 km/h). Germany The enemy is still over the British coast when the 1 st Fighter Division sounds the alarm at 19:43 and the pilots of NJG5 in Stendal, Parchim and Erfurt run to their aircraft. Among them is Oblt. Peter Ehrhardt, who flies with the 8th/NJG5 from Werneuchen towards the incoming British. The 22-year-old has been a night fighter pilot for almost a year now, and since then he has achieved nine aerial victories. Seven months ago, he caused quite a stir when he shot four Viermots out of the sky with the new on-board weapon ‘Schräge Musik’ in his Bf 110 during only one mission. Now he is flying westwards, at about 400 km/h towards the reported stream of bombers. The Luftwaffe has sent everything operational into the sky - 319 night fighters, including 100 Messerschmitt Bf 109s and Focke Wulf Fw 190s, to operate over Berlin using the ‘Wilde Sau’ method. It takes another 1 ½ hours until the first bomber falls from the sky. Sergeant Hans Meissner of the 2nd/NJG3 sends a Halifax and its crew into a watery grave north of Helgoland. And many will follow... A night of tragedy To cover the events of the night of 24 to 25 March 1944 in detail would fill a multi-part story in itself. The clash of the two opposing air forces on this cloudless, clear night was documented Grant and his crew undertaking heavy bomber conversion training on the Short Stirling. They were all killed just weeks later. L to R: Sergeant Keith Finch, RAAF (Rear Gunner); Flying Officer John Grant Cox, RNZAF (Pilot); Flying Officer T. Mellander (Bomb Aimer); Sergeant George Lowe, RAF (Flight Engineer); Sgt B. Grundy (Navigator); Sgt T. Peacock (Gunner); and Sgt E. Broderick (Gunner). The story of RNZAF pilot Grant Cox Part Three: The night of the strong winds37 2023 #9 and reconstructed in incredible detail, almost to the minute. In the end, the RAF lose 72 aircraft - and with them over 500 men. The Luftwaffe counts the loss of 14 aircraft, five of them single-engine fighters. Our focus is on two pilots and their crews who will fatefully meet that night: New Zealand bomber pilot Flying Officer Grant Cox and his crew on one side, German night fighter pilot Oberleutnant Peter Ehrhardt and his comrades on the other. Under normal circumstances, the British fly in a largely closed bunch, the stream of aircraft about 100 km in length and 8 km in width. An attacking night fighter thus has to fly through the fields of fire of several gunners to reach its target. Through intensive use of ‘windows’ (chaff), the bomber stream can also create dummy targets and irritate the German radar. But the circumstances that night were not normal. History books later refer to it as the ‘Night of the High Winds’. What happened? At the briefing, the meteorologists had predicted light winds from varying directions and the navigators adjusted course to this. Some of them became suspicious for the first time when, on approach to Berlin, they suddenly found themselves south of Sylt, when they should have been at least 30 km north of the island. An Australian navigator in one of the first planes calculates winds from the north with a force of more than 100 miles per hour (about 160 km/h). The cockpits ring with disbelief, hardly anyone wants to believe the results. The arrival time over Berlin is corrected to 22:52, 15 minutes later than planned. Far from the target, individual bombers are caught by the glaring beams of the anti-aircraft searchlights, the explosions of the shells shake the men in their harnesses. Night fighters are stalking, shooting... Far from Berlin, Grant and his comrades see the first planes go down in flames. Their chances are 20:1, they know that, and that’s what they pin their hopes on. It will be all right. Then the time has come - in the midst of the inferno which rages over the Reich capital at around 23:00, the bomb bay of the Lancaster opens. A 4,000 pound ‘block buster’ bomb falls slowly downwards towards the city, brightly lit by fires, followed by more than a dozen containers filled with countless small bombs designed to start fires in the rubble of the city. Messerschmitt Bf 110s of III.NJG5 in formation. SCENIC FLIGHTS HELI CHARTER HELI FISHING PROPOSAL FLIGHTS HOTEL TRANSFERS COMMERCIAL OPS PHOTOGRAPHY PPL and CPL TRAINING CAANZ CERTIFICATED R 22, R 44, S 300 SAFETY AWARENESS COURSES TYPE RATINGS INSTRUCTOR RATINGS NIGHT RATINGS (unlim) 09 299 9442 sylvia@heliflite.nz www.heliflite.co.nzKiwiFlyer Magazine Issue 96 38 Grant Cox They close the bomb bay and head southwest, out of this hell. Sgt Grundy, the navigator, must now make sure they find their way home again. Relieved of their deadly cargo, the almost 800 bombers search for the corridor westwards, between Leipzig and Hanover and north of the Ruhr area via Holland out of the Reich territory, towards the British Isles. Flak must always be expected around large cities and industrial centres. If they stick to the route planning, the danger is reduced to the night fighters. But where are the others? This is the question being asked in many cockpits. The exceptionally strong wind (most pilots and navigators hear the term ‘jet stream’ for the first time the next morning) has scattered the bomber stream far and wide. Later, it is reconstructed that during this phase, the aircraft spread out over a length of 220 km and a width of 200 km (Remember: the normal extent of the stream would be about 100 x 8 kilometres). Most crews are now on their own. Deprived of their protection in the crowd and the ‘Windows’ disturbance measures, they become easy prey for the night hunters - who lurk everywhere between Berlin and the North Sea. Swimming with the bomber stream Oblt. Peter Ehrhardt awaits the departing British southwest of Berlin. The experienced German night fighter pilots have worked out a promising strategy, swimming with the bomber stream. Shortly before 11pm he recognises the first bombers and then things move quickly: there is no question of a dogfight, only when they see the muzzle flashes of the on-board guns of Peter Ehrhardt’s Bf 110 does the Halifax bomber’s tail gunner recognise the danger - too late. The Halifax, fatally shot down near Erfurt, is 22-year-old Ehrhardt’s tenth aerial victory. The German pilots continued west, knowing that hundreds of bombers were in the air around them. Nevertheless, a good 30 minutes pass before Ehrhardt has stalked his next victim. At 23:34 he presses the trigger for the aircraft’s weapons, which fire their deadly projectiles precisely between the fuselage and the inside engine into the black body of their victim, Grant’s aircraft. The effect is devastating. Large parts of the left wing fly off, the impacts and explosions shake the giant, which just a few moments ago was moving along calmly and evenly. The heavy four-engined machine tilts inertly to one side. The burning bomber loses altitude faster and faster, trailing a long trail of fire behind it. Peter Ehrhardt and his two comrades follow until it hits the ground south of Rimbeck. It is his second aerial victory of the night. They send two more enemy aircraft to the ground during this mission, north of the Ruhr, near Rheine. Hit! Sgt Grundy, the navigator, has his hands full. The high-altitude wind from the north, which is now blowing at up to 200 km/h, has driven them almost 100 km off course. Actually, they should now be about 30 km south of Hanover, but in fact they are at an altitude of 5,600 m above Kassel. The North Sea, where they would finally be safe is still a good hour’s flight to the west. Until then, they now need - luck. At this moment, the monotonous hum of the four Rolls Royce Merlin engines is drowned out by deafening explosions. Lightning flickers, splinters sift through the Lancaster’s fuselage, a rattle goes through the big plane. Fire breaks out - hit! As attentively as they have peered through the windows into the night, the night fighter has taken them by surprise, seemingly coming out of nowhere. The voices overlap in the on- board communication, the pilot Grant Cox uses his full strength to keep the aircraft from rolling to one side - in vain. They will not make it home. The Lancaster is no longer controllable. The large, four-engined plane plummets towards the earth. Aftermath For the inhabitants of the small village of Rimbeck, it is a sensation. They have often seen the white vapour trails of bomber streams in the sky, now the smoking debris of one of these deadly enemy bombers lies a few kilometres from their village. A boy saw the fireball fall from the sky during the night, and in the morning the first villagers arrive at the crash site. Among the twisted debris of the once mighty plane, they discover the shattered bodies of the crew. Grant Cox, the pilot, is still strapped into his seat, at first glance unharmed, bent over as if asleep. None of the seven young crew managed to leave the crashing plane. While some men from the village bury the fallen airmen in the Rimbeck cemetery (in 1948 they are reburied in the British military cemetery in Hanover), what remains of the Lancaster attracts more onlookers. Three young women, smiling happily into the camera, have their picture taken standing on the heap of rubble from which the seven 09 489 9650 val@hoodbrokers.com www.hoodinsurance.co.nz Public Liability Insurance Business Protection Insurance General Insurance Offering the best possible solutions to protect you business and yourself. l Packed with Features Check them out on our website Stratomaster XTREME EFIS Compact, Cost Effective, and Simply Stunning ! 4.3” sunlight readable TFT LCD Fits std 3.1/8” panel hole (x-wide) AH, ASI, ALT, VSI, HDG, TC, etc. Engine info (EGT, CHT, OILT&P, FUEL, TACH, MAP, HOBBS etc) Mixed VFR analog (ASI, ALT, VSI) + engine info Mixed AH + flight + engine info Checklists GPS derived flightpath or true attitude (with external SP4 AHRS) l l l l l lF K 39 2023 #9 A conclusion In 1999, Winnifred and Bryan Cox stood in front of the graves of Grant Cox and his crew at the British Military Cemetery near Hanover. They also visited the field near Rimbeck, where the seven young comrades, none older than 22, met their deaths. When they met contemporary witnesses, there was a very emotional moment: one of the three women who triumphed on the wreckage of the Lancaster handed over the 55-year-old photograph to Grant’s widow and brother. Another 22 years were to pass until, in the spring of 2021, the last unsolved question would find its answer: Lieutenant Peter Ehrhardt. For Bryan Cox, this was the conclusion of a decades-long search that - in addition to processing his own war experiences - had accompanied him for most of his life. He was grateful and relieved during our last video phone call. Finally, the last chapter, the tragic end of his brother Grant and his crew, was fully resolved. Only a few weeks later Bryan Cox died at the age of 96 - ten years after his wife Winnifred. Gerhard Schmid A Lancaster crashing near the village of Rimbeck was a sensation for the locals. L: Grant Cox in 1941 R: Peter Ehrhardt www.aviationsafety.co.nz 027 280 6549 sales@aviationsafety.co.nz TSO C70A II FAA LIFE RAFTS FIRST OF ITS KIND 5 YEAR TBO 6 Person (8 overload) Less than 18kg Multiple boarding stations and ladders Convertible Canopy System TSO 8/10 Person also available The complete range of Switlik products is available from Aviation Safety Supplies Limited, including: UZIP Immersion Suits l 10 year service Lifejackets Helicopter X-Back lifejackets l Single Person Liferafts dead boys had been pulled shortly before. At RAF Base Coningsby and the other bomber airfields, the wounds are licked in the morning. A loss rate of 9.1% is calculated for this mission - this is no longer acceptable. Hundreds of letters are written to family members, one of which destroys all of young Winnifred Cox’s dreams for the future. She only enjoyed a few months with her husband Grant. Now, two years after the wedding, she is a war widow. For Oblt. Peter Ehrhardt and his comrades, the war continued. For another 14 months, the night fighter crews threw themselves against the nightly bomber raids. On both sides, chairs remained empty after every night of action. Peter Ehrhardt was lucky. He flew numerous missions, experienced the end of the war with 22 recognised aerial victories and lived in peace until he died in Düsseldorf in May 1983. In 1949, Winnifred remarried - and continued to bear the name Cox. The man with whom she spent the rest of her life was none other than Bryan Cox, brother of her fallen husband and a fighter pilot in the Pacific with the Royal New Zealand Air Force. Over the years, the Cox family, who lived in New Zealand, tried to reconstruct the events of the fateful Night of the Strong Winds. One question had always remained unanswered despite all their efforts: Who shot down the Lancaster JB129? Next >