DOMCOL & Indulgence Flights
ZOOM
I can confirm that DOMCOL was alive and well in the late 1990s. I took deferred DOMCOL back to New Zealand via Hong Kong in 96/97. BA Trooper to Hong Kong (sat in BA jump-seat into Kai Tak) and then transferred to CP Business Class flight to AKL. Upgraded to First Class (against my Socialist principals!) and made the most of it. Cathay Pacific were giving half bottles of NV Krug as prezzies to 1st class punters to celebrate 50 years of operation; most of them didn't bother to collect them so I staggered off the aircraft at Mangere with 6 bottles (all gift-wrapped) whilst the cabin crew giggled and murmured 'he he he, spot the upgrade!'
Indulgence travel within NZ was all the rage in the late 1980s. RNZAF Andover 'crew trainers' were put on for mates weddings and junior officer parties; the F27 Nav trainers used to trundle all over the place (including around Aussie) dropping people (myself included) at random, but convenient, airfields. Presumably the fun detectors cracked down on this - anyway both the Andover and Friendships have long gone!. One thing that used to grip light blue sh&t was the insistance from the army that their personnel were 'on duty' when proceeding to/from leave, and therefore would bump off us indulgees. Duty also extended to their overweight wives and snotty-nosed kids...but at least there was always a jump seat available and in such a small air force (and being aircrew at the time) it was always possible to know the crews and to get a seat. Also travelled a few times on VIP Andovers that were prepositioning, and the guys on the Cessna flight at Woodbourne were largely self-authorising...