Skywagondriver - your quote "In the '60s just about every aero club in NZ had one as the 'cross country' machine." made me wonder who else apart from The Auckland Aero Club, had a C180 (ZK-BUF-refer to Sharpies post 25th Nov) I can't think of any other club that had one.
Did my own conversion to the C180 with Bruce Chapman in 1962 on BUF at Ardmore, somewhere around the time that Sharpie left to go to PNG.

Blackburn

This beauty I flew once brand spanking new out of the box in all white paint
It never ended up dung dusting but someone destroyed it anyhow
ZK CKU

The only club C185 I can think of was Peter Mattichs Flying school in Taupo
Jack Bindon cross hiired Ray Veritys C180, but if you left it with so much as a seat belt not in the correct spot old Ray (150 kilo raging red headed nutter) would come knocking on yer door :ooh:

CKU
http://www.adastra.adastron.com/company/zk-cku.jpg

Wellington ZK-BUS ,New Plymouth, Hawkes Bay & East Coast [forget the reg but did a rating on theirs in '65]

Unless I am mistaken, it was SEQ at Wau.

Serra.. Ecker... Moik be easy enough after a big night in Wau
Reckon Serra ..Ecker ..Kerrbeck be a mumble bum job tho ...:uhoh:

Like the old Bishop in Wirui , used the same call sign for whatever aircraft he was flying.He felt comfortable with that :hmm:

Peter Matich (Black Pete of Taupo Flying School) initially leased C185C ZK-CGG (freighter) during 1967, but swapped it for C185D ZK-CHS by December 1967. CHS was with the company until late 1978. Did quite a few hours in CHS when I worked at the Napier Aero Club for Black Pete in 1971/2
Thanks for the update on BUS at Wellington, Skywagondriver!

Blackburn

Think they sold it on around 1964 but think it's still flying.
Started my love affair with the 180/185 when my dad shouted me my second ever flight in BUS in 1960. The aero club used to park it over by the old domestic terminal [new then:)] and did 'joyrides' on Saturdays and Sundays.

Anyone know what happened to P2-SEN?

CKU
 

CKU is on the desk in front of me, a straightened ID pate and log book stating converted to Float Plane 22/7/77. Last entry 19/2/78, at 5797 hrs, demise was you know where.

Cessna 185 ZK-EKA
 

I also bought the wreckage of the above at about the same time. Ser. No 271 after Air NZ Capt C.M. had mishap carrying a vat of live eels out of the Murchison River bed.It is now in northern Victoria. It was a very low time machine having been wrecked in New Caledonia early in its life.

Apart from the bush they are pretty handy on skis too...

Wonder what happened to COH? - it was the first 300hp 185 imported into NZ

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g1...kiPlane2-1.jpg
TASMAN GLACIER 1968

Here's a tricky one.

What actually WERE the aircraft registrations for the PNG:

TAA Cessna 182: I think it was VH-SBP? Was it the only one?
TAA Cessna 185: From this site I gather it was VH-SBU. Was it the only one?
TAA Aztec/s:
TAA Twin Otters: I know of TGR and TGS, any more?

What about the other TAA GA types such as the Queen Air (VH-TGA, B, C?)

Grumman Mallard (VH-TGA?)

Ah, well I found out about the Twin Otters:

DeHavilland DHC-6-100: VH-TGR, VH-TGS, VH-TGT, VH-TGU.
DeHavilland DHC-6-200: VH-TGV, VH-TGW, VH-TGX, VH-TGY.
DeHavilland DHC-6-300: VH-TGE, VH-TGF, VH-TGG, VH-TGH, VH-TGI.

But what about the others?

Also, was the Catalina VH-SBV the only one or were there a few? Was that the one Garth Roche went swimming with?

A. le Rhone.

If you can, get a copy of Sinclairs Balus triology on PNG Aviation. Will give you a very good run-down on aircraft operating there. I can not help as my books are over in Subic.

Happy flying.

TAA types
 

Mallard in 63/64 was TGA later taken up by Queenair operated by TAA til 68 when it was taken over by RFDS. Aztecs were TGB & TGO & TGQ as I remember. TGB/C/D were later Queenairs. The TAA etc were DC3s, later taken up by DC4s. The TB-s were DC6s, with a couple of exceptions (TAD in 55) TJJ-TJU were DC9s. TJA -TJJ were B727s, and the TBs were B727-100s. The 182 has me buggered, and I only know of 1x185 SBU. TAA took over Qantas 6xDC3 and 4xOtter fleet in TPNG on Sept 1st 1960.

Sundaun.
 

Where did the Cessna 182 that Dick Glassey and other Ansett-MAL management pilots fly in the 1960's come from?

Was that a 'swap' from TAA when TAA got out of light aircraft when introducing the DHC-6?

VH-BVE
 

Cessna 182 as far as I know came with the purchase of Madang Air Services in 62. In June 67 it was sold to Richard Leahy who in 70 sold it to Warren Hansen. John Senior, Miles Barnes later owned it and Yorky & Doug exported it to Australia in more recent times. I don't think TAA ever used it? However they did have a C182D SBP which was sold to Masling's in 67.

The two DC6s flying twixt Aust and PNG were INU and INH

The Ansett 182 was an 'omni-vision' model - probably an 'E' model (1962). I flew in it between Madang - Aiome, and Madang - Kar Kar in 1962. Pilot was Harald Rorndorf if I remember.

SBU was definitely the old TAA one - flew it at STOL between 1966 and 1970.

happy days,

Animalclub
 

AnsettANA DC6Bs INH & INU were leased to TAA on 26th Feb 60 and returned on 29th Aug 66. They (TAA) also had an old BCPA rego in there.