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Aviation History
1940
1940 - 0092.PDF
The Royal New Zealand Atr Force JANUARY II, 1940. The New Zealand Minister of Detence, the Hon. F. Jones (second from the right), with officers of the R.N.Z.A.F. From left toright, Flight Lieutenant A. G. Lester, R.N.Z.A.F. ; the former Chief of the Air Staff, Group Captain Hon. R. A. Cochrane, C.B.E., A.F.C., R.A.F (attached) ; and Wing Commander G. S. Hodson, A.F.C., R.A.F. (attached). Group Captain Cochrane has nowbeen replaced by Group Captain H. W. L. Saunders, M.C., D.F.C., M.M., R.A.F. As already related in Fhght, a twenty-one-year-old Wel- lington lad shot down a Dornier Do 17 a few weeks back. The rates of pay and general conditions of service for New Zealanders are similar to those of the R.A.F. There are some differences—for instance, there are no marriage allowances, but quarters and rations allowances are paid to all personnel not living at aerodromes, based on 2s. 6d. a day. No satisfactory retired pay scheme has yet been adopted, although the existence of the Force dates back to 1923. The uniform and the colour of the material is the same as the R.A.F.. the ranks are the same, the tunic buttons have " N.Z " cast in, and in the centre of the pilots' wings the same two letters are woven. These are the sole distinguishing marks of the Royal New Zealand Air Force. Types in Use The service aircraft used in the Dominion at the out- break of war included Avro 626, Blackburn Baffin, Fairey 1IIF and Gordon, Vickers Vildebeest and Vincent, and Airspeed Oxford. Like other Dominions with their own Air Forces, New Zealand maintains a liaison office in London, where Wing Commander Wallingford (late of the 142 Squadron, R.A.F.) and Squadron Leader Newell (late of 204 Squadron, R.A.F.) keep close contact with the Air Ministry. During the inter-war period Dominion military pilots were called out to perform many tasks not strictly of service character. The Canadians explored and surveyed new lands, became aerial mailmen and forest watchers ; the Australians rescued lost gold-seekers, ex- plored deserts and mapped mining areas; and the New Zealanders, in their turn, also had their share of such things. During the Mau trouble in 1930 an officer and two mechanics went in H.M.S. Dunedin to Samoa with a Moth and performed valuable reconnaissance work. When the Hawke's Bay district was torn by an earthquake early in 1931, Regular pilots helped by others from aero- plane clubs flew 45,000 miles in twenty-two machines with urgent medical stores, passengers, and mails, all land trans- port being out of action. During the Murchison earthquake in 1929, Squadron-Leader Burrell distinguished himself by doing the same invaluable social service, but with greater risk, seeing that there were no aerodromes in the district then. He landed on and took off from the various beaches only. Sick people have often been brought to hospital from remote places in hours instead of the days taken by ordinary land transport. And the girl bather who got washed out to sea must have been particularly happy when a seaplane alighted just beyond the white pounding surf and rescued her at Kare-Kare. A small boat, too, which got adrift with several men in it, unable to make shore, found rescue at last when an R.N.Z.A.F. plane sent to search for them saw the tiny dot far below and forthwith directed a lifeboat to the scene. Land operations during peace have included an extensive aerial survey during 1936 in the Hawke's Bay district. A considerable mosaic of photographs was built up. The Air Force has also co-operated with the Meteorological Bureau by making observations of the upper air. Air-mass analyses have been done up to 22,000ft., and between August, 1937, and March. 1938 (the first period of this work) over sixty flights were made—thirty-four beyond 16,oooft., and seven to 20,000ft. The data with which pilots returned to earth has been of great assistance in predicting weather changes, especially the likelihood of rain. Helf> to Civil Aviation Ever since its formation the Force has lent every assist- ance to civil aviation in the Dominion, particularly in the selection and inspection of aerodromes. When a local authority or organisation applies for a landing ground, or when an airline company needs another landing ground, the Force inspects the proposed site by air and by land. It decides the size needed, and the clearing to be effected, before the ground may be declared fit for aircraft, following which the Department of Public Works is responsible for doing the job. During the financial year 1937-38, ^276,000 was spent in this way, and £350,000 was allocated for the present year. But, of course, now that we are fighting again, that has been vastly increased in the race for security.
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