History – Flight times

Some notes on flying experiences in Mangawhai through the decades.

1910s: Forced landing

One of the first two Boeing aircraft ever built was constructed of timber, linen and wire, and had a wingspan of 52 feet.  It was purchased by the New Zealand Government for New Zealand’s Flying School. The seaplane arrived in Auckland on the steamship Niagara in 1919.  It was flown by pioneer aviator George Bolt, who was sworn in as an official mail carrier in December 1919, to “investigate the practical utility of the conveyance of mail matter by air in New Zealand”. Local post office staff along the route kept a close watch for George and reported his progress by telegraph to the Chief Post Office in Auckland. In 1921, whilst on the airmail service from Auckland to Whangarei, George was forced to land the plane in the sea off Mangawhai. His incident report recalls that he needed to change the fuel intake from the top to the bottom tank. An air blockage resulted in the forced landing. Unfortunately, choppy seas broke the propeller as he taxied to calmer waters. Luckily, as the disabled plane drifted close to the Hen and Chicken Islands, it was spotted by a passing steamer. The SS Apanui towed the plane all the way back to Auckland. During this monotonous ten-hour journey, George sat on one wingtip the whole way to keep the plane balanced. To sustain George, the crew sent hot food and whisky down the tow line in a kerosene tin.   The broken propeller part was later picked up on the coastal beach.

1930s: Joy riding  

Firm sand on the Mangawhai inner harbour allowed aircraft to take off and land. In the 1930s, taxi flights and joyriding were a feature of summer holidays generating great excitement.

One of the earliest aircraft registered in New Zealand – a Gipsy Moth known as the ‘Falcon’ – was piloted by Captain James Hewett. He gave rides of 10 to 15 minutes to sightseers for 10 shillings. Hewett is known to have landed on several occasions on the Wintle’s house paddock at Tara, where they would lay out a white sheet to mark a safe landing strip.

1940s: Emergency strips

During WWII there were emergency landing strips at Mangawhai.  One was situated on the farm of Raymond Bull. Another was on the sports ground behind the hotel, which is now a tavern.

1950s: Enterprising pilot

From 1955, another enterprising pilot regularly flew into Mangawhai in his Tourist Air Travel Grumman Widgeon Amphibian plane. Captain Fred Ladd, operating from Mechanics Bay, Auckland, became a household name. He came to Mangawhai for summer carnivals, giving holidaymakers an opportunity to experience flight. Local man John Wharfe nostalgically remembers Fred’s famous catchphrase at lift-off: “A shower of spray and we’re away”. Other locals remember the occasional NZ Herald being delivered by Fred. Fred was also involved in the tourist service between the Bay of Islands and Auckland. At times, he couldn’t get back to Auckland before dark and would fly into Mangawhai, guiding his seaplane from the river, over the sand, to Gran Wintle’s house, where Mangawhai Heads Camping Ground is now situated. Fred would park his Widgeon and spend time with his good friend Jimmy Jackson.

Bev Ross, Mangawhai Museum
www.mangawhai-museum.org.nz