may 2012, issue 136 [pdf 3.94 mb, 40 pages]

Air Force news 1

Queen’s Colour -Paradeair ForCe at Wanaka -Battle For singaPore -

salute to

auCkland! RNZAF ANNiveRsARy coNtiNues

issue 136 May 2012 | Royal New Zealand Air Force

2 Air Force news

04 Queen’s colour Parade

Our missionTo carry out military air operations to advance New Zealand’s security interests with professionalism, integrity and teamwork.

Air Force News is the official magazine of the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) —established to inform, educate, and entertain its personnel and friends.

Published byDefence Communications GroupHQ NZ Defence Force Wellington, New Zealand

EditorRichard JacksonPn 04-496-0289Fax 04-496-0290Email; [email protected]

Design and LayoutDefence Communications Group

Printed byBluestarPrivate Bag 39996, Wellington

DistributionMarianna Robati, Defence Communication GroupEmail: [email protected]

Air Force News is governed by an Editorial Board. Views expressed in the Air Force News are not necessarily those of the RNZAF or the New Zealand Defence Force. Defence regulations over-ride all content in the Air Force News. Editorial contributions and ideas are welcomed. They can be emailed directly to the Editor and do not need to be forwarded through normal command chains.

Contributions need to include • writer’s name, rank and unit • photos provided separate from the text – at least 300dpi.

Contribution deadline for the June Issue Monday 07 May 2012

Contribution deadline for the July Issue Tuesday 05 June 2012

Contribution deadline for the August Issue Tuesday 03 July 2012

Air Force News will hold the copyright for submitted articles or photographs it publishes. Articles and photographs published in Air Force News cannot be published elsewhere without permission.

ISSN 1175-2327

contents

07 cathedral service

10 Delivering Air Force 2.0

12 capability Management Board

14 B757 crew Training

15 whenuapai Air Field Upgrade

16 Book Launch Dumbo Diary

17 Air Force at warbirds

18 rnZAF at wanaka

20 warbirds over wanaka

22 our People on show

13 seasprite on HMnZs oTAGo

25 Government House reception

26 The Fall of singapore 1942

29 Bombs and Bulldozers

30 Medics Graduate

31 My Path to be a PTi

32 sisters in Arms

34 our People

36 Mentoring

37 Book reviews

38 notices

CoveR iMAgeoN 25 MARCh the Red CheCkeRs sAluted AuCklANd with AN AeRobAtiC displAy oveR the hARbouR. ChRis weisseNboRN At the deFeNCe photogRAphiC uNit At devoNpoRt CAught the teAM As they pAssed iN FRoNt oF skytoweR.photo by ChRis weisseNboRN

08 interview, commander PAcAF

Air Force news 3

First word celebrating 75 Years of service to new Zealand

What an eventful few months it has been for our air Force! a highlight of the 75th anniversary celebrations was the air show at rnZaF Base ohakea at the end of March. it obviously captured the imagination of many new Zealanders with between 60-70,000 people attending. the air show was so popular that many could not get to the event due to traffic congestion; even then, comments were positive and supportive of the air Force. it was a great day.

Wellington turned on another good day on tuesday 03 april for our march through the streets of the Capital and the Queen’s Colour Parade on the Forecourt at Parliament. Parades are a very important link to our traditions and history, and they are also a tangible demonstration of military discipline and teamwork. Wellingtonians turned out along the streets to show support, respect and recognition to the rnZaF. all those on parade did very well. the Charter Parade through auckland City on 28 april [as this issue of aF news went to press] attracted similar public support.

the Commemorative service at st Paul’s Cathedral (at lunch time on the day of the Queens Colour parade) was such a moving and professional service that the dean unexpectedly asked us to “give ourselves a congratulatory clap.” that same evening we had the Vice regal reception at government House and the cutting of the Birthday Cake by WgCdr John Claydon (rtd) and oCdt aeron Mellish. the Beat retreat ceremony at the end of the evening was very moving—each event that day was polished and professional, enhancing our reputation.

another highlight was the ‘War Birds over Wanaka’ air show over the easter weekend. the participation of the rnZaF was a strong draw card and brought many complementary comments, particularly the operational demonstrations.

of course these 75th anniversary events mark the creation in 1937 of the rnZaF as an independent air service. Subsequently, in WWII, the need for effective and up to date air power was quickly proven across many theatres of war, such as greece, Crete and singapore. since WWii, the rnZaF has played a key role in regional security and peacekeeping operations world wide—today our aircraft and personnel continue to deploy on such missions. our air Force also plays an important role protecting and assisting new Zealanders at home or at sea with search and rescue missions, as well

as supporting our Pacific neighbours

after natural disasters. We are an agile

air Force with a global reputation for

outstanding achievement. We are ready,

resilient, and respected.

it is with an enormous amount of

pride and satisfaction that I reflect on

the last few months. We have great

people; you are the best, you have been

well trained, you have equipment suited

to the task, and you are all performing

to the highest standards. We have

demonstrated our values of teamwork,

integrity, and professionalism. We

have made an exceptional effort to

celebrate our anniversary and we have

been successful, producing exceptional

results—so very well done to all! and

it is ok for you to take a moment of

reflection and be proud of what we have

achieved. i am proud to serve with you.

in conclusion i’ll leave the last word

to ltgen rhys Jones, Chief of defence

Force, who aptly said, “underlying

our capabilities are the talents and

commitment of our people and i salute

the men and women of the rnZaF who

not only continue a proud tradition, but

are building the air Force of today as a

key part of our future defence Force.”

First wordBy Air commodore Kevin short, deputy Chief of Air Force.

4 Air Force news

an rnZaF royal guard of Honour marched from Civic

square in Wellington to Parliament on 03 april, to mark

the 75th anniversary of the rnZaF. the royal guard

paraded the Queen’s Colour of the rnZaF and four squadron

standards on the Forecourt of Parliament, for review by His

excellency lieutenant general the right Honourable sir Jerry

Mateparae, gnZM, Qso, governor-general of new Zealand.

QueeN’s coLouR PARADe

the squadron standard of no. 3 squadron rnZaF is marched off the parade by standard Bearer FgoFF Mackenzie Murray, with the no. 42 squadron standard following

celebrating 75 Years of service to new Zealand

Air Force news 5

The Queen’s Colour of the RNZAF was awarded by our sovereign

and personally presented by her during the 1953−54 Royal Tour of

new Zealand at rnZaF station Whenuapai on 28 december 1953.

at the time Her Majesty the Queen said:

“i give you my Colour in the knowledge that you will guard it

well; in the belief that it will always remind you of the trust i place

in my royal new Zealand air Force. during your future service you

will, i know, be always worthy of that trust and will always strive to

maintain the high and honourable standards of which this Colour is

a symbol.”

Whenever the Colour is carried on the pike either cased or

uncased, an officer wearing a sword is placed in charge of the

Colour with an escort of two snCos armed with rifles and fixed

bayonets. the Colour W/o accompanies the bearer and escorts.

the custody of the Queen’s Colour passes biennially from

operational support Wing to operational support Wing at our

bases. the transfer of custody occurs during the week prior to the

official celebration of the Queen’s Birthday.

the Queen’s Colour and squadron standards are uncased, at the start of the street parade.


the original Queen’s Colour presented in 1953 was replaced in 1976 and is now ‘laid up’ in the Wellington Cathedral of st Paul.

Four squadron standards were also paraded on 03 april.

No. 5 Squadron’s Standard was approved by Her Majesty in February 1976 and presented to the squadron on 15 February 1978 by the governor-general and Commander-in-Chief, His excellency sir keith Holyoake, gCMg, CH.

the standard consists of a fringed and tasselled light blue silken banner mounted on a pike which is crowned by a golden eagle. in the centre is the squadron badge—an albatross in flight with wings completely outstretched—on a blue background. the badge denotes operations over a wide area of the Pacific. the squadron’s battle honour, Pacific 1941−45, is in the canton and the whole is enclosed in a decorative border.

No 40 Squadron’s Standard was approved by Her Majesty in March 1978 and presented to the squadron on 28 February 1980 by the then Chief of air staff, aVM d.e. Jamieson CB, oBe.

the standard features the squadron badge—a mariner’s compass star which denotes world wide operations—with the squadron’s two battle honours:

Pacific 1941−45 andBougainville 1943−45.

the governor-general inspects the guard; he is escorted by the Parade Commander, gPCaPt tony davies and the Chief of air Force.

6 Air Force news

No 3 Squadron’s Standard was approved by Her Majesty in april 1979 and presented to the squadron at Whenuapai on 03 april 1981 by His royal Highness Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales. Five battle honours in scroll surround the squadron badge:

Pacific 1941−45Rabaul 1945Guadalcanal 1942−43Central Solomons 1943Bougainville 1943−45the badge is a crouched Maori warrior holding a taiaha

indicating the alertness required of a fighter squadron.No. 42 Squadron’s Standard was approved by Her Majesty

in 1986 and was presented to the squadron at auckland on 04 February 1990 by Marshal of the rnZaF, His royal Highness Prince Philip, the duke of edinburgh kg, kt, oM, gBe, Qso.

the squadron badge depicts a native Wood Pigeon (kereru) perching, superimposed on a terrestrial globe on which new Zealand is highlighted. like the Wood Pigeon, the squadron flies over all parts of new Zealand, and the terrestrial globe represents the much wider field of operations for no. 42 squadron.

the Queen’s Colour and the four squadron standards are dipped in salute

to the governor-general.

the rnZaF on parade on the Parliament Forecourt. the Central Band of the

rnZaF is on parade at right.

Air Force news 7

The 75th Anniversary commemorative service, St Paul’s Cathedral, Wellington.

W/o dennis Moratti, Warrant officer of the air Force, speaking during the service.

the rnZaF Maori Cultural grouP – te awhiorangi—is made up of

rnZaF personnel from Base ohakea, auckland and from Wellington. they

sang the lord’s Prayer.

the squadron standards are marched out, with no.5 squadron’s standard borne by FgoFF nathan round.

the Queen’s Colour was placed on the altar, flanked by the four squadron standards and accompanied by the Commonwealth distinction Pennant authorised by Her Majesty the Queen for the British Commonwealth air training Plan 1940-1945.

sQnldr (rtd) Bill Hopper.gPCaPt Fred tucker (rtd) and aVM John Hamilton (rtd) leave the Cathedral


8 Air Force news

general gary l. north was one of our Chief of air Force’s guests for the rnZaF 75th anniversary

celebrations. While in new Zealand gen north observed exercise kiWi Flag, in which usaF and us Marine Corps contingents participated. He was interviewed by Air Force News during the ohakea air show. With the ‘music of air power’ echoing in the background, he reflected on leadership and the bilateral relationship with the rnZaF.

GenerAL GArY norTH UsAF, Commander PaCifiC air forCeS

“as Commander PaCaF i am pleased to be here to

celebrate your air Force’s anniversary, as well as to observe

exercise kiWi Flag. that exercise is of value for our air men

and women taking part, and it is likely to lead to more such

interaction.

“When i was the air Component Commander at CentCoM

[February 2006 - august 2009, Commander, 9th air Force

and u.s. air Forces Central, usCentCoM Combined Forces

air Component Commander and service functional air

Component Commander for the wars in iraq and afghanistan]

i was aware of the important contribution of the nZdF to

afghanistan and op enduring Freedom—your sas, rnZaF

detachments, both transport and maritime surveillance, and

the role of your people in the Prt in Bamyam province.

“those are true examples of international engagement. as

we look to the future the ability to interact in both a bi-lateral

and a multi-lateral context is important; we are likely to have

to take part in more multi-lateral endeavours.

“relationships are important, and the air Chiefs here today

[at the anniversary air show], validate the relationships built

by your Chief. For example, the rnZaF and the raaF have

been in this region [the south Pacific] for a long time; size is

not the only indicator of influence.

“our air forces have to have an understanding of each

others’ capabilities and complementary strengths. there are

geo-political and geographical strengths and advantages, and

differences, and those lead to inter-dependence. We can gain

air Chief Marshal sir stephen dalton, Chief of air staff raF; aVM stockwell, Chief of air Force rnZaF; air Marshal geoff Brown, Chief of air Force raaF and gen gary north, Commander Pacific air Forces, usaF follow the air displays at ohakea, 31 March.

international

Air Force news 9

tHe LANCE P SiJAN aWard

lance P sijan flew as both a pilot and systems operator on

F-4 Phantoms based at da nang during the Vietnam War. in

1967 he was shot down and injured, but Combat search and

rescue attempts failed to locate him. despite his wounds, he

evaded capture for 46 days. once captured, he was tortured,

interrogated and ultimately died of his injuries. the award of

the Medal of Honour in 1976 was based on the commendations

of his fellow prisoners of war.

the award recognises usaF personnel who display

exceptional leadership, inspire by personal example, character

and conduct, and who are eager to assist to accomplish goals.

leadership roles in social, cultural and community activities

are also considered.

mutual understanding through exercises and strategic-level

dialog.”

as Commander PaCaF, gen north has a direct interest

in north asia. When AF News asked about that region, he

re-phrased the question: “You mean what keeps me awake at

night!”

“the [then imminent] north korean missile shot is of

concern. it’s an armistice only on the peninsula; there is no

peace treaty. on the dMZ it’s very tense. north korea has had

a change of leaders; kim Jong-un is a young leader, who still

needs to learn how to run his nation, which is in terrible straits.

We all watch north korea quite a bit….

[elsewhere] China’s growth creates concern, with their

military growth and the balance of power; we see new

ships and aircraft for example. We would like to see full

transparency—we need to have clear understanding about all

the elements of China’s national power.

“in the south China sea several nations have claims there

and recent manoeuvring by naval forces creates concern. We

are keen to see stability maintained through China’s [current]

leadership change. as China’s power emerges we look for

total transparency and understanding.”

in 1993, the general had been awarded the lance P. sijan

usaF leadership award. AF News asked about it.

“the lance P sijan award is named for an F-4 systems

officer who was shot down and captured during the Vietnam

War. He died in captivity but his deeds earned him the Medal of

Honor.

“the sijan family and the air Force established the award

with different categories, for young enlisted personnel, senior

nCos, junior officers and senior officers. i was a recipient

in 1993 as a ltCol and fighter squadron commander, in

recognition of leadership during operations after the gulf War

and on operation soutHern WatCH [over iraq]. it’s now a

privilege to watch others, young service men or women who

become recipients and see how they progress.

“to be an effective leader you need to understand why

people join [the armed services]. and at the entry level,

people have to learn their career field perfectly; they have

to become technically and tactically competent. today’s

world is fast-paced and people want to race to get to the end

game. But it takes time to gain maturity, so the task at the

junior level is to get your job or role mastered, then follow a

deliberate path upward.”

gen north pointed to some of the aircraft at the display,

indicating that you can’t jump into the cockpit of an F-18,

you have to start with a trainer first; you can’t fly a C-17

until you have begun with a dC3 [for example]. the general

emphasised:

“there are such a wide range of tasks and contexts [that

the armed forces] deal with, that service men and women have

to be good at their basic job.

“as PaCaF, dealing with people is 30% of my job, taking

care of people. today’s air-man or woman and their family are

more complex; spouses work, their children are technically

engaged with computers, i-phones, Playstations etc.

“the us armed forces have been engaged in [continual]

combat for two decades now—since the gulf War. this brings

out stresses, so taking care of families is important, and

taking care with their assignments is critical. in PaCaF, we

are focussed on the mission first, but recognise we must take

care of people always.”

gen north is a fighter pilot; AF News asked which was his

favourite aircraft.

“i started [my career] in the F-4, most of my flying was in

the F-16, but i also converted onto the F-15. Pilots say their

favourite aircraft is the one they are flying at the time! But

for me the F-16 was always a joy to fly. i have flown F-16s

since 1982, including combat missions in desert storM and

as a 3-star, as air Component Commander for CentCoM

[2006/9]. You have to be out there with the lads and lasses,

keeping up with them and leading by example.”

the general went on to speak enthusiastically of the new

rnZaF helicopter fleet. He sees those aircraft as “…very

important, due to their multiple roles and capability—special

Forces, search and rescue, support to the police, and so

on—you have a tremendous capability.

“Your modernised P-3 orions are very important also.

Several nations fly the P-3 which has a large role against piracy,

weapons proliferation, human trafficking and drug smuggling.

“all this capability supports national objectives and

dovetails with like-minded nations; i see that the rnZaF as

very focussed and forward-leaning.”

international

10 Air Force news

objectives. it balances organisational change and business as usual (Bau) activities. at the portfolio level, we continually ask ourselves the following questions.

are the programmes and projects in our portfolio necessary in the context of our strategic objectives? in other words, how does everything f it together and is it aligned with CdF’s Future 35 strategy? Quite simply, if an idea doesn’t f it, it is rejected from the portfolio. We cannot afford to dedicate time, money, or the energy of our people to capabilities that have no bearing on where we are going. this is the hardest criteria for us to consider an idea against. We are reshaping the front line of our forces to be joined up, aware, influential, and responsive. this is where our investment focus should be.

is our portfolio, together with Bau activities, sufficient to achieve our strategic objectives? this is where the back office initiatives kick in. it’s clear by now that solutions that save us money—not avoid future costs, but actually strip out costs now—will let us operate capabilities in the future. regardless of what the glossy brochures say, most capabilities we need to f ight with in the future will cost more to operate. some won’t, but most will. savings made now are re-invested back into our future capabilities.

the discipline to ensure that we are doing the right thing is increasing. Business cases are checked and rechecked as projects work their way through the acquisition system. in fact, the case to replace our pilot training capability will pass through no less than six high level ‘go/no-go’ gates, before it enters service with us. taxpayers want to be reassured that their investment in us is the right thing to do.

is the portfolio level of risk acceptable and is the portfolio of initiatives achievable? this question has two inter-related issues: risk and ability to achieve. Portfolio risks are a synthesis of project risks, and managed with everything in mind. the four key areas to monitor are:

Between now and 2035 the nZdF will provide for literally billions of dollars of capital investment to renew

capability. [Capital expenditure is used to buy assets that cost more than $5,000 each. operating expenditure is the money used to run the defence Force and pays for things like fuel, ammunition, and training costs.]

the nZdF together with the Ministry of education spend close to half of the new Zealand government’s core agency capital funding each year. these levels of expenditure of taxpayer’s funds impose an enormous responsibility on us when managing the delivery of our Capability Plan. it means that we must plan our investment portfolio with a discipline similar to planning air operations over hostile territory.

it also means that all of the good ideas that start their lives in crew rooms, flight decks, hangars, and clubs need to be championed properly by leaders once they have been committed to paper—to more than the back of the proverbial fag packet!

MANAgiNg the PoRtFoLioManaging the nZdF’s capability portfolio is challenging. in the past we sought injections of scarce capital from government to deliver new capability. those days are gone. Just like the rest of new Zealand we have to make significant adjustments to our plans and how we deliver them to ensure we live within our means. our main source of ‘income’ is what we set aside ourselves to provide for the future replacement or development of capabilities. in f inance-speak, it’s called accumulating depreciation.

our capability portfolio represents the totality of our investment in the changes required to achieve our strategic

the BusiNess oF DeLiveRiNg ‘AiR FORCE 2.0’ Hercules nZ7004 delivers urgently

required diving gear during a search and rescue mission in March.

by gpCApt Carl Nixon

Air Force news 11

Future capability

whether the portfolio’s risk is •

technically appropriate,

deliverable, •

the benefits are realisable, and •

whether it will meet policy •

objectives.

a balanced portfolio may mean that

some projects are riskier and harder to

achieve than others, but the f inal result

should be worth it.

is the portfolio affordable—and

if not, which initiatives should be

dropped or rescheduled? after

considering everything else if the

funds are not available to deliver the

portfolio, then we must weigh up the

timing, cost, and alternatives for each

project. affordability is not just the

f inancial cost of delivering a capability

to the front line. it includes the impact

on our operating budgets, people,

training cycles, and infrastructure—

both real estate and it infrastructure.

once agreed, the portfolio strategy

and delivery plan form the baseline

for what is to be delivered. the

effectiveness of the portfolio approach

is enhanced by the development

of business cases for each of our

proposals. these allow proposals from

across the nZdF to be compared on a

level playing f ield.

the Five cAse BusiNess cAse MoDeLWe know that we need to present our business casdes for change in a professional

way. We are getting better at building good cases for change, but we can do

better. What follows is a simple five-step framework on how to think about

presenting your case, and can be applied to cases for a new fleet of aircraft or

even very urgent operational requirements.

The STRATegiC CASeWe first need to describe where we are now, and where do we want to be. What

is the problem that is causing us to consider a new investment, and what are the

benefits to the nZdF if we solve this problem? Most importantly, check that

these benefits are aligned with our strategy. experience shows that defining the

problem well in the early stages of a project is critical to gaining acceptance that a

business case is well thought out.

The eCoNomiC CASethis phase explores the preferred way forward to get the best value for our

money. to do this, first list the critical success factors, or the things that we will

measure our options against. Weigh each of the options against each of these

success factors. this analysis should include both tangible and intangible costs,

all of the risks, and ‘what-ifs?’ the best way to present this option analysis is in a

table with all of the costs, benefits and risks set against each option clearly.

The CommeRCiAl CASeearly in the acquisition cycle we should prepare for the potential deal. Work out

what the procurement strategy could be—perhaps by tendering or by sole source

acquisition—and any other contractual issues. this phase should include plans for

introducing the capability into service safely and while other activities are going

on.

The FiNANCiAl CASedetermine the affordability and funding for the preferred option. simply, where

is the money going to come from? if it is a capital outlay, then the proposal will be

part of defence’s Capital Plan (the $13 billion referred to earlier).

Proposals that will be managed by the nZdF (those that have less than $15

million of whole-of-life-costs) are prioritised annually. if the preferred option

costs more than has been allocated when the project was granted approval to

initiate, then something else in the portfolio will have to be given up to pay for it.

The mANAgemeNT CASelastly, the plan for successful delivery needs to be thought through from

a project management perspective. areas for consideration include planning

for change management, benefits management (confirming the benefits were

delivered), risk management, and post project evaluation.

You ARe NoT AloNe!the process is about thinking, not writing. Capability Branch’s Programme

Management office (PMo) is the first place to call before starting work on

business cases. the PMo is building experience in how to meet government’s

expectations for better planning on how departments and agencies intend to

spend capital.

understanding the business of how we will deliver the air Force of tomorrow

and providing the right level of information to aid in decision making is complex

and expensive. But, approaching the problem in a disciplined and flexible way

means that together we will stay on track to delivering Future 35 for the nZdF.

an a109 at Wanaika on 7 april.

12 Air Force news

the introduction into service of the new nH90 helicopter continues to progress well, the assistant secretary of defence, des ashton

confirmed, after concerns about the helicopter’s performance in snow were raised in the newsmedia, from a June 2011 report prepared by the Ministry of defence and nZdF.

"at the time the Major Projects report was written, around a year ago, a number of risks were identified,” Mr des ashton said. “in the past twelve months most of those issues have been addressed. Because our helicopters are still in production we are able to incorporate improvements prior to delivery. We began flying the helicopter [in nZ] in February and the rnZaF has achieved all planned activities with the nH90. in total the rnZaF have to date amassed 51.5 flying hours [as at 13 april] on the two nH90s in new Zealand.”

Mr des ashton said the nH90 is a modern helicopter, which will form the cornerstone of the new Zealand defence Force capability over the next 30 years. the helicopter incorporates new technologies and will ensure greater compatibility with our security partners.

“new Zealand is one of 16 countries taking delivery of some 500 NH90 and is party to the collaborative efforts to address the inevitable technical issues that arise with any new platform. as many of the countries purchasing the nH90 are scandinavian countries, issues around performance in snow have been quickly resolved. a solution has been identified and tested and is just going through the final verification before being implemented to NH90s globally.

“the nH90 represents a substantial improvement on the iroquois and will provide our defence Force with a contemporary, highly capable and deployable helicopter. Both our army and air Force are looking forward to this helicopter becoming operational.”

RAiN, sLeet oR sNoW?

Future capability

the secretary of defence John Mckinnon and Chief of defence Force, ltgen rhys Jones announced last month that dr kevin thompson and Mr Bruce Mclean

have been appointed as independent advisors to the defence Capability Management Board.

dr thompson is a former Chief executive of opus international Consultants and holds a number of directorships. in november 2008 he received the Wellingtonian of the Year award for Business. Mr Mclean has worked on heavy civil engineering and defence projects in new Zealand and overseas and has held a range of management, advisory and governance roles.

“the new members have extensive experience in complex asset and project management and will bring a valuable commercial perspective to the Board’s deliberations on defence Force capabilities”, said Mr Mckinnon.

the Capability Management Board oversees capability development, procurement and introduction into service of major equipment, as well as disposal. the Board was established as one of the outcomes of the 2010 defence White Paper. While the secretary of defence and Chief of defence Force each have individual accountabilities, it was recognised that overall success for managing any major acquisition of defence capability required a collaborative approach between the two organisations. this collaboration will be assisted by the advice provided by the new external members.

the CMB comprises: Full Members: secretary of defence & Chief of defence Force. advisory Members: the two newly appointed independent Members dr kevin thompson and Bruce Mclean. associate Members: deputy secretary Policy and Planning Mod, Vice Chief of defence Force, deputy secretary acquisition Mod, assistant Chief Capability nZdF, and director executive Branch Mod. single service Chiefs attend where relevant to the agenda,

as do Programme and Project Managers or other subject matter experts as required.

Projects currently under the Board’s oversight include: upgrades to the P-3 orion and C-130 Hercules aircraft, introduction of new nH90 and a109 helicopters, new projects for pilot training, upgrading the anzac-class Frigates, a replacement for HMnZs endeaVour and a land transport capability programme.

the DeFeNce cAPABiLity MANAGEMENT BOARD

ltgen rhys Jones, Mr Bruce Mclean, dr kevin thompson & secretary of defence John Mckinnon.Photo: Mod

Air Force news 13

on 12 april a kaman sH-2g seasprite of no. 6 sqn landed on HMnZs otago at sea, for the first time. about three weeks previously, on 20 March,

a seasprite had landed on otago alongside in auckland, to prove the flight deck arrangements. as i write, the offshore Patrol Vessels (oPV) and the helicopter will continue with their First of Class Flying trials (FoCFt).

the oPV otago and HMnZs Wellington are designed to embark helicopters for multi-agency operations, as well as tasks such as re-supply and search and rescue. a seasprite has previously landed on Wellington while the ship was alongside, last year.

Because the rnZaF and rnZn have not yet operated the seasprite helicopters from these vessels, a thorough testing and evaluation programme—known as First of Class Flying trials (FoCFt)—is being undertaken this month to establish the ship-helicopter operating limitations. FoCFt are an important step in releasing the full capabilities of the oPVs.

the sea trial phase involves otago at sea, looking for different combinations of sea state and wind, in order to test the seasprite’s capability to operate to the ship. sensors fitted to both the aircraft and ship allow data to be collected and analysed for use in determining the operating limits. the sea phase began on 12 april in very calm conditions, but we will seek out more demanding sea states.

Completion of FoCFt will be a big achievement for otago and no. 6 squadron, increasing the number of ships that our seasprite helicopters may operate from.

Future capability

FiRst seAsPRite LANDs oN HMNZS OTAGOBy SlT Benny melville, hmNZS oTAgo

otago at sea, with the seasprite embarked

the seasprite approaching otago in auckland, 20 March

the seasprite about to touch down, 12 april

14 Air Force news

operational capability

by Captain dave greenhough RNZNC, Aviation medicine unit, RNZAF Base Auckland

dealing with medical emergencies in-flight is a common occurrence. there will be many a traveller who has been delayed or diverted from their

destination as a result of a medical incident. in the course of their duties rnZaF aircrew may have to respond to in-flight medical incidents.

research shows that up to 159 incidents occur per 1 million passengers carried.In a global context IATA figures predict there to be about 3.8 billion passengers being moved by aircraft per year by 2014 (2).this equates to approximately 604,200 medical incidents in-flight per year, by 2014.

in addition to the numbers of medical incidents it is important to consider the aviation working environment. Once in flight the aircraft cabin can be considered a remote, unique and complex environment because of altitude, trapped gas, fatigue, noise, reduced oxygen levels and potential delay to definitive medical treatment.

in new Zealand, when a medical emergency occurs on the ground in a metropolitan area, we can expect st John’s to attend 50% of all 111 calls in 8 minutes and 95% of calls within 20 minutes. However if a medical incident occurred in-flight, there would be an inevitable delay to get the aircraft on the ground. extended time in the air means limited resources and prolonged medical responsibility on the aircrew.

In-flight aircrew medical responsibility was identified as an area for additional training. To meet these needs a specific Cabin Crew First Aid Course was designed by the aviation Medicine unit in conjunction with no.40 squadron. in my role as an aeromedical evacuation (ae) instructor for the aviation Medicine unit i took part in the preparation, training and delivery of the course. The other in-flight AE Instructor

BoeinG 757 crew—First Aid Training

was sQnldr Jude telford; we were asked to run in-flight practical scenarios for various members of the crew. the in-flight training ran from 12-13 March and was a big success—the realism and practicality of in-flight training added great value to the course.

the course provided theoretical and practical training on managing common medical conditions such as: motion sickness, anxiety, trapped gas, ear and sinus pain. the course also covered the emergency management of sudden collapse, cardiac arrest and deteriorating respiratory conditions in-flight.

during the practical phase of the course a component was carried out onboard the aircraft during a flight. This training ran through simulated scenarios using on-board medical equipment. the crew got hands-on experience with patient moving and handling, and managing an arrest with airway management, chest compressions and using a training AED [defibrillator].

The in-flight training was well received and the crew got to experience the practicalities of dealing with medical emergencies in-flight. The Squadron’s cabin crew and pilots were very enthusiastic and demonstrated great team work and professionalism during their training.

looking ahead, there is potential to develop the Cabin Crew First aid Course and roll it out to aircrew on other types.

Fltlt g Brown (at left) & Fltlt t Pevreal watch Fltlt n Barrack clear an airway, while sgt Jeff Collings and CaPt dave

greenhough observe.

F/s denise Bull administers CPr; sgt natalie MCdonald assists and

aeromedical evacuation instructor sQdldr Jude telford watches at right.

Air Force news 15

operational capability

the official opening of the upgraded rnZaF Whenuapai airfield main runway and taxiways on 10 april was

acknowledged with a plaque unveiled by the Minister of defence, dr Jonathan Coleman.

“the Whenuapai airfield upgrade has been completed ahead of schedule and under budget,” said the Chief of air Force, aVM stockwell. the upgrade of the runway commenced in February 2011 and was scheduled for completion in May 2012. Project works included reconstruction of the main runway, an extension to the existing taxiway parallel to the main runway, and supporting infrastructure such as airfield lighting, standby power generation and drainage.

the final cost of the project which includes design, project management and construction works, is expected to be around $35 million. “that represents a 20% saving on the approved budget for the project. the savings were made by innovative design solutions, competitive pricing and efficient use of resources,” aVM stockwell said.

environmental aspects of the project were considered, including:

crushing and re-use of concrete taxiways, • recycled asphalt, • improved stormwater treatment and discharge, • reduced power consumption through the partial use of • led lighting, andthe introduction of endophytic grass to discourage birds.•

the prime construction contractor was Fulton Hogan, but the other firms and organisations involved were Beca and airways new Zealand as the design consultants, and a number of sub-contractors.

“the completed works will extend the life of the airfield by around forty years and support military operations into the future,” said air Vice-Marshal stockwell.

wHenUAPAi AirFieLD UPGrADe coMPLeTeD the Minister of defence (centre) steps

from a seasprite, the first landing on the newly completed runway.

the Minister speaks to the group of project management, air Force and contractor’s representatives.

the Minister unveils the plaque which will be mounted in Base HQ

airfield upgrade project staff: Mr graham Poucher, sQnldr ross Cook & sQnldr Pete reid

16 Air Force news

‘DuMBo DiARy’ BooK LAuNchBy SQNlDR Paul harrison (Rtd)

on 01 april, the day after the rnZaF air show at ohakea, the residents of Paraparaumu were treated to the sight of seasprite nZ3603 from no.6 squadron

rnZaF circling overhead the lindale tourist centre before landing in one of the paddocks of the animal farm that is part of the tourist centre.

the seasprite was at lindale for the launch of Dumbo Diary written by australian author Jenny scott on the wartime history of no.6 (Flying Boat) squadron rnZaF. Jenny’s father, alastair scott, served on the squadron at Halavo Bay in the solomon islands from december 1944 until the end of the war in september 1945. (after the war alastair reached the rank of Wing Commander before retiring from the rnZaF.) the book draws heavily on the wartime squadron operational record Book [orB—known as the Form 540] with additional anecdotes from wartime members of the squadron. [see aFn 135 for a book review.]

the idea for the book launch at artel gallery, lindale, came from Maude Heath, a friend of the author, a local artist and, more importantly, the daughter of no.6 squadron veteran eric Heath (known to many as a former dominion newspaper cartoonist). sadly eric missed the celebrations as he was in hospital recovering from surgery, but no.6 squadron veterans arthur Manz, graham goss, eric Pragnell and Jim Milburn, along with their families and several descendants of those who served on the squadron were addressed by the author and the kapiti Mayor Jenny rowan. Both addresses acknowledged the sacrifices made by airmen on the squadron and the great deeds they performed in the south West Pacific. Jenny scott endorsed the importance of preserving the history of the wartime efforts of new Zealand airmen.

the helicopter pilot and squadron Commanding officer, Cdr James tayler, presented the author with a framed photograph of the modern squadron.

after the event, Jenny scott said: “the highlight for me was the presence of no.6 squadron veterans. Following the formalities there was time for the crew, children and grandchildren of the no.6 squadron family to chat with the veterans and each other. too soon it was time for Cdr tayler and his seasprite crew to depart and we all headed out to wave them goodbye. For me another magic day in my association with no. 6 squadron rnZaF.”

no.6 squadron was reformed in 2005 as a jointly manned maritime helicopter squadron. Based at Whenuapai the unit has five kaman sH-2g seasprite helicopters that can embark on our navy’s frigates or HMnZs CanterBurY. they are also undertaking trials to operate from the new offshore Patrol Vessels. [see p13].

the seasprite in a paddock at lindale.

three wartime members of no.6 squadron (l to r) graham goss, eric Bagnell and arthur

Manz, at the book launch.

eric Pragnell of levin, a veteran from no 6 sqn, with derene and laurie Mcgregor from Western australia enjoyed the

rnZaF history display at the ohakea air show.


Air Force news 17

an aviation art exhibition of original paintings and drawings was opened to the public in the week before the rnZaF 75th anniversary air show at ohakea.

subsequently the exhibition was moved to Wanaka, where it remained open for public viewing until the end of april.

the art exhibition was conceived by Michael nidd of Feilding and Mrs Margaret kouvelis, Mayor of Manawatu district. in total ten artists supported the exhibition, displaying about two dozen works, ranging from a metre-tall dramatic oil painting of alan deere’s spitfire shooting down an Me109, to an evocative pencil sketch of the first skyhawks being off-loaded in auckland in 1970.

the exhibition was launched at an evening function hosted by gPCaPt darryn Webb (officer Commanding 488 Wing) and WgCdr Phil Bedford (Commanding officer, operational support Wing, ohakea) and attended by a number of the artists. the Mayor, Margaret kouvelis, spoke warmly of ohakea’s deep links with the local community and enthused about the art exhibition as another link to a nation-wide group of artists.

AViATiON ARt exhiBitioN Mrs Margaret kouvelis and

artist Michael nidd among some of the artworks at the

aviation art exhibition.

artist John Marshall stands with one of his paintings, ‘so many lost tomorrows’ depicting a lancaster, a Wellington and a stirling bomber, all of no.75(nZ) squadron in WWii.

Hamish, Ciara and Micaiah gloyn get up close and personal with the painting of alan deere’s first kill of a Me109, painted spike Wademan


18 Air Force news

By Elizabeth Griffin, Communications manager, Air Force.

our air Force continued to celebrate its 75th anniversary with spectacular displays at the Warbirds

over Wanaka international air show, over the easter weekend. the Wanaka air show was founded in 1988 by entrepreneur, helicopter pilot and warbirds enthusiast sir tim Wallis. the rnZaF has participated in the highly regarded show since its inception.

our aircraft on display at this year’s show included a P-3 orion and C-130 Hercules along with uH-1 iroquois, agustaWestland a109 and kaman sH-2g seasprite helicopters. the new a109 helicopter made its Wanaka debut and on the ground it also attracted a large crowd. the red Checkers aerobatic team, always crowd favourites, and kiwi Blue Parachute team both wowed the crowds with their displays.

“We were delighted this year to extend our long term relationship with the air Force by celebrating with them their 75th anniversary”, said Murray Cleverley, Chairman, Warbirds over Wanaka Community trust.

Perfect weather enhanced this year’s air show; the three-day event attracted visitors from all around the world. organisers estimated around 60,000 to 70,000 visitors came to see the flying displays and vintage, civil and military ground displays. aVM Peter stockwell attended the show with gen


Gary North USAF, the Commander Pacific Air Forces, as his guest.

our C-130 Hercules attracted as much attention on the ground as it did in the air, with long queues of people waiting patiently for a chance to board the aircraft and see it close up. among the civil and ex-military aircraft on display were the Grumman Avenger, Supermarine Spitfires, FG-ID Corsair, Curtiss P-40 kittyhawks, Yak 3, north american P-5id Mustang, Hawker Hunter, dH Vampire, BaC strikemaster and dHC-2 Beaver along with the new Hawker Beechcraft t-6C texan ii and the MX2 aerobatic specialist.

guest commentators for the show included glider pilot and all Black Captain ritchie McCaw and pilot and tV personality Jim Hickey. Fltlt kate Bint did a great job with her informative and knowledgeable commentary for the rnZaF displays.

The grande finale included a massed fighter fly-past to honour past and present rnZaF service-men and -women.

AiR FoRce At WARBiRDs oveR WANAKA Historic flight line at Wanaka:

two P-40 kittyhawks, P-51 Mustang and Fg-1d Corsair.

Air Force news 19

“it’s a great experience and its good fun,” says Warrant officer kevin Pope as he describes jumping from 9,000 ft out of an air Force Hercules. W/o kevin Pope is a very experienced parachutist with kiwi Blue and is the leader of the Parachute training support unit. When the team jumps from the aircraft they initially hold onto each other in a star formation. “We then break and track away from each other at around 5,500 feet and at 4,000 feet we deploy our ‘chutes,” he says.

kiwi Blue performed at Warbirds over Wanaka, where they performed the high free fall routine. W/o Pope explained, “i’ll be down the bottom of the stack leading the formation team. i will also be flying one of the two flags at the show.”

the team has many different routines including high, medium and low versions, depending on weather conditions. “if it is cloudy we can fly under the cloud base and we open our parachutes straight away.”

all members of the display unit are full-time instructors. once they are ‘free fall’ qualified and have gained the appropriate experience they are gradually introduced into the display team.

Fltlt Paul White is the Flight Commander for kiwi Blue, is a full-time instructor and at this particular show he was also the drop Zone safety officer.

sMoKe tRAiLs iN the sKy— KiWi BLue PARAchute teAM

He has been with the team for almost four years.“My job was to liaise with the air show director to make sure that there are no

other aircraft in the area when the team is ready to jump, and that the drop zone is clear for landing. individual and team safety is the priority for everybody. at the end of the day it is a hazardous occupation and we try to make it as safe as possible.”

kiwi Blue member W/o kevin Pope in mid-jump.

kiwi Blue jump from the Hercules in a star formation.

20 Air Force news

the roaring Forties, the Harvard aerobatic team, fly in formation over lake Wanaka.

Photo: gavin Conroy

the tBM avenger makes a torpedo run; the two P-40s provide cover in the background!Photo: gavin Conroy

the Hercules on a low pass with its ramp open.

at Wanaka some aircraft have clearance to display pyrotechnics, here the C-130 fires its defensive flares. Photo: gavin Conroy

aVM stockwell talks with Hon sQnldr ritchie McCaw. Photo: rnZaF

the iroquois demonstrates an assault landing with troops at the ready.Photo: gavin Conroy


Air Force news 21

the sopwith Camel replica is presented as B3889 (B1) flown by Blenheim-born CaPt Clive Collett of no.70sqn rFC.Photo: gavin Conroy

the a109 flies past its predecessor, an iroquois.Photo: rnZaF

air-sea rescue on land! the seasprite demonstrates winching

from a boat ( the crewman on the winch wire is at tree level).

Photo: rnZaF


22 Air Force news

sgt Michael Hartley and lCPl Corey dunnett demonstrate the explosive ordnance disposal

‘wheelbarrow’ during the ohakea air show.

on show at napier’s art deco weekend in February: sQnldr deborah Phillips raaF, WgCdr lorena thomas and W/o Jodie Boyd-ewens.

sgt rob Bootle describes the a109 to a visitor during the air show at ohakea.

the French armee de l’air crew with the Cn235 at ohakea.

F/s Clyde dixon playing the cornet at ohakea, during an interlude between jet noise and roaring radial engines!


laC nigel Bateman, drummer for the Base ohakea Band, during the air show

Air Force news 23

sgt Michael Hartley and lCPl Corey dunnett demonstrate the explosive ordnance disposal

‘wheelbarrow’ during the ohakea air show.

Jack london (r) & nicholas Fleming (l) try out the sioux helicopter during the

rnZaF air show.

rnZaF Bandsman Cpl russell Boyle is presented with his nZdsM by Chief of air Force.

glenn turner and working dog 'nasa' from Civil aviation security,

during the air show.

sQnldr simon shaw, a royal air Force exchange Pilot with no. 42 squadron.


24 Air Force news

the mayor of Marlborough district, Colin king, is met by airCdre steve Moore, air Component Commander

Colin king (r) and airCdre Moore admire the cake, with staff from Base Woodbourne

the guard conducts Beat retreat at Woodbourne’s anniversary reception.


Flt lt Martin davies of no. 2 squadron raaF stands in front of the B737 Wedgetail aeW&C aircraft.

exercise skYtrain: Force Protection staff move supplies at alexandra airfield

Air Force news 25


Warriors of the rnZaF Cultural group advance at the government House reception, 03 april. the group is led by W/o george Mana.

a Vice-regal reception, hosted by He the governor-general was held on 03

april at government House in Wellington, to commemorate the rnZaF's

75th anniversary. the reception included speeches by the governor-

general, Prime Minister and Chief of air Force, as well as a specially recorded video

message by our air Commodore-in-Chief, his royal Highness the Prince of Wales.

the reception was attended by over 250 rnZaF personnel and guests.

goveRNMeNt HOuSE RECEpTiON

the rnZaF's birthday cake was cut by

WgCdr John Claydon (rtd) who is one

of the three surviving original members

of the rnZaF who had joined in 1937.

WgCdr Claydon was accompanied by the

youngest member of the rnZaF, oCdt

aeron Mellish.

the reception concluded with the

‘Beat retreat’ Ceremony performed by

Base ohakea personnel under command

of Fltlt todd Meredith, with the rnZaF

Maori Cultural group led by W/o george

Mana and they were accompanied by the

Central Band of the rnZaF.

AiR FoRce’s AucKLAND PARADe

as air Force news went to print, the rnZaF paraded through auckland with swords drawn, bayonets fixed, ceremonial flags flown and bands playing, to celebrate our 75th anniversary on 28 april.

the military parade of more than 200 rnZaF service-men and -women marched along Mayoral drive onto Queen street to halt outside the town Hall where the Mayor of auckland presented a new Charter for the freedom of auckland City to the rnZaF. the Mayor, len Brown, reviewed and rnZaF aircraft were due to flypast over the ceremony.

Photos and a full report next issue.

aC Maria oosterbaan, W/o debbie Walker, the Prime Minister and F/s Paul Jacobs

WgCdr Claydon and oCdt Mellish cut the rnZaF Birthday Cake

26 Air Force news

by Richard Jackson

seventy years ago, the rnZaF provided the major new Zealand contribution to the defence of Malaya

and singapore, against likely Japanese attack. earlier this year two of our veterans travelled to singapore for commemoration ceremonies of the battle, while two others were guests of honour at the ceremony in Wellington.

the FALL oF siNgAPoRe, 1942

Bill Mitchell, of oamaru, and ted West, from the north shore, served with the rnZaF in singapore at the outbreak of the Pacific War. Both men felt honoured to attend February’s wreath-laying ceremony at kranji War Cemetery in singapore and to pay tribute to those who did not return to new Zealand. in new Zealand, Clem randall of nelson and Hugh nelson from Paraparaumu—who were both ground crew with no.488 (nZ) squadron in singapore—attended the commemorative service at the national War Memorial in Wellington.

Bill Mitchell served as a Fitter with the short singapore Flying Boat unit in singapore in 1941, overhauling the flying boats which had been given to new Zealand by the raF. He recalled the first air raid: “the Japanese first started bombing seletar, where we were based—then the Japanese went for singapore city; all the city lights were still on!”

Clem randall and Hugh nelson were at kallang aerodrome with no. 488 (nZ) squadron; the squadron, equipped with Brewster Buffalo fighters, was one of four responsible for the air defence of singapore.

Clem remembered that “the Japanese were hell bent on blowing up the aerodrome and gave us a hiding right to the end. You could hear the bombs coming well before they hit, you had time to run for cover!”

Hugh spoke of the delivery of the first Hurricane fighters [in January 1942]: “We were working on them to get them up to scratch when a raid came over, eight (out of nine) were destroyed. there was no radar to provide advance warning.”

these men were part of the rnZaF’s contribution to the defence of Malaya and singapore. in total some 400 rnZaF personnel, many in no. 1 aerodrome Construction squadron, over 155 manning no.488 squadron and some 100 aircrew (many flying with the other raF squadrons) served in Malaya and singapore at the time of the Japanese offensive. For example, nos 36 and 100 squadrons equipped with the old Vildebeeste torpedo bombers had 25 new Zealanders on

a Brewster Buffalo of no.488(nZ) squadron at kallang airfield, 1941.

Photos: rnZaF Museum


Air Force news 27

strength, about a fifth of all their aircrew.singapore had been important for nearly 20 years, as the

intended base for a large royal navy fleet that would counter the threat of the imperial Japanese navy. new Zealand had helped fund the building of the base and the defences. However it took most of those two decades to build; the naval base was opened only in 1938.

in 1940/41 as tensions rose in the Pacific, Britain began to strengthen the land and air defences of singapore and Malaya; australia and new Zealand contributed. new Zealand sent a number of naval officers (to serve in small craft around Malaya) and pilots and ground crew for the aircraft being supplied to singapore. no. 488 (nZ) squadron formed up in new Zealand, then its personnel were shipped to singapore to meet up with their new aircraft. the new fighters were the poor performing Brewster Buffalo—although the pilots of the time did not think that, they thought the Buffalo was better than the biplanes they had trained on. as well as the distinctive ‘nZ’ squadron, nos. 67 and 243 fighter squadrons had mostly rnZaF aircrew.

Japanese forces landed in northern Malaya on 8 december 1941 (in fact just ahead of the Pearl Harbor attack, which was across the dateline). the Japanese air forces, based in indo-China, were equipped with high performance ‘Zeroes’ and ‘oscars’ and outnumbered the raF by three to one. Japanese troops soon over-ran the northern airfields in Malaya and the British army began to retreat.

despite the odds, the air battles went on until the singapore airfields were being shelled by Japanese artillery. Flight sergeant Bert Wipiti of no. 243 sqn, one of our first Maori pilots, aided in downing the first Japanese bomber destroyed over singapore. Fellow kiwi in no. 243 sqn, F/s geoff Fisken, became an ‘ace’ claiming over five Japanese kills. Fltlts i. Julian and e.C. gartrell were awarded the dFC for gallantry and leadership

By the end of January singapore was under direct siege. on

Pilots scramble to their Buffaloes in singapore.

kiwi pilots of no. 67 squadron raF. this squadron moved to Burma before the Japanese attack.

Painting of Buffaloes in combat with a nakajima ki 27 'nate'.


28 Air Force news

by bRig (Rtd) dr Anne Campbell, MNZM medical Adviser, Veteran Affairs New Zealand

i recently had the honour and privilege of returning to singapore with two veterans for the Commemoration of the Fall of

singapore: ted West, aged 90, from auckland and the Bill Mitchell, 95, from oamaru.

Both these chaps served in the rnZaF during WWii and were in singapore as it fell to the Japanese. after carefully looking after their aircraft for months came the order to destroy as many of these aircraft as they possibly could, quickly…. after surviving the land bombings, escape was by way of a dutch ship, [which was] bombed from the air at sea, sailing through the many islands of indonesia stopping off to fix more aircraft en route. they moved from ship to ship, via the australian west coast, then eventually home to nZ to protect our shores from attack.

then, because he survived that excitement, Bill was sent to guadalcanal in the solomon islands and on to Bougainville, then up to green island—places that for today’s defence Force still sound familiar!

as a person from a scientific background who really didn’t care for history i learnt so much about WWii and about life in post-depression nZ, from these two wonderful gentlemen. thank you ted and Bill for sharing so much of your life stories with me; it was truly memorable

there is so much to be gained from talking to this generation. My challenge to our defence Force service-men and -women of today is to ask our veterans to tell you about their time during the War years. time is running out to listen to their war adventures and then reflect on what hard times really were.

TiME TO ReFleCT

the night of 8/9 February, the Japanese landed on the island and steadily pressed the British and australian troops back. towards the end, Clem randall was placed on sniper patrol. He had a patrol of six men, guarding their airfield. after Japanese troops captured the water supplies to the city, defeat was inevitable. the garrison surrendered on 15 February.

Bill Mitchell wrote in his diary about his escape from singapore by sea: ‘When all was loaded we set sail at dusk. everything looked as if it were falling apart in singapore with great clouds of smoke and fires after the bombing. We got outside the harbour and into a minefield. the skipper said, “i can’t see the marks, we can’t move.” i thought, this is great, a good start, moored in a minefield with singapore on fire.’

Many of the rnZaF personnel got away to Java, eventually returning to new Zealand. about 100 nZ servicemen became

prisoners of war; for them, it would be a long, terrible

endurance test until liberation in 1945.

during the three month campaign 35 new Zealand airmen

lost their lives, along with 40 naval officers who died in

operations either in Malayan waters or in Hong kong (which

had fallen to the Japanese on Christmas day 1941).

the fall of singapore was an alarming development for

new Zealanders, who had a long-held sense of vulnerability to

the Japanese. in less than three months, Japan had knocked

out the us fleet, attacked colonial possessions across the

region, sunk two British battleships and overwhelmed the

allied air forces. new Zealand was shocked by the defeat at

singapore—australia then came under air attack and suddenly

the threat to new Zealand was very real.

ted West (l) and Bill Mitchell (r) at the kanji War Memorial, singapore. sadly, Bill Mitchell passed away in March, after his return to nZ.

Clem randall and Hugh nelson at the tomb of the unknown Warrior, Wellington.


Air Force news 29

by Michelle sim, Archives Technician, Air Force museum of New Zealand

no. 1 aerodrome Construction squadron (1 aCs), or unit 24 as it was also known, was the

first of its kind in the air Forces of the British empire, and was formed in July 1941 from personnel and equipment drawn largely from the Public Works department. its specific function was to build new aerodromes for the raF in Malaya.

the squadron arrived in Johore in october 1941, and quickly set to work building two large bomber airstrips. they made rapid progress, speedily and efficiently clearing dense rubber plantations and carving out runways, all the while dealing with stifling heat, humidity and tropical rain.

their work took on new urgency when Japan attacked; the men worked round the clock on a series of new fighter strips, as well as helping repair bomb-damaged aerodromes and salvaging valuable equipment in the face of the enemy advance. But, as the Japanese advanced, the squadron was ordered to destroy their nearly-completed air strips, and withdraw to singapore.

1 aCs was the last air force unit to leave Malaya, and its members soon found themselves in the thick of the action during the siege of singapore. they worked to repair the fighter aerodromes as long as they could, until the decision was made to evacuate them to the dutch east indies (now indonesia).

on 1 February 1942, they assembled on the docks of singapore with all their equipment and machinery, ready to embark. after 16 hours of work, the new Zealanders had loaded around 2,500 tons of equipment. But on the morning of 3 February their ship took two direct

BomBS AND BullDoZeRS: tHe storY oF no. 1 aerodroMe ConstruCtion sQuadron rnZaF

hits during an air raid. another air raid sealed the ship’s fate and it sank, along with all

of 1 aCs’s prized machinery.

on 6 February, 1 aCs was informed that it was to sail that evening in a convoy.

the unit was split in two, the first party embarking in the ss CitY oF CanterBurY,

the other on the ss darVel. CitY oF CanterBurY successfully made it to Java,

but for those onboard darVel, it was a different story—the ship finally escaped

singapore on 9 February. two days out, the ship was subjected to a concentrated air

attack, during which, one member of 1 aCs was killed and 17 more wounded. the ship

was severely damaged and would have sunk had it not been for the new Zealanders;

some went below decks to plug the leaks with anything they could find, while others

worked to repair lifeboats and clear the decks of debris. narrowly averting disaster,

darVel limped into Batavia (now Jakarta) on 12 February.

the men of 1 aCs remained on Java for a week until, with enemy invasion once

more imminent, it was decided to send the whole unit back to new Zealand. on

20 February 1942, the surviving members of 1 aCs sailed for australia, ultimately

reaching home soil on 24 March, so ending an action-packed 8-month tour of duty

tebrau air strip.

a Caterpillar tractor on tebrau airfieldPhotos: air Force Museum

some of the men of no.1 aCs in 1941

demolition party placing explosives into tebrau airstrip, January 1942.

the aerodrome Construction squadron at the singapore docks, preparing to evacuate.


Bombs and Bulldozers is the latest in a series of online exhibitions produced by the air Force Museum of new Zealand for their website. read the full story of no. 1 aerodrome Construction squadron in Malaya and their dramatic escape from singapore, at www.airforcemuseum.co.nz

30 Air Force news

oUr PeoPLe

Fifty seven nZdF Medics at the defence Force Health

school (dHs) were awarded their diplomas at the

first-ever graduation ceremony for the students of

aut's diploma of Paramedic science and graduate diploma of

Health science back in February.

the graduands proudly walked out in front of friends and

family, senior officers and veterans of defence Force health

services, at the completion of the first qualification in their

two-and-a-half year medic course. the graduates were drawn

from all three services; army, navy and air Force and they

hailed from all over the country.

Chief instructor of dHs (nZ) Major Brendan Wood notes

that, “this graduation was meant to occur in February last

year; however when the earthquake hit staff and students

were engaged in support activities and were working alongside

emergency services, so the 2011 ceremony was cancelled."

in her speech at the graduation ceremony, aC alex taylor

read a poem, summarising the courses’ experiences (see

sidebar).

the new programme came into fruition in January 2010

and is now fully integrated into the defence training regime. it

is the only training programme of its kind in the world and

prepares our medics for operations at a world-class level.

“this training provides the defence Force with medics who

hold both appropriate academic qualifications as well as meet

an equivalent standard to civilian sector,” said Major Wood.

WAlkeR ClASS RNZAF STuDeNTSaC katie rowley, aC danny Freestone (Peer award), aC alex

taylor (top academic), aC Juliette de Vries

gRigg ClASS RNZAF STuDeNTSaC katherine ruwhiu, aC Josh sherwood, aC Jess earnshaw

(top academic, Peer award & top student)

Each class is named for a former medical service person,

or a unit associated with NZDF medicine. Walker Class

commemorates Samuel Walker, Assistant Surgeon in the Armed

Constabulary, who received the New Zealand Cross for actions in

1869. Grigg Class remembers SGT G.R. Grigg RNZAMC who was

killed in the Vietnam War.

RNZAF MediCs gRAduAte— A YEAR AFTER THE EARTHQUAKE!by Zen gregor, Defence Communications group

the rnZaF’s new Medics (l to r): aC katherine ruwhiu, aC katie rowley, aC Josh sherwood, aC danny Freestone, aC

alex taylor, aC Juliette de Vries & aC Jess earnshaw.

Air Force news 31

by lAC Ruby little, No.209 squadron

Back in my high school days, as all my mates were talking of going away to uni or getting jobs, i didn’t exactly have a sense of direction. i did know that i wanted to be doing

something that was physical, challenging and rewarding. With perfect timing, some rnZaF Physical training

instructors (Pti) came to visit as part of their recruiting drive. after playing a few games with our class and showing us some sweet air Force videos, i knew what i wanted to do with my life! With some help from Mum i was on my way to the recruiting office in auckland.

as it turned out, i wasn’t able to become a Physical training instructors straight away, so the next best thing was air security. Fast forward a few years down the track and my dream of becoming a Pti was finally beginning to come true, as the air security and Pti trades were merged.

to start with, i was exposed to the Force Protection Basic Pt course, which was four weeks teaching us the basics of what a Pti did and how we could assist them in things such as class-taking, operational fitness testing and event

My PAth to BECOME A pTi

PoPti Paul, laC little, aCH thyne, lCH Behl, sgt Wiapo and laC Hoare standing on top of old Man Peak.

oUr PeoPLe

the Ptis’ Course on graduation day.

management. this course cemented my ambitions, so the

next thing on my list was to get onto the next Pti course—

which started on 07 november last year.

the first week was a bi-service phase with laC shane

Hoare and myself being joined by two naval personnel.

that week consisted of five days of tramping through the

richmond ranges with packs almost as big as us, up hills that,

at times, we were almost crawling up. during the week we

also learned about river crossing, group tramping and survival

skills, with a solo night out in the bush. it was definitely a

cracker of a way to start such a physically demanding course,

and we had never been so happy to sit in the back of a ‘Mog on

the way home!

Week two was the start of the tri-service phase, so with

the addition of two soldier Pti candidates our course was

bumped up to six. looking at the photos and course history on

the walls of the Pe&rt classroom showed us just how long the

Ptis had been around for and made us realise that ours was

officially the smallest course ever!

However, that hasn’t changed anything within the

syllabus. We were straight into the books, learning about

how the human body works and the effects Pt has on us.

the instructors have shown us many ways to see the effects

on our own bodies by getting us out on the gym floor doing

numerous exercises and a lot of running! With two exams

coming up before Christmas, we were full-on busy with study.

during the day, we are always out and about learning various

training systems and testing them out practically.

after our Christmas break, we were all into the details of

the role our Ptis play in our defence Force, for keeping our

personnel fit, healthy and able to do their jobs with increased

efficiency. i had a new respect for the job they do, and set my

sights on standing on parade with the other five students on

graduation day. the course keep us working, studying and

(occasionally) playing hard until we all graduated on 15 March.

With proud friends and families there, and supported by

the air Force’s Pti trade, both shane and i felt really special to

become a part of the Pti story. We are now up on the wall next

to Buck shelford!

32 Air Force news

oUr PeoPLe

sisteRs iN ARMs MARCH THROuGH MANAWATu by Zen gregor, Defence Communications group

When sally Blackler embarked on the long walk from auckland to Christchurch in late March she knew she had some big boots to fill. she is retracing

the footsteps of her late husband sgt nathan Blackler who was a Physical training instructor for the nZ army. nathan completed the same journey eight years ago, starting in auckland and finishing at Burnham Military Camp, just outside of Christchurch, raising $65,000 for the Child Cancer Foundation along the way.

nathan, who was in remission from cancer at the time of his walk, decided to complete the fundraising mission as a way of giving back to some of those who had helped him through his journey with cancer. sadly nathan’s cancer returned and he passed away on 23 March 2007.

now, five years later, his wife with her good friend and workmate, CPl natasha donaldson, and her fundraising team ‘sisters in arms’ have taken up the challenge again, this time with the funds raised going to Canteen. sally, a social worker for Challenge 2000 and Youth development unit south, says

Canteen is a cause close to her heart.“i have so much admiration for the way young people tackle

cancer with such strength and resilience,” she says. “no-one should have to face that journey alone. Canteen is a vital service for young people who need support when facing the challenges of a cancer diagnosis whether that’s as a patient or sibling.”

over six weeks sally walked around 30km a day, with seven rest days in between, in order to reach her destination, the Youth development unit Parade ground at Burnham Military Camp, on 01 May.

sally had walked alongside nathan in 2004 and she says one of the hardest things about the long haul is the mental focus you need. she had plenty of friends around her to keep her sane throughout the journey, with friends and family as well as several defence physical training instructors throughout the country to walk with her and wave her on and joining her as she passed through each region.

as she passed through Bulls, near rnZaF Base ohakea, she was joined by a strong team of rnZaF personnel, led by the oC 488 Wing, gP CaPt darren Webb.

cANteeN is the only new Zealand peer support organisation for young people aged 13 to 24 living with cancer as a patient, sibling or bereaved sibling. donations can be made to sally’s fundraising group, sisters in arms, " www.sistersinarms.co.nz or by calling 0900 4 Canteen to make an automatic $20 donation.

air Force personnel walk through Bulls with sally Blackler (in red) and the sisters in arms crew; at front right is gPCaPt darryn Webb.

Air Force news 33

oUr PeoPLe

by sgt warren Mant Fp(pt specialist)

From 16 January – 05 april this year, the ohakea gym ran a ‘team Biggest loser’ competition. the aim was to lose the largest combined percentage of body weight across

each four-person team; the Pt staffs’ not-so secret aim was to ensure ohakea personnel have more energy and are able to work more efficiently and so get more out of each day.

over 30 teams entered the competition and 23 were still

OHAkEA’S ‘Biggest LoseR 2012’

actively involved at its conclusion. a total of 411.9kgs was lost by those 23 teams, an average of 4.5kg per person. team make up was a combination of service-men and -women, civilians, dependants and contractors on base.

although it was a 12-week programme, the ohakea Pt staff reiterated the need for lifestyle changes, if people are going to have long term health benefits. teams losing consistently small amounts of weight are likely to be able to sustain this weight loss over a long period. there were nutrition briefs, healthy cooking demos and, of course, extra Pt sessions for the participants.

there was plenty of inter-team rivalry and also some within individual teams! kelley’s Fatty Fat Fats (aka no.3 sqn Crewdogs) had the added incentive of the individual who lost the most weight in their team being shouted a box of beer and a bucket of kFC by the rest of his team mates. this does not fall within the nutrition guidelines nor was it supported by the gym staff, but the team was motivated!

Prizegiving was held on 12 april; congratulations to all!

WiNNeRs: the ‘triple Fs’, ralph thomas, Mrs sharon Watts, Mrs Bridget Jenkins & Mrs Margo thomas.2ND PLAce: ‘F.B. i,’ Mrs deb thomas, CPosa Wayne Hannah, sgt danny Passi & CPl terry Munro.3RD PLAce: ‘Will Jog For Pies,’ CPl al smith, laC Josh tuiraki, laC rowena robbie & Mr James robbieBest teAM sPiRit: W/o treena Brown, Ms tanz Menary, sgt Mel skeggs & F/s tash ManaMost coNsisteNt (MALe): CPl gordon schofeildMost coNsisteNt (FeMALe): Mrs lisa grantBest AttituDe (MALe): F/s tubbs BennieBest AttituDe (FeMALe): sgt annie Clarkson

Mrs Bridget Jenkins, Mrs Margo thomas, Mr ralph thomas (absent, Mrs sharon Watts) are flanked by gPCaPt darryn Webb and event organiser sgt Warren Mant as they proudly display their winners’ certificates

gPCaPt Webb with the 2nd place team: Mrs deb thomas, CPl terry Munro, sgt danny Passi and CPosa Wayne Hannah

34 Air Force news

oUr PeoPLe

lAC Matt Fistonich, Senior Fire Fighter

in May 2012 the auckland rescue Fires service (arFs) fire fighters will be fundraising for the leukaemia and Blood Cancer Foundation. in conjunction to competing in the sky

tower Challenge on saturday 19 May, arFs will be holding a fundraising event outside kmart in Westfield albany on saturday 12 May 2012.

Fire Fighters will be running continuously on a treadmill from 0900 until the mall closes at 1730—wearing their full ‘level 2’ fire kit and Breathing apparatus. last year arFs raised over $3000 and this year our unit hopes to raise even more for this important charity.

if you are within reach of the albany mall, come along and give us support!

BASE AuCklAND RESCuE FiRE SERViCE gettiNg BehiND A gooD cAuse

oxFAM tRAiLWALKeR CHALLENGE 2012a hardy team of four—sQnldr Mike Chalmers, katrina lawrence, F/s Virgil

Clair and ian Hingston—100km of gruelling hills, trails and roads around lake taupo and just 36 hours to finish. the air Force has entered a team every

year since 2008—in fact this year two of our team are doing their 5th trailwalker Challenge!

it is not a relay, as all four people complete the course together. it’s not for the faint hearted—you will see everything from smiles and laughs to tears and agony, crazy costumes, blisters, bandages, sunburn, chafing and ecstatic relief as teams cross the finish line.

the support crew—sQnldr Peter Johnson, F/s reg dawson, Mrs lisa lualua-aati, Miss andrea Horton and Miss kylie neal—kept the walkers motivated at the seven check points over the 100km course, as well as refilling drink bottles, providing hot food, mending blisters and massaging sore muscles. there was no rest

for the crew as they travelled to each

checkpoint, anticipated the walkers’

needs, jostled for space amongst all the

other teams, kept an eye on the walkers’

health and kept everyone’s morale up.

last year the team completed the

course in 21hrs 34mins, so with huge

commitment we beat that time, finishing

in 20.57! our aim was to raise $2000,

which goes towards fighting poverty in

the Pacific region, asia and africa. You

can still help us by making a donation to

our team ‘Can’t stop stepping up’.

For more info see the website:

www.oxfamtrailwalker.org.nz

Air Force news 35

oUr PeoPLe

over eight days in april, six air Force personnel

competed in the tour of new Zealand, a cycle

race down the north island from Cape reinga to

Wellington, along some of new Zealand's most scenic roads.

after strong performances during each leg, they came a close

second in the overall event.

the ohakea-based team joined in this new event which saw

teams of cyclists riding from either Cape reinga or Bluff over

seven daily stages, culminating in a street race in Wellington

on saturday 21 april. Five riders from the air Force team had to

complete each daily leg, riding approximately 100 km each day,

with the additional rider having a rest and driving the team's

campervan between the overnight stops.

the tour started on saturday 14 april and travelled

via kaitaia, opononi, dargaville, Waitomo, taumaranui,

national Park, Wanganui and through the Wairarapa, to reach

Wellington. the ohakea sextet trained hard for the event,

which they used as a fundraiser for the Westpac rescue

Chopper.

to find out more about the team, and read their blog, check

out their ‘racebook’ page at :

http://www.tourofnewzealand.co.nz/rb.php?team=116.

TOuR OF NeW ZeALAND BiKe RAce

the bike race team: aC kurt eves, sgt danny Can kan, laC dan alexander, Fltlt Craig kenny & aC John glenville

the team and friends at Parliament on 21 april, after the event—a full report next issue

36 Air Force news

Mentoring

by F/s Andy Armstrong

the aim of the mentoring scheme in the rnZaF is to entwine the service values of professionalism, integrity and teamwork, whilst developing innovation, motivation

and leadership. recently, the auckland Mentoring advisory team welcomed the first of several guest speakers planned for 2012.

during February, Base auckland hosted double olympic champion danyon loader, who was invited to talk about what it takes to be the best. He offered us an interesting insight into the kind of extraordinary motivation required to reach very high aspirations. although his goals required a high degree of dedication, danyon explained his success could not be achieved alone.

danyon openly put his success down to the people around him. He acknowledged that although goals are often described as 'personal' they very rarely are! instead, achieving great things often requires assistance and expertise from others.

danyon agrees that talent certainly helped him; however, even raw talent needs the right alliances and great teamwork. danyon spoke about the close support of some very influential people who helped to make an incredible difference for him. establishing the right partnerships helped him towards a number of world-class podium finishes.

during his visit to Base auckland, danyon was treated to a fabulous day in true air Force style. a special thanks to the no. 5 sqn crew who hosted our swimming ace to the squadron and to see a P-3 orion.

bAse AuCklANd WELCOMES DOUBLE OLYMPIAN

W/o david lark, CWo no.5 sqn, presents a photograph to danyon loader in the Wo & snCo Mess.

The Ohakea Professional Development Centreby Fltlt lara blackmore , mentoring Advisory Team RNZAF Base ohakea

the ohakea Mentoring advisory team is creating a Professional development Centre in the old education Building. the Centre has three goals which are built

upon the foundation stones of our values, our culture and our people.

• To develop our people• To enhance morale• To build community relationshipsWhile creating the Centre is ‘a work in progress’ we are

taking steps toward the vision of developing our people for this modern air Force by providing 21st Century training, education and professional development.

a small meeting room has been allocated and is ideal to use for mentoring. this area also has access to the theatrette so is ideal to use as a break-out room. We anticipate that by visiting the Centre you will be able to access the following professional development opportunities:

• Study assistance information and support• Information on internal career options and support to

transition to another careersinformation about scholarships available within defence

and externally• Resources you might require for study, presentations etc• A place to meet for professional developmentWe are also keen to provide access to information about:

the Maori Cultural group, Critical incident Management systems training, the Base support team, Base Contingency Force, sports Clubs, army adventure training Cell and navy adventure training Cell.

Ohakea Mentoring Advisory Teamby sgt warren Amos, helicopter Transition unit, ohakea

the ohakea Mentoring team has been given the opportunity to support four volunteers into leadership positions in the sail training ship sPirit oF neW

Zealand. one position is available on each of four voyages: May/June; June, July/august and september.

the role requires the volunteer to share their experiences, knowledge and wisdom with the trainees, allowing them to also practice their leadership and coaching skills.

at the same time the volunteer leaders will probably be outside their comfort zone!

interested? Contact me at ohakea 368 ext 8027.

DANYoN’S imPReSSiVe ReCoRDOlympic medals:

1992 Barcelona - Silver 200m Butterfly 1996 Atlanta - Gold 200 Freestyle & Gold 400 Freestyle

World Championship: 1994 Rome - Silver 200 Butterfly, Bronze 200 Freestyle, Bronze 400 Freestyle

World Short Course Records 1993 -200 Butterfly (broke record 3 times) 1995 -400 Freestyle

Commonwealth Games: 1994 - Victoria - Gold 200 Butterfly - Silver 400 Freestyle - Silver 4 x 200 Free Relay - Silver 4 x 100 Free Relay - Bronze 200 Freestyle

The most medals won at one games by any New Zealander.

Air Force news 37

Book review

THE AppliCATiON OF air PoWerby the editor

the arrival of Storm Front in our book shops (or via the internet…) completes a trilogy of books by aviation writer rowland White, which highlights the value of military air power in recent crises or conflicts. these days when inexorable

rising costs are squeezing air forces around the world, rowland White explores three very different modern British conflicts and illustrates the still-vital role of air power.

Vulcan 607 describes the first of the ‘Black Buck’ raids by Vulcan bombers on Port stanley airfield in the Falkland islands, 1982. then, while a British joint amphibious task force was building up to assault the argentine-occupied Falklands, the raF’s long range bomber raids proved vital in negating the airfield’s value to the argentines, while also forcing the redeployment of argentine air defence fighters to protect the mainland.

the author clearly has gained good access to all those involved on the British side, and he has absorbed both the technical and human facets of the operation. He narrates not only the facts of the raid, but explains the challenges of air-to-air refuelling, the demands of accurate conventional bombing, and the many potential dangers facing a lone bomber on a 6,000 mile round trip.

in his second book, Phoenix Squadron, White uses his interviewing and research skills to give us a similar ‘over the shoulder’ view of a royal navy Buccaneer crew undertaking a tense deterrent mission to prevent an unlikely war in Central america. in 1972 guatemala threatened to invade British Honduras, which was about to become the independent nation of Belize. the defenceless colony urgently needed a credible deterrent, and the aircraft carrier HMs ark roYal brought its Buccaneers within reach, for a timely and ultimately peaceful intervention.

again, White’s focus is on the air operation, what the crew planned, achieved and thought, during their remarkable 3,000 mile flight to intervene.

White’s latest book, Storm Front, takes us to oman in the 1970s. there the small nation was striving to modernise, while fighting off a communist insurgency. the British withdrawal from neighbouring aden in 1967 had given the russians and Chinese a bridgehead on the arabian peninsula. oman was immediately vulnerable.

oman’s insurgency called for special Forces, the British sas. But special Forces are not a ‘magic bullet’—in the long campaign the skills and bravery of sas personnel had to be supported by locally raised troops, tactical air transport and tactical air strikes. it’s often forgotten that special Forces need skilled and committed support.

in oman in the 70s, the ‘star’ of the air campaign was the BaC 167 strikemaster, familiar to rnZaF readers as the ‘Blunty’, the jet trainer that prepared our pilots for the a-4 skyhawks. When, in July 1972, a British sas troop was attacked by some 300 insurgents in what was intended by the enemy to be a decisive offensive, the sas men held on in a four-hour fire fight. But just as the insurgents were on the verge of overwhelming the few British troopers, the strikemasters of the omani air Force, flown by raF and British contract pilots, were able to intervene decisively.

in Storm Front, the author puts the reader alongside the pilots and into the sangars of the sas troopers, giving us vivid and unique accounts of this unknown, but vital battle. again, White has had access not only to the aircrew, but also to key figures in the sas, as well as the British advisers to the sultan of oman. With the current importance of the Persian gulf region, this book has an immediate resonance. at a time when in new Zealand (and in other nations) the armed forces are shrinking, this book reminds us that small wars fought by small units can still have enormous strategic implications.

taken together these three books show the value and responsiveness of modern air power. Vulcan 607 emphasises the importance of air-to-air refuelling and long range strike; Phoenix Squadron illustrates the value of ships as fast-moving mobile air bases, while Storm Front underlines the need for air support even in small-scale military operations. rowland White’s achievement is to turn each of these books into a compelling thriller. to the nZdF reader contemplating our future amphibious task force, each of these books should be essential reading.

38 Air Force news

the Warbirds over Wanaka air show 2012 poster, which illustrates all the types of rnZaF aircraft that have taken part in the air show since its inception.reprinted with thanks to Warbirds over Wanaka.

noMinations oPen For Mod aWards oF eXCellenCe to industrYdefence logistics Command is urging defence Force personnel to nominate vendors and contractors for the Minister of defence awards of excellence to industry.

nominations may be submitted no later than 11 May 2012 to:

Mr Bruce Wooller: [email protected]

sQnldr Michelle goulden: [email protected]

nomination forms can be downloaded from the Ministry of defence’s website www.defence.govt.nz.

The Defence Industry Advisory Council established the Minister of Defence Awards of Excellence to Industry in 1998 to highlight and recognise the contribution made by industry to Defence. The Awards are presented annually by the Minister of Defence during the NZ Defence Industry Association Forum in Wellington in October.

No. 3 sQN AssociAtioN FuNctioN 201216 June 2012 at rnZaF Base ohakea

Have you worked on, or been deployed with no. 3 squadron rnZaF? Join us for an afternoon and evening catching up with old friends, make a few new ones and view the new no. 3 sqn facilities, iroquois, sioux, a109 and nH90.

the function will include unveiling the new no.3 sqn window in the Base ohakea Chapel.

Register interest: [email protected] nZdF personnel wanting to join, please also

complete the form found at https://forms.nzdf.mil.nz/airforce/3sQnassnMember.html

notices

on 02 april the red Checkers saluted Wellington with a lunch-time aerobatic display over the calm harbour on a warm autumn day.Photo: todd o’Hara, defence Communications group

>>

Air Force news 39

CELEBRATING 75 YEARS OF SERVICE TO NEW ZEALAND

40 Air Force news

ceLeBrATinG 75 YeArs of SerViCe To neW ZeaLand

may 2012, issue 136 [pdf 3.94 mb, 40 pages]

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