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Hood Aerodrome — the next airshow

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« Reply #50 on: January 22, 2014, 07:30:30 am »


The next TVAL airshow....





• Click on the poster to visit TVAL on Facebook. To go to TVAL's website, CLICK HERE.
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« Reply #51 on: April 09, 2014, 05:43:37 pm »


Dambusters pilot at Wings Over Wairarapa

The Dominion Post | 5:29PM - Wednesday, 09 April 2014

THE last surviving pilot from the famous Dambusters raid on Germany during World War II will help launch the next edition of a popular air show tonight.

Former Lancaster pilot and squadron leader John "Les" Munro, 95, of Tauranga, is the last pilot alive from the dangerous bouncing bomb attacks on German dam walls, immortalised in 1955 film The Dam Busters.

Alongside Positively Wellington Tourism chief executive David Perks, he will speak to about 100 businesspeople at the launch of the 2015 Wings Over Wairarapa event at the Copthorne Hotel and Resort in Masterton tonight.

Munro, who went to England last year to take part in 70th anniversary celebrations of the raid, was enlisted as a technical adviser on an upcoming Peter Jackson remake of the 1955 film.

A biennial event since 1999, Wings Over Wairarapa will be held at Masterton's Hood Aerodrome over Wellington Anniversary weekend next January, with the theme "Experience 100 years of aviation".

It will feature vintage aircraft from World War I and World War II and flying displays.

Highlights of the 2013 event, which attracted more than 24,000 people, included a rare de Havilland Mosquito fighter bomber, a World War I biplane, the DH5, and a DH Vampire jet.

Next year's show would have particular interest since 2015 is the 100th anniversary of New Zealand's participation in the Gallipoli campaign, Wings community trust chairman Bob Francis said.

Wings manager Jenny Gasson said tonight's launch would focus on the benefit to Wairarapa businesses from getting involved in the show.

Regional tourism organisation Destination Wairarapa's credit-card data showed an 8.2 percent increase in spending by visitors from around the country and overseas during last year's event, she said.


http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/wairarapa/9922338/Dambusters-pilot-at-Wings-Over-Wairarapa
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« Reply #52 on: April 11, 2014, 02:29:27 pm »


from the Wairarapa Times-Age....

Final mission for dambuster hero

By ANDREW BONALLACK | 6:58AM - Friday, April 11, 2014

DAMBUSTER: Les Munro, pictured here in 1943, flew 57 bombing sorties over Europe during World War II and put his survival down to “Lady Luck”.
DAMBUSTER: Les Munro, pictured here in 1943, flew 57 bombing sorties over Europe during
World War II and put his survival down to “Lady Luck”.


IT'S the last official speech from the last ‘Dambuster’ pilot.

Squadron leader Les Munro is tall, robust and authoritative, and commands an attentive audience, even at age 95.

The former King Country farmer, now living in Tauranga with his long-time partner Christine Ross, had been coaxed to Masterton as guest speaker for the official launch of Wings over Wairarapa 2015 at the Copthorne Hotel and Resort Solway Park on Wednesday night.

Mr Munro, who flew in the Dambusters mission in World War 2, said his speech in support of Wings over Wairarapa will be his swansong after years of official engagements and public speaking. As Ms Ross put it: "he's 95 — how long do you want him to go on for?"

But Mr Munro easily strode to the stage and, armed with a laser pointer and a PowerPoint presentation, he reminded the audience of around 100 people that 617 squadron was notable for more than just the 1943 Dambusters mission, which he flew at age 25.

"The dam raid seems to have captured the imagination of authors around the world — God knows how many books have been published," he said.

"But there's insufficient recognition for other operations carried out by 617 squadron."

He said the squadron's involvement in the sinking of the German battleship Tirpitz in 1944 was "a classic example ... of endurance and determination".

But in his opinion Operation Taxable, a series of feints by numerous bombers across the Channel a day before D-Day, was the most important mission the squadron carried out.

"Not because of bad weather, not because of the risk of enemy action, and not measured by any visible result."

"But very exacting requirements in navigation and flying."

After his speech, Mr Munro told the Times-Age he had been involved in public speaking for many years, and admitted the demands on his time with engagements and autograph hunters had become "rather stressful". Wings over Wairarapa airshow director Tom Williams asked him out of "retirement" to lend his name to the official launch.

"He's been very good, flown me to each of the airshows — I felt indebted to him," said Mr Munro.

He attended the 2013 Wings over Wairarapa, which included a guest seat in the cockpit of a De Havilland Mosquito fighter bomber as it flew a demonstration flight to Wellington.

Ask whether he would attend Wings over Wairarapa 2015, he said, "I may well be — depends on my health".

The airshow has a budget of just over $1m, said Wings over Wairarapa trustee Bob Francis.

The Trust is organising sponsorship, corporate tables, stall sites and ticket sales.

The three-day show over Wellington Anniversary Weekend attracted over 24,000 people and an estimated credit card spend of $4.6m, says Destination Wairarapa.

Mr Francis said they are looking at making it a four-day event next year.

• For more information see Wings.org.nz.


http://www.nzherald.co.nz/wairarapa-times-age/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503414&objectid=11236316
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« Reply #53 on: July 07, 2014, 01:30:19 pm »


from The Dominion Post....

Rewriting aviation history

By JESSY EDWARDS | 5:00AM - Monday, 07 July 2014

RESTORED CRAFT: Wings Over Wairarapa airshow director Tom Williams shows off the Chipmunk aircraft at the George Hood Aerodrome in Masterton.
RESTORED CRAFT: Wings Over Wairarapa airshow director Tom Williams shows off the Chipmunk
aircraft at the George Hood Aerodrome in Masterton.


HISTORIANS might need to rewrite the books if a reproduction of a Kiwi-built 1903 plane achieves lift-off at the 2015 Wings Over Wairarapa airshow.

Airshow director Tom Williams has confirmed the appearance of an exact reproduction of the plane that South Canterbury farmer Richard Pearse built, and possibly flew, in March 1903 — eight months before the Wright brothers.

"If it does fly then it lends credibility to the story that Richard Pearse may well have been the first person to fly in the world," he said.

The plane is currently being built and has not yet been tested.

"The big question is will it fly, and my view is it will," Williams said.

Wings Over Wairarapa recently won gold at the Wellington Gold Awards in the Event, Hospitality and Visitor Facilities section, and is continuing to build its brand with the next show featuring planes from 100 years ago, and into the future.

"Representing the modern era we're hoping to have a full scale rocket that does work, and we're hoping to have the Martin Jetpack ... and then we go into the drones effectively — there will be a significant display of those things here," Williams said.

He said most of the drones are small vehicles that carry cameras and have "enormous application in rural New Zealand".

"For example farmers use them to monitor their stock, grass growth, use them for security looking for poachers and things like that," he said.

Wings Over Wairarapa kicked off in 1999 after Williams had a suggestion from Tim Wallis, a friend and founder of Warbirds Over Wanaka, as they sat on a plane to Korea.

"He said, ‘Tom, you should run an airshow’, and so we [the New Zealand Sport and Vintage Aviation Society] ran our first one in 1999."

"The vision was to get a few dollars so we could preserve our vintage aviation and fly some of our old aeroplanes, but it's grown exponentially," Williams said.

Nine thousand people showed up to that first event, which had a budget of just $12,000.

"The entrance fee then was only about $10 so it wasn't a massive capital outlay, and it's grown from that time up to where we are today — the flying budget has gone from $12,000 to $400,000," Williams said.

The event attracted crowds of more than 24,000 over Wellington Anniversary weekend last year, making just over $100,000 profit.

Event organiser Jenny Gasson said Wings Over Wairarapa normally makes just over their budget of $1 million, with two-thirds of revenues from ticket sales and the rest from corporate hospitality, merchandise, and a trade show.

"We aren't a profit-making event, that's not our driver, but our driver is to take our profits and put them back into the community," she said.

But the big planes have pulled big spenders to the Wairarapa, with credit card data showing people swiped more than 105,000 times over the 2013 event, spending almost $4.6m, up 8.2 percent from in 2012.


WINGS OVER WAIRARAPA

http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/10238499/Rewriting-aviation-history
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« Reply #54 on: December 04, 2014, 03:22:37 pm »


from the Wairarapa Times-Age....

Airshow lands pioneer flying Kiwis

By NATHAN CROMBIE | 6:45AM - Thursday, December 04, 2014

EARLY BIRD: Tom Williams with the replica 1910 Pither Monoplane aircraft that was yesterday the first aircraft to arrive at Hood Aerodrome for the airshow next month. — Photo: LYNDA FERINGA.
EARLY BIRD: Tom Williams with the replica 1910 Pither Monoplane aircraft that was yesterday the
first aircraft to arrive at Hood Aerodrome for the airshow next month. — Photo: LYNDA FERINGA.


THE only replica 1910 Pither Monoplane in the world yesterday became the first aircraft to arrive for the biennial Wings Over Wairarapa 2015 — the first airshow to also feature a reproduction of the aircraft built by Kiwi flight pioneer Richard Pearse.

The replica, which was built at the Mandeville premises of the Croydon Aviation Company near Gore, had started its long haul north to Hood Aerodrome in Masterton early Monday on the back of a curtainsider McAuley's Transport truck with driver Chris Keay at the wheel.

“Every bump was nerve-wracking on the way up. Everything had to be in perfect when we arrived and I wasn't going to be the one to change that,” Mr Keay said.

Wings Over Wairarapa airshow director Tom Williams said the skeletal frame of the plane — all cycle tubes and wire — seemed fragile but was airworthy and will be flown at the Wings show by the aircraft's test pilot, Jerry Chisum.

The aircraft was originally built in Southland by Herbert John Pither, who drew on his background as a professional cyclist and cycle manufacturer to create a lightweight aircraft. which was claimed to have first flown on Oreti Beach in 1910.

Mr Williams said Pither had died after moving to Australia, where his original aircraft was also last seen. The replica was constructed using detailed photographs and original newspaper clippings and was successfully flown in 2005 by Mr Chisum.

A theme of the upcoming airshow will be a soaring review of 100 years of aviation, embracing the latest remote control drones to military aircraft from both world wars to seminal Kiwi aircraft such as the Pither and a reproduction of the plane built and flown by Pearse, which will complete engine runs and taxi demonstrations during the event.

“We haven't had the Pither here before and, because we have the 100 years of aviation theme, it fits in right at the early stage along with the Pearse, which no airshow has ever had before. The two of them represent the oldies and will be exceptional together,” Mr Williams said.

“I had even thought about the Fisher monoplane on the plinth at Gladstone, and just to stack up the three of them would be amazing.”

David Percival Fisher was owner and builder of the Fisher monoplane, which completed its first successful sustained flights at Hurunui-o-rangi Flat near Gladstone in 1913.

Mr Williams said the airshow would also feature jet formations, agricultural displays, gliders and helicopter displays with the flying each day culminating in a dramatic mock air field attack and pyrotechnic shows lighting up the sky.

There will be entertainment on the ground as well, with mock battles and static displays including a combined Defence Forces interactive camp, children's entertainment, contemporary and vintage military vehicles and a food and wine area.


• Wings Over Wairarapa 2015 will be held at Hood Aerodrome in Masterton from January 16th to 18th and tickets are available online at TicketDirect.co.nz and Wings.org.nz.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/wairarapa-times-age/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503414&objectid=11368579
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« Reply #55 on: January 07, 2015, 10:40:48 am »


from the Wairarapa Times-Age....

Chance to put on a sartorial show

By SUSAN TEODORO | 6:50AM - Wednesday, January 07, 2015

GLAMOUR: A visitor to an airshow in Goodwood UK, dressed up in period costume.
GLAMOUR: A visitor to an airshow in Goodwood UK, dressed up in period costume.

VISITORS to Wings over Wairarapa next week will be able to get into the classic mood and become real participants in the show by dressing up in period costume as part of a competition at the event.

Organiser John McMullen, vice-president of the Sport and Vintage Aviation Society, said the family-friendly competition was designed to encourage people to take part, rather than just attend as spectators.

“It's an opportunity for the whole family to get involved and get into theme,” he said.

“People can take part in the event rather than just watching.”

“We would love to see people really getting into it.”

“The airshow is more than an airshow and we want to grow that.”

The idea is based on the Goodwood Revival in the UK, a classic vehicle show, where huge portions of the crowd dress up in the style of an era of their choice.

Some people already come to Wings in costume, but this year the organisers want to encourage it.

“We are happy for people to come dressed up at any time, but this is taking it to the next stage and allowing the audience to participate,” said Mr McMullen.

“A lot of people are into vintage and retro fashion.”

Mr McMullen said it was not a typical modern fashion parade and was purely retro.

The competition has prizes for best-dressed woman and best-dressed man and will be run using social media.

Entrants will be able to post photos of themselves to Instagram as well as Facebook and Twitter using the hashtag #wings2015.

The competition will be judged by the end of the event with the two best dressed contestants each winning a gold pass to the 2017 airshow.


http://www.nzherald.co.nz/wairarapa-times-age/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503414&objectid=11382862
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« Reply #56 on: January 12, 2015, 07:14:50 am »


from The Dominion Post....

Magnificent men and their flying machines

By CALEB HARRIS | 5:00AM - Monday, 12 January 2015

BITTEN BY FLYING BUG: Wings Over Wairarapa airshow director Tom Williams with the same 1940 Tiger Moth in which he sat his flight test in Whanganui, aged 16, in 1956. The vintage aviation society he founded later acquired the plane and, nearly 60 years and nine airshows later, his anticipation of this weekend’s show is as keen as ever. — CALEB HARRIS/Fairfax NZ.
BITTEN BY FLYING BUG: Wings Over Wairarapa airshow director Tom Williams with the same
1940 Tiger Moth in which he sat his flight test in Whanganui, aged 16, in 1956. The vintage
aviation society he founded later acquired the plane and, nearly 60 years and nine airshows
later, his anticipation of this weekend’s show is as keen as ever. — CALEB HARRIS/Fairfax NZ.


THE country's oldest aeroplane, one of its newest and some of the world's rarest will bring aviation alive in Masterton this weekend.

More than 30,000 people are expected to spend Wellington Anniversary weekend looking skyward at the ninth biennial Wings Over Wairarapa airshow at Hood Aerodrome.

Director Tom Williams said it would feature flights by extremely rare aircraft, some never before put on public display, from “the world's biggest World War I collection”, the Peter Jackson-backed The Vintage Aviator Ltd in Kilbirnie.

Three particularly distinguished aircraft from different eras would appear side-by-side as part of the show's “100 years of aviation” theme, Williams said.

They were a faithful reproduction of a plane built by Temuka farmer Richard Pearse and — some experts believe — flown by him before the Wright Brothers' history-making flight in 1903, a recreation of an aircraft built by Invercargill cycle mechanic Bert Pither in 1910, and the Royal New Zealand Airforce's newly acquired Beechcraft T-6C Texan II trainer, appearing publicly for the first time at the show.

“People will be able to see how aviation has developed over more than 100 years from Pearse and Pither to the Texan,” Williams said.

Williams, who has been involved with all nine shows, caught the flying bug watching top-dressing planes above the family farm in Hawke's Bay. “I thought, wow, that's something else.”

At 16 he passed his flight test and by 25 he had bought a Tiger Moth, which he used to pick up his wife-to-be Gay on their first date.

“I don't know if it helped or not but we had a lot of fun.”

Later he founded the Sport and Vintage Aviation Society which was the driving force behind Wings, now regarded as one of Australasia's top airshows.

Other programme highlights include an attempt to break the world record for simultaneous operation of World War II bren gun carriers, a freestyle motocross display, food and wine stalls, mock battles, airforce helicopter and Hercules displays, the “Roaring 40s” Harvard aerobatic team display.

In a sign of the future, there would also be a display of drone-type aircraft, which, Williams said, represented a major new frontier for world aviation.

The show runs from Friday to Sunday, with jet flights over Wellington offered on Monday.


http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/capital-life/64854464/Magnificent-men-and-their-flying-machines
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« Reply #57 on: January 15, 2015, 01:05:02 pm »


from the Wairarapa Times-Age....

Historic run for Pearse monoplane

By SUSAN TEODORO | 7:23AM - Wednesday, January 14, 2015

TEST RUN: Pilot Neville Hay, standing beside a replica Pither monoplane. He will taxi the Pearse monoplane on the day.
TEST RUN: Pilot Neville Hay, standing beside a replica Pither monoplane. He will taxi
the Pearse monoplane on the day.


PIECES of aircraft in the living room, an overheating engine and home-made fuel have all been part of the journey that Aucklander Ivan Mudrovcich and his reproduction Richard Pearse aircraft have made to become a showpiece at this year's Wings over Wairarapa air show.

Mr Mudrovcich, a retired automotive engineer, has spent the past 10 years building a replica of the Canterbury farmer's controversial aircraft, which some say pre-dated the first flight of the Wright brothers in December 1903.

Richard Pearse is said to have flown his monoplane in March 1903, nine months earlier than the famous pair.

Mr Mudrovcich's mission has not been without difficulty.

“It's a helluva job to start it. We had to use Start Ya Bastard,” said Mr Mudrovcich.

Start Ya Bastard is the brand of an Australian made instant engine starter.

The fuel has to be mixed from kerosene, ethanol and paraffin to replicate what was used more than 100 years ago.

“Richard Pearse had to go to the chemist to buy his fuel,” said Mr Mudrovcich.

Once it has started, its running time is short and the engine gets dangerously hot.

“We've had eight minutes out of it. We have a rule after it has run that we don't go near it for a quarter of an hour,” he said.

When not in use, the dismantled aircraft is stored at home.

“I keep it in the garage at home. I also keep parts of it under the bed, in the living room, everywhere,” he said.

The replica takes up most of a small hangar at Hood Aerodrome and consists of an engine on a wooden tricycle undercarriage. The 13-metre wingspan is made of bamboo and steel tubes covered with linen. It is registered as a microlight and has a licence number, ZK-RPT. Whether it can actually fly is unknown.

“Can it fly, will it fly, that's the question,” said air show director Tom Williams. “It's still being tested to meet CAA conditions.”

In the meantime the replica will be displaying what it can do this weekend, within limits.

“We haven't explored its capabilities and we are reluctant to fly it here. We will be firing it up and maybe taxiing it,” said pilot Neville Hay. “Never fly higher than you can jump.”


http://www.nzherald.co.nz/wairarapa-times-age/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503414&objectid=11386156
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« Reply #58 on: January 15, 2015, 01:05:18 pm »


from the Wairarapa Times-Age....

Trailblazing fighter pilots ‘brave men’

By SUSAN TEODORO | 6:52AM - Thursday, January 15, 2015

UP AND AWAY: John Lanham doing what he does best — soaring the skies in WWI-era aircraft.
UP AND AWAY: John Lanham doing what he does best — soaring the skies in WWI-era aircraft.

PILOT John Lanham will be flying some of the rare planes at this year's Wings over Wairarapa air show, almost in time to mark the anniversary of his first solo flight on January 27th, 1961.

“I can't remember a time when I didn't want to fly. Even as a child I was badgering my parents. I was always going to join the air force,” said Mr Lanham.

He has a keen appreciation for the rare planes that he flies and how it must have been for the early pilots who flew them.

“They were very brave men. Until 1918, they had no parachutes,” he said.

These days, the aircraft are seldom flown in cold weather, but during World War I, the pilots had no choice.

“In those days they went up to 20,000 to 22,000 feet and were certainly hypoxic. Many pilots spoke about the paralysing cold,” said Mr Lanham. “They used layers and layers of clothing, including silk gloves, woollen gloves and big mittens. They spoke about the agony of returning circulation after a flight.”

Although the pilots wore a light helmet and goggles, their faces were uncovered.

“They used to smear whale blubber on their faces to prevent frostbite.”

The bulky garments, including a leather overcoat, were unwieldy in the small cockpits, which also held guns and fuel.

“The butt of the machine-guns would be within a foot or so of the pilot's face,” he said. The guns would have to be reloaded mid-flight.

“Imagine trying to do that in minus 40 degrees while you were flying your aircraft.”

When things went wrong, there wasn't much that could be done or much time to make decisions.

“At 15,000 to 20,000 feet, they had around two or three minutes to contemplate their fate on the way down. It was common for aircraft to fall apart in mid-air,” said Mr Lanham.

“The pilot would have 50 litres of gasoline very close to him. If the aircraft was hit, it was common for it to catch on fire. You had two choices, stay in the aircraft and be burned to death or step over the side. Many chose to step over the side.”

“We commemorate these things. We don't celebrate them.”

After 27 years in the RNZAF, Mr Lanham retired and, for 12 years, ran his own commercial aviation company in Wellington.

He has also been general manager of the General Aviation Group at the CAA.

Mr Lanham's contribution to aviation was recognised when he was made a lifetime member of the Sport and Vintage Aviation Society.

He will be flying an Albatros D.Va, a Fokker D.VIII and an SE.5a at the air show this weekend.


http://www.nzherald.co.nz/wairarapa-times-age/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503414&objectid=11386672
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« Reply #59 on: January 16, 2015, 11:22:32 am »


For all the sad buggers who cannot make it to the Wings Over Wairarapa airshow practice day today (including me....I'm working from 2:30pm until 1:00am), here is live streaming of the action today. Watch out for the early evening airshow (from about 6:00pm NZ daylight-saving-time, work out what that will be if you are somewhere else in the world) where a large number of Peter Jackson's rarest WWI aeroplanes are going to take to the skies for a big aerial battle (including a few genuine machines which actually saw services over the trenches during that conflict), something The Vintage Aviator seldom do at events other than their own exclusive airshows.





However, I've got a lieu day off tomorrow, so I'll be there from 8:00am when the gates open, claiming my spot at the top of the Gold Pass grandstand. Saturday evening is when a whole group of us “airshow nutters” from all around the world (we always meet up at the three big 3-day NZ classic aeroplanes airshows) Back to work on Sunday afternoon (the second main day of the airshow). Then the countdown begins to Classic Fighters at Omaka Aerodrome, Blenheim over Easter weekend.
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« Reply #60 on: September 15, 2016, 11:37:29 am »


from the Wairarapa Times-Age....

Gypsy the cat takes flight

By ANNABELLA GAMBONI | 10:49AM - Thursday, 01 September 2016



LIKE all pet owners, skydiver Marty Lloyd thinks his cat Gypsy is really something special.

And maybe he's got a point — how many pet cats do you know that have used air travel?

Of an aerial pedigree, Gypsy has no problem hanging out on the runway at Hood Aerodrome, Masterton, and has flown in aeroplanes “several times”, Mr Lloyd said.

But Gypsy has now been missing from their home at the aerodrome base since August 25th and so Mr Lloyd is offering something different for the safe return of Gypsy: a free skydiving lesson under his tutelage.

Mr Lloyd is desperate to find her.

“She's very special to me. When you live alone, you become very close to your animals,” he said.

Gypsy is a particularly friendly and inquisitive cat, almost like a dog, he said.

“She's the boss of the drop [skydiving base]. She'll sit up on the reception and make sure everyone follows her orders, whether or not the customers have got a problem with it or not…. She's the boss.”

Gypsy spends much of her free cat time around the viewing carpark at the aerodrome, hoping to score some scraps from the many local residents who use it as a picnic spot.

The last time Mr Lloyd saw the slippery feline was at the carpark six days ago, he said.

He hopes that her curiosity hasn't killed her, and that she's simply hopped into an unknowing driver's backseat.

He urges anyone who has been in the area to check their car boots to check she hasn't been hiding all this time.

It's not the first time Gypsy has been in such a scratch — once she slipped inside a wall and was missing for 12 days before Mr Lloyd heard her small mews.

“And then she just popped out like it was nothing,” he said.


http://times-age.co.nz/gypsy-cat-takes-flight



from the Wairarapa Times-Age....

Gypsy rover is home at last

By HAYLEY GASTMEIER | 10:31AM - Wednesday, 14 September 2016



AFTER taking a road trip up north, Gypsy the cat is back where she belongs.

The seven-year-old moggy was found an astonishing 40km away from her usual residence, Hood Aerodrome in Masterton.

She was found in Eketahuna almost three weeks after she disappeared from her aviation-based home.

Skydiver Marty Lloyd was gobsmacked to hear his beloved pet had been located in the Tararua town, and he is pretty confident she did not use up her nine lives in getting there on foot.

“She has a bad habit of exploring the nearby carpark,” Mr Lloyd said.

“And she's too friendly with strangers. Nothing seems to faze her.”

Mr Lloyd believes either “someone took a liking to her” or Gypsy hitched a ride north in the back seat of a car with an unknowing driver.

“But I don't think a cat can jump in a car without anyone realising she's in there.”

Mr Lloyd had returned home one day in late August to find that Gypsy, unusually, was not awaiting his arrival.

“I spent the week looking for her. I went through all the hangers — there’s 19 of them — looking in every room. “The whole aerodrome was looking for her.”

He sent out flyers and put calls out all round Masterton attempting to track the cat down.

Finally, a call came from Jim and Alison Taylor who had rescued the wandering Gypsy and had her safe and sound at their Eketahuna home.

After confirming the feline had “a distinctive white rear gumboot”, Mr Lloyd drove up the line to be reunited.

“I went inside and there was Gypsy sitting on the couch, snuggled up by the fire. I couldn't believe it, I was over the moon.”

Mr Lloyd wasted no time in getting Gypsy microchipped, and is amused that his Facebook post outlining her disappearance attracted 50 comments “from all over the world”, a far greater response than to his regular posts about skydiving.


http://times-age.co.nz/gypsy-rover-home-last



from The Dominion Post....

Gypsy the cat finds way home after fantastic journey

Wayward Gypsy finds her way home.

By JACK BARLOW | 9:52AM - Thursday, 15 September 2016

Gypsy the cat basks in the late morning sunshine next to Hood Aerodrome. — Photograph: Jack Barlow/Fairfax NZ.
Gypsy the cat basks in the late morning sunshine next to Hood Aerodrome.
 — Photograph: Jack Barlow/Fairfax NZ.


OVER the past few years, Marty Lloyd's cat Gypsy has been a constant fixture at Masterton's Hood Aerodrome.

However, her days of prowling round the aerodrome's low, flat fields and scampering between airplanes almost came to and end one cold, grey morning in late August. Gypsy disappeared.

Lloyd, who operates skydiving company Skydive Wellington, knew something was wrong when he pulled up at the aerodrome and Gypsy didn't come trotting out to meet him.

“Normally she comes running up to the car as soon as I turn up,” he said. “But this time she wasn't there.”

Lloyd immediately searched the aerodrome. When nothing turned up he started looking in boxes, containers and hangars. He put up posters in shop windows around town and created posts online.

As the hours eventually turned into weeks, though, there was still no sign of his beloved cat.

Weeks later, Lloyd was sitting at the aerodrome's bar when an Eketahuna number flashed up on his phone.

“Hi,” the voice on the other end said. “I think I've found your cat.”

“I'll be there within the hour,” Lloyd said.

In thick, freezing rain, he hot footed it to Eketahuna, a tiny town 40 kilometres north of Masterton.

He didn't have his hopes up — how, after all, could a cat make it all the way to Eketahuna?

But as soon as he wandered into Jim and Alison Taylor's living room he broke into a huge smile. There, lying in front of the fire, was Gypsy.

It turned out that Gypsy had ambled up to the couple's front door a few days earlier. When they saw a sign in a shop window, they put two and two together.

“I was simply elated,” Lloyd said. “I couldn't believe it. (The Taylors) are wonderful people.”

He's still not sure exactly how Gypsy ended up so far away, although given her perfect health she clearly rode there in someone's car.

“She's an inquisitive cat,” he said. “She often hangs around the parking lot because people feed her, so maybe she was coaxed into somebody's car that way. Who knows.”

Lloyd wonders if someone had mistaken her for a valuable Maine Coon, which the fluffy cat resembles. Either way she made her escape, and is now happily back patrolling the aerodrome.

“She's a very special cat,” Lloyd said. “There's no doubt about it.”


http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/84251081
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