NZFF

Hey guys!

I'm curious as to whether anyone knows ANYTHING about Western Air Spray, the operation Dave Paterson flew from Wanganui in the 1960s. According to the book The Topdressers 1990 he flew in NZ from '60-'68 before moving to Australia, but that's all. I've found an old sign amongst things to be thrown out at work, and it's piqued my interest.....

Does anyone know what Dave/WAS flew? Any pics? He first flew for WAW, but the name rings no bells at work these days from what I gather.

Zac , i'll keep eyes to the window , don,t recall the name , but maybe post a shot of the old sign

Will do so tomorrow! She ain't in the best of condition, but then again still pretty good for 40+ years!

I have the original "The Topdressers" by Janic Geelen and this is what I could find:

"In October 1960 Wanganui Aero Work sold their last two Tiger Moths to the Wanganui Aero Club and arranged that they do all all the spraying and dusting, leaving Wanganui Aero Work to concentrate on the topdressing. In 1965 Wanganui Aero Work established Western Airspray Limited with pilot Dave Paterson on a 50/50 basis and so the spraying work was directed to Western Airspray Limited instead of the Aero Club. As a result the amount of spraying done by the Aero Club fell drastically. In February 1967 Wanganui Aero Work sold their share in Western Air Spray to Dave Paterson who was, at the time, doing most of the spraying in the district. Then in March 1968, Paterson sold the company to Wanganui Aero Work and moved to Australia where he opertates a successful aerial topdressing business in Armidale, New South Wales. Wester Air Spray was then managed by Dave Steward until Alan Harding took over. He bought a Yeoman Cropmaster from Gore, the only one of its kind to be owned by a North Island operator. Later when it was replaced by a Fletcher, Western Air Spray was quietly laid to rest and all further spraying was done by Wanganui Aero Work."

There is a photo of a 300Hp Fletcher in WAW colours with caption: "Western Air Spray operated as part of Wanganui Aero Work with the Fletchers tail painted with the Western Air Spray emblem. Alan Harding flew this plane until 1973 after which Western Air Spray ceased to exist.

Aircraft operated by Western Air Spray:
Piper PA18A Super Cub ZK-BTI
Piper PA-25 Pawnee ZK-CEL

In short the company only existed on its own from 1967 - 1968. The rest of the time it was part of WAW. I'm sure Richmond Harding or one of the other long serving WAW employees can complete the story.

Deane

"The Topdressers" by Janic Geelen , Deane i dout if its still in print ,another book i need to search , guess no photos ? its like that with the small striving firm that simple fails .

Ian Warren wrote:

QUOTE (Ian Warren @ Dec 31 2008, 09:49 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

"The Topdressers" by Janic Geelen , Deane i dout if its still in print ,another book i need to search , guess no photos ? its like that with the small striving firm that simple fails .

No this was only printed once in the early eighties and is rare as hens teeth. I was very lucky to get a copy way back then. This book would be worth a fair bit now.

I got a copy of the updated 1990 edition a couple of months back direct from Janic for $49 including postage !

Thanks Deane! Ray Deerness called yesterday and he gave me the COMPLETE low-down on the history of aerial spraying around Wanganui!

K5054NZ wrote:

QUOTE (K5054NZ @ Jan 1 2009, 07:36 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I got a copy of the updated 1990 edition a couple of months back direct from Janic for $49 including postage !

Thanks Deane! Ray Deerness called yesterday and he gave me the COMPLETE low-down on the history of aerial spraying around Wanganui!

I've got the 1990 edition as well, but its nothing compared to the original which has 366 pages, and far more text. It would be nice to see the original reprinted, or maybe a complete new book, combining them both, and updating to 2008.

deaneb wrote:

QUOTE (deaneb @ Jan 1 2009, 08:27 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I've got the 1990 edition as well, but its nothing compared to the original which has 366 pages, and far more text. It would be nice to see the original reprinted, or maybe a complete new book, combining them both, and updating to 2008.

Id be very interested in that , be worth a query , Deane or Zac since you both have one or the other , i thought maybe i could prod and ask . Obvious Zac you may have a recent address , could you send me the details .

Cheers Zac