Folding wings…..

[cowpatz]

Great to see two people I know well on the honours list.
Air NZ Chief pilot David Morgan and Judith Dobson (formerly Kirk). Both receiving ONZMs.
Dave also worked for Motor Holdings while I was there. Even back then he had visions of Management. On the weekends he would sit in the managers office and bark out orders, but he didn’t hold any position then. He was the first First Officer to get a Fleet Captains role. Up until that time all management roles where filled by Captains. He started as a deputy and then a full fleet Captain, as they called them then.
I have worked with Dave when he was Operations manager and I chaired the pilots safety group. He was good to work with and all up I think he did a fantastic job.
Judith is my mate Phillip’s sister. At the time that we lived across the road from one another, Judith was quite young and developed a slight crush on me. When I showed my disinterest she remarked “ When I grow up I’m going to be rich and famous and you will regret it”. Certainly part of that is true.
Anyways cheers to two very fine and deserving people and now, Officers of the Crown.

[Splitpin]

CP, the crush may have been the Stag (not saying you weren't a desirable catch) ...my old Humber 80 with a hunter engine and free flow exhaust had a similar affect ....but in reverse

[emfrat]

...my old Humber 80 with a hunter engine and free flow exhaust had a similar affect ...

That would be the Avon 113, then?

[cowpatz]

CP, the crush may have been the Stag (not saying you weren't a desirable catch) ...my old Humber 80 with a hunter engine and free flow exhaust had a similar affect ....but in reverse

At that stage I think I was still on a pushbike, before my first car (a Morris 1000). When I was doing my CHC outstation work I traded my Ford Capri 2000 mk2 in for my first Stag. The second one I bought later after returning to Auckland. That was a Leyland P76 engined one which I repainted black inside and out. It used to boogy. I quite liked the Triumps. I even had a Triumph 2500 PI for a while when I was around 18 or 19. That went well too. The only problem with them was the independent rear end suspension. The rear axle half shafts each had a spline about halfway along which allowed the axle to increase and decrease in length as the suspension moved up and down. The only problem was that under heavy acceleration you could get “spline lock” if it wasn’t greased very well. What would happen is part way through the acceleration the splines would let go and the car would move direction to the left by 5 or so degrees. It was quite unnerving.