Air Force Museum of New Zealand

Air Force Museum of New Zealand

18 hours ago

NEWS FROM HORMUZ: The contested Strait of Hormuz has been in the news lately, but we bet you didn’t know that 99 years ago this month the waterway was front page news after a Manawatu pilot crashed his biplane off the coast of Iran.

Back in May 1927 Roddie Carr, one of Fielding’s finest exports, was chosen to pilot a Royal Air Force attempt on the world’s non-stop flying record.

Carr, a navigator and extra fuel tanks containing 4163 litres of fuel were packed in to a single-engine Hawker Horsley which took off from Cranwell in England bound for Karachi, India and glory for the empire on 20 May.

Flying out of the Persian Gulf and 35.5 hours into the flight they switched to their final fuel tank without success. The engine failed and they were forced to ditch the Horsley in the Strait of Hormuz.

In good news, he was rescued safely and had broken the world non-stop flying record by travelling just over 5500 kilometres.

In bad news, a few hours later Charles Lindbergh beat the record with his solo flight across the Atlantic to land in Paris.

Undeterred, Carr set out to try and break Lindbergh’s record in a Hawker Horsley another two times. Neither attempted succeeded unfortunately.

In his second attempt in August 1927, another mechanical problem forced Fielding’s finest to ditch in the Danube in Austria, which resulted in this interesting picture!

Air Marshal Carr, KBE, CB, DFC, AFC had a long and celebrated aviation career, retiring from the RAF in 1947. ... See MoreSee Less

Air Force Museum of New Zealand

2 days ago

URGENT CLARIFICATION: It has been brought to our attention that there is a degree of ongoing confusion out there about the differences between an Air Commodore and a Holden Commodore, which we’re happy to clear up.

The confusion is not surprising of course.

As well as sharing a name, Commodores are highly regarded, well specified, graceful, purposeful, well designed and they command respect.

To the naked eye they may be similar, as our photo of Air Commodore GJW ‘Goldie’ Goldsmith getting out of a Holden Commodore shows, but there are a few key differences that we’ll run you through with our handy three-point guide.

The first, and probably most noticeable difference, is in the fuelling department.

Holden Commodores are fuelled via a standard General Motors nozzle arrangement on the right-hand side towards the rear, while Air Commodores are fuelled via the top.

While we are talking propulsion, we should move on to next key difference – fuel types.

Holden Commodores take mostly 91-octane, depending on specifications. With engines ranging from the 1.9 litre straight four engine in the VC model, through to the 6.2 litre LS3 engine in the VF series, fuel economy varied.

Air Commodores also come in different sizes and capacities, with smaller versions getting by on sandwiches and tea, but more high-powered models demanding fuel a bit higher in octane, according to the mission.

Finally – the last key difference – and you will kick yourself once it is pointed out – is in the noise department.

Holden Commodores had different engine notes depending on their engine capacity. This ranged from the raspy cry for help from the1.9-litre four-cylinder in the desperately underpowered early models to the grunty deep growl of the later LS3 V8s.

Air Commodores sounded different according to the model. Their notes could range from baritone to contralto but always sounded confident and in control.

So, there you have it. Never confuse a Holden Commodore with an Air Commodore again.

You’re welcome! ... See MoreSee Less