APPRECIATIVE PASSENGERS RECOGNISE PILOT’S SKILL

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28573, 30 April 1958, Page 12

APPRECIATIVE PASSENGERS RECOGNISE PILOT’S SKILL

Passengers in an aircraft which struck violent turbulence over Cook Strait several weeks ago last evening met the pilot of their plane in Nelson and thanked him for saving their lives. The passengers were all pilots themselves and they presented Mr Brian K. Waugh, of Buchanans road, Sockbum, with a spe-cially-cast gold pair of wings apd an inscription showing their gratitude engraved on it. Mr Waugh was pilot of a TransIsland Airways Lockheed Electra plane which carried 12 passengers from Nelson to the Royal New

Zealand Air Force twenty-flfrst anniversary celebrations pageant at Ohakea.

Because of bad weather many planes remained at Ohakea for the night, but the Electra was airborne on its homeward flight when it struck a violent line squall in the Cook Strait area The plane took a tremendous buffeting and Mr Waugh had to lower his undercarriage to keep it stable. With radio communications lost he turned and flew before the storm and managed to find Paraparaumu, where he landed safely. The chief pilot of the airline (Captain Brian Chadwick, of Christchurch) said yesterday that the passengers told him, when they met him as a deputation on one of his flights to Nelson last week, that had not Mr Waugh flown the plane as skilfully as he had they would have lost their lives.

“Had they been laymen I would have said they had been a bit swept away, but they were operational war pilots and aero club pilots themselves, and they knew the score,” Captain Chadwick said. “I have never before heard of a group of passengers feeling strongly like that In 20 years in this game I have had some beatings around, and never heard of passengers appreciating materially what was done for them. You usually get abuse.” Captain Chadwick said that the group of Nelson passengers had requested the company to allow Mr Waugh to wear the medallion —which is made of Otago gold—on his uniform/ The company would approve of this, he said.