Mount Cook—Franz Josef Air Service Planned

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30603, 20 November 1964, Page 7

Mount Cook—Franz Josef Air Service Planned

A regular air service would be run between the Hermitage and Franz Josef by Mount Cook Air Services, Ltd., when the Haast road was opened, the company’s managing director (Mr H. R. Wigley) said this week. The service would be operated two or three times daily by Cessna aircraft in suitable weather, Mr Wigley said. The main object was to enable tourists with only a limited time in New Zealand to visit both sides of the Alps without risk of being stranded, Mr Wigley said. The service would be run in close conjunction with the DC3 and bus services of the Mount Cook and Southern Lakes Tourist Company, Ltd., of which also he is managing director. The details had yet to be worked out, in consultation with other organisations involved. The DC3 aircraft of the tourist company would not be used on the HermitageFranz Josef route because to fly at the required height they would have to be fitted with de-icing and oxygen equipment A typical itinerary, Mr Six Ski Planes Mount Cook Air Services, Ltd., will have six skiequipped Cessna aircraft operating from the Hermitage airstrip this summer season, compared with five last season, the managing director (Mr H. R. Wigley) said yesterday. The company had acquired an additional sixseater Cessna 185. he said. The airstrip would be tarsealed before Christmas.

Wigley said, might be that tourists arriving in the South Island at Christchurch would fly to the Hermitage by DC3 and thence by Cessna to Franz Josef. From there they would go by bus to Queenstown, and fly back again to the Hermitage and Christchurch. If on their first arrival at the Hermitage the alpine air route was closed, they would fly to Queenstown and take the bus to Franz Josef, in the hope that by the time they arrived the alpine route would be open. If it was not, they would continue to Christchurch by bus over one of the passes.