Coast-to-coast the fast way

Press, 28 January 1986, Page 20

Coast-to-coast the fast way

New Zealand’s newest airline, Coast Air, took off for the first time a couple of weeks ago on its twice-daily flights between Greymouth and Christchurch.

LES BLOXHAM, our travel editor, assesses the service in the following flight report. Coast Air, Flight No. 72. Christchurch to Greymouth. Wednesday, January 22. Scheduled departure: 8.30 a.m. Actual departure: 8.31 a.m. Est. flight time: 45 min. Actual flight time: 54 min. Seating capacity: 20. Seats filled: 4.

Check-in procedures, handled by Newmans Air, were done efficiently and in a friendly manner. A boarding call was

made at 8.23 a.m. and passengers were directed to the de Havilland Twin Otter parked at Gate 2. The aircraft has 20 seats made up of five rows of one plus two, one row of two seats, and a row of three at the rear. The seats are basic and narrow with limited leg room, but they are adequate for such short duration flights. (Incidentally, the best seats as far as plenty of space is concerned are the three at the rear.) Passengers were personally welcomed on board by one of the pilots who also gave the safety briefing. Biscuits with pate and packets of fruit juice were available on a self-help basis. As a non-smoker in a relatively con-

fined area I was pleased by the prohibition on smoking for the duration of the flight. Smokers unable to survive without lighting up for 45 minutes might not be so happy. The noise level was tolerable — in fact, this Otter was a lot quieter than others I have flown in around Fiji and Canada. Twenty-five minutes after take-off we were at an altitude of 10,000 ft and crossing the Main Divide slightly to the south of Arthur’s Pass at 170 knots (183 miles an hour). Ten minutes later we were overhead Hokitika. (A dense layer of cloud on the West Coast forced the pilots to use I.F.R. (instrument flight rules) procedures and to home in on the Hokitika beacon before starting their let-down along the coast to Greymouth.) We landed on Greymouth’s sealed strip at 9.25 a.m.

The flight was smooth and pleasant. In clear weather a feature of this service will be the magnificent mountain scenery flown over at comparatively low altitudes. Unfortunately, viewing is impaired at present by the badly crazed and scratched state of most of the windows. Shooting satisfactory photographs would be impossible. (I was told later that Coast Air is considering replacing the damaged panes with new glass.) Over all, this new link between Greymouth and Christchurch should prove popular with businessmen and tourists alike. Having spent four hours driving the route through Arthur’s Pass the previous week, I am now in no doubt about the way I will prefer to go in future. FACTS: Coast Air flies the route round-trip, twice daily (Monday to Friday) with one flight in each direction on Saturdays and Sundays. The fares are $69 for adults and $34.50 for children aged four to 14 years.