THE Hauraki Plains Gazette With which is Incorporated THE OHINEMURI GAZETTE MONDAY, WEDNESDAY, FRIDAY “Public Service” WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 13, 1948 TOPDRESSING BY AIRCRAFT

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume 57, Issue 4054, 13 October 1948, Page 4

THE Hauraki Plains Gazette With which is Incorporated THE OHINEMURI GAZETTE MONDAY, WEDNESDAY, FRIDAY “Public Service” WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 13, 1948 TOPDRESSING BY AIRCRAFT

Aerial topdressing trials carried out at Ohakea recently created general interest. One of the problems, and in order of importance one of the greatest problems, which this Dominion has to solve is the improvement of its hill and back country* The immediate difficulty is to find a method of improvement likely to prove economically sound. It is this governing condition which has made many meh consider the use of aircraft for the topdressing of the back country and, taken together, their inquiries have been extensive.

The experiment made at Ohakea probably was over a relatively small area. It may have proved useful in providing data as to the spread of the superphosphate and in other ways, but to the layman there seems to be certain essentials in the use of this system. One .is that the area to be topdressed must be fairly extensive. Motorists talk about the economic speed of their cars—that is, the speed at which they can get the maximum distance for the consumption of a given quantity of pdtfol and when it comes to topdressing by aeroplane it no doubt will be found that there is an economic —or a minimum—area over which the best results will be achieved. It might be ahythiiig up to, say, 50 or more miles, but although no doubt those interested could work the thing out in theory, actual operations are necessary to settle the question definitely. The for aerial topdressing purposes would appear to, run counter to those which the designers of aeroplanes generally speaking have bean striving to meet. The machine for this purpose is one that is not fast; perhaps the slower the better. There must be a minimum speed at which any ordinary flying machine cari remain in the air and one which all airmen would regard as extremely slow would probably be the one for the Dominion’s requirements in this respect. But that is by no means all. Of fully equal importance is the lifting capacity of the aircraft. What quantity of topdressing did the Avenger carry at Ohakea? It is said to have been able to discharge fertiliser at the rate of from 2 to 5 cwt. an acre over a swathe two chains wide. The type of* aircraft required, if the work is to be done economically, much have the maximum lifting capacity and no doubt the types most likely to meet the requirements mentioned are known to the authorities.

Recently the Minister of Agriculture announced that the chairman of directors of National Airways Corporation and the assistant Director-General of the Department of Agriculture, who are both in the United Kingdom at present, had been authorised by Cabinet to investigate the availability of aircraft deemed most suitable for aerial topdressing. Between them the two officials should be able to recommend a machine most likely to meet the requirements of the New Zealand countryside, and there undoubtedly will be ready co-operation by all concerned to make the experiments a success. It has been stated that the first experiments will be in the Raglan district, but it is to be hoped that these will be followed by others in districts where particulars relating to carrying capacity have been kept over a long period of years. If that is done then the possibilities of adding to the economic production of the Dominion will be enhanced. The decision with respect to suitable aircraft is a step forward and the sooner there are widespread experiments —in more senses than one —the better.