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Wigram
Wigram is a suburb in the southwest of Christchurch, New Zealand. The suburb lies close to the industrial estates of Sockburn and the satellite retail and residential zone of Hornby, and has undergone significant growth in recent years due to housing developments. It is seven kilometres to the west of the city centre. Etymology The suburb is named after Sir Henry Wigram, mayor of Christchurch from 1902 to 1903, who established a flying school there in 1916. Wigram kept the aviation school going until March 1923, when the government decided to take over the company and run the airbase under a military umbrella. The final purchase price was £31,012. In June 1923 the base was officially handed over and renamed Wigram Aerodrome. Wigram continued to support the base, gifting a further of land in 1932. History The first trans-Tasman flight touched down in Wigram on 11 September 1928 at 9.22 a.m. Piloted by Australian's Charles Kingsford Smith and Charles Ulm they departed Richmon ...
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Henry Wigram
Sir Henry Francis Wigram (18 January 1857 – 6 May 1934) was a New Zealand businessman, politician and aviation promoter. He is best known for his role in developing a public transport system in Christchurch and as a key player in the establishment of the Royal New Zealand Air Force. Early life and business The son of Henry Knox Wigram, a barrister, and a grandson of Octavius Wigram (1794–1878), Governor of the Royal Exchange Assurance Corporation, Wigram was born in London and was educated at Harrow School. His mother was Mary Anne Pomeroy, a daughter of the 5th Viscount Harberton (1790–1862). After working for the Bank of England and a shipping company, ill-health led him to emigrate to New Zealand, where he arrived in 1883. He returned to England briefly in 1885 in order to marry Agnes Vernon Sullivan. They had no children, and Agnes survived Henry by 23 years, dying in 1957. Together with his brother, William Arthur Wigram, Henry bought a malthouse and brickworks busin ...
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Wigram Aerodrome
Wigram Aerodrome is located in the Christchurch suburb of Sockburn, later to be split-suburb of Wigram and now split again as Wigram Skies. It was gifted by Sir Henry Wigram for the Canterbury (NZ) Aviation Company on 20 September 1916 and originally named Sockburn Airport. In 1923 that was then gifted to the Crown as a Royal New Zealand Air Force base. Charles Kingsford-Smith made the first Trans-Tasman flight from Sydney to Wigram on 10 September 1928. Sir Henry Wigram continued to support the base, gifting a further 81 acres of land in 1932. But aircraft got bigger and needed longer and eventually tarsealed runways. The Crown added to the original size of the airfield and that addition was land belonging to Ngāi Tahu. That just includes where the Control Tower currently still stands. RNZAF Wigram was home to the Central Flying School, Pilot Training Squadron, Navigation Training and recruit training. In 1953 RNZAF Wigram was the scene of the worst RNZAF crash ...
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Royal New Zealand Air Force
The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) ( mi, Te Tauaarangi o Aotearoa, "The Warriors of the Sky of New Zealand"; previously ', "War Party of the Blue") is the aerial service branch of the New Zealand Defence Force. It was formed from New Zealand elements of the British Royal Air Force, becoming an independent force in 1923, although many RNZAF aircrew continued to serve in the Royal Air Force until the end of the 1940s. The RNZAF fought in World War II, Malaya, Korean War, Vietnam and the Gulf War as well as undertaking various United Nations peacekeeping missions. From a 1945 peak of over 1,000 combat aircraft the RNZAF has shrunk to a strength of around 48 aircraft in 2022, focusing on maritime patrol and transport duties in support of the Royal New Zealand Navy and the New Zealand Army. The RNZAF's air combat capability ended in 2001, under the Fifth Labour Government with the disbanding of the A-4 Skyhawk and Aermacchi MB-339 based squadrons. The Air Force is led by an Ai ...
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Christchurch
Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / Ōtākaro flows through the centre of the city, with an urban park along its banks. The city's territorial authority population is people, and includes a number of smaller urban areas as well as rural areas. The population of the urban area is people. Christchurch is the second-largest city by urban area population in New Zealand, after Auckland. It is the major urban area of an emerging sub-region known informally as Greater Christchurch. Notable smaller urban areas within this sub-region include Rangiora and Kaiapoi in Waimakariri District, north of the Waimakariri River, and Rolleston and Lincoln in Selwyn District to the south. The first inhabitants migrated to the area sometime between 1000 and 1250 AD. They hunted moa, which led ...
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Air Force Museum Of New Zealand
The Air Force Museum of New Zealand, formerly called The Royal New Zealand Air Force Museum, is located at Wigram, the RNZAF's first operational base, in Christchurch, in the South Island of New Zealand. It opened on 1 April 1987 as part of the celebrations for the RNZAF's 50th anniversary, and is primarily a museum of the Royal New Zealand Air Force, its predecessor, the New Zealand Permanent Air Force and New Zealand squadrons of the Royal Air Force. The Air Force Museum of New Zealand's mission is to preserve and present the history of New Zealand military aviation for commemoration, learning, inspiration and enjoyment. Overview The Museum holds the national collection of the Royal New Zealand Air Force. The collection includes objects covering the early days of New Zealand military aviation both prior to World War I and during this major conflict, the interwar years which saw the formation of the RNZAF in 1937, New Zealanders who fought in the RAF and in other Allied air f ...
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Ngāi Tahu
Ngāi Tahu, or Kāi Tahu, is the principal Māori (tribe) of the South Island. Its (tribal area) is the largest in New Zealand, and extends from the White Bluffs / Te Parinui o Whiti (southeast of Blenheim), Mount Mahanga and Kahurangi Point in the north to Stewart Island / Rakiura in the south. The comprises 18 (governance areas) corresponding to traditional settlements. Ngāi Tahu originated in the Gisborne District of the North Island, along with Ngāti Porou and Ngāti Kahungunu, who all intermarried amongst the local Ngāti Ira. Over time, all but Ngāti Porou would migrate away from the district. Several were already occupying the South Island prior to Ngāi Tahu's arrival, with Kāti Māmoe only having arrived about a century earlier from the Hastings District, and already having conquered Waitaha, who themselves were a collection of ancient groups. Other that Ngāi Tahu encountered while migrating through the South Island were Ngāi Tara, Rangitāne, Ngāti T ...
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Hornby, New Zealand
Hornby is a major residential and retail suburb at the western edge of Christchurch, New Zealand. The suburb is directly connected to other parts of Christchurch and the South Island by a number of main arterial routes, including State Highway 1 and the Christchurch Southern Motorway. History European settlement During the early stages of European settlement, Hornby was originally referred to as Southbridge Junction – with the junction acting as the start of the main road south. Due to rising confusion with the nearby town of Southbridge, a decision was made to rename the area to Hornby in 1878, although the origins of this name are unclear. One explanation holds that the suburb was named after Hornby-with-Farleton in Lancashire by Frederick William Delamain, who came to Christchurch from England in 1852. Delamain owned a nearby homestead, which gave its name to the nearby suburb of Yaldhurst, and was a prominent figure in the area during the latter half of the 19th centur ...
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De Havilland Dove
The de Havilland DH.104 Dove is a British short-haul airliner developed and manufactured by de Havilland. The design, which was a monoplane successor to the pre-war Dragon Rapide biplane, came about from the Brabazon Committee report which, amongst other aircraft types, called for a British-designed short-haul feeder for airlines.Jackson 1987, p. 443. The Dove was a popular aircraft and is considered to be one of Britain's most successful postwar civil designs, in excess of 500 aircraft being manufactured between 1946 and 1967. Several military variants were operated, such as the ''Devon'' by the Royal Air Force and the ''Sea Devon'' by the Royal Navy, and the type also saw service with a number of overseas military forces. A longer four-engined development of the Dove, intended for use in the less developed areas of the world, was the Heron. A considerably re-designed three-engined variant of the Dove was built in Australia as the de Havilland Australia DHA-3 Drover. D ...
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Christchurch City Council
The Christchurch City Council is the local government authority for Christchurch in New Zealand. It is a territorial authority elected to represent the people of Christchurch. Since October 2022, the Mayor of Christchurch is Phil Mauger, who succeeded after the retirement of Lianne Dalziel. The council currently consists of 16 councillors elected from sixteen wards, and is presided over by the mayor, who is elected at large. The number of elected members and ward boundaries changed prior during the 2016 election. History As a result of the 1989 local government reforms, on 1 November 1989 Christchurch City Council took over the functions of the former Christchurch City Council, Heathcote County Council, Riccarton Borough Council, Waimairi District Council, part of Paparua County Council, and the Christchurch Drainage Board. On 6 March 2006, Banks Peninsula District Council merged with Christchurch City Council. Councillor Yani Johanson campaigned since 2010 to live-strea ...
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Charles Kingsford Smith
Sir Charles Edward Kingsford Smith (9 February 18978 November 1935), nicknamed Smithy, was an Australian aviation pioneer. He piloted the first transpacific flight and the first flight between Australia and New Zealand. Kingsford Smith was born in Brisbane. He grew up in Sydney, leaving school at the age of 16 and becoming an engineering apprentice. He joined the Australian Army in 1915 and was a motorcycle despatch rider on the Gallipoli campaign. He later transferred to the Royal Flying Corps and was awarded the Military Cross in 1917 after being shot down. After the war's end, Kingsford Smith worked as a barnstormer in England and the United States before returning to Australia in 1921. He subsequently joined West Australian Airways as one of the country's first commercial pilots. In 1928, Kingsford Smith completed the first transpacific flight, a three-leg journey from California to Brisbane via Hawaii and Fiji. He and his co-pilot Charles Ulm became celebrities, tog ...
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Mayor Of Christchurch
The Mayor of Christchurch is the head of the municipal government of Christchurch, New Zealand, and presides over the Christchurch City Council. The mayor is directly elected using a First Past the Post electoral system. The current mayor, Phil Mauger, was elected in the 2022 mayoral election. The current deputy mayor is Pauline Cotter. Christchurch was initially governed by the chairman of the town council. In 1868, the chairman became the city council's first mayor as determined by his fellow city councillors. Since 1875, the mayor is elected by eligible voters and, after an uncontested election, the first election was held in the following year. History Chairmen of the Town Council Christchurch became a city by Royal charter on 31 July 1856; the first in New Zealand. Since 1862, chairmen were in charge of local government. Five chairmen presided in the initial years: Mayors of the City Council The town council held a meeting on 10 June 1868 to elect its first mayor. ...
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Christchurch Southern Motorway
The Christchurch Southern Motorway is the main southern route into and out of Christchurch, New Zealand. The motorway forms part of (SH 1) and (SH 76) . The motorway, which heads in a generally south-west direction, is approximately 20 km in length. It links the inner-city suburb of Addington, where it starts at the western end of Brougham Street, to just north-east of the satellite centre of Rolleston in the Selwyn District. Route The Christchurch Southern Motorway begins in the suburb of Addington at the western end of Brougham Street (at the Collins Street intersection), which is a busy multi-lane road linking to the port at Lyttelton, just south of the Christchurch Central Business District (CBD) on SH 76. The motorway continues south-west, crossing Barrington Street (where there is an interchange) and Lincoln Road and passing to the south of Middleton. There is an interchange at Curletts Road, then skirts to the south of Wigram, passing under Aidanfield Drive and ...
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