W. 62 *  First Officer  Trevor Balfour Hunter
 flag nz  b. 25 Jan 1915, Whanganui, NZ  20 Nov-41 to Jul-45

 trevor hunter 1945  NZ Evening Post 1945

  ATAM    

 

Father: Douglas Horatio Dale Hunter, mother Alice Elsie

"She was named Trevor as her mother was sure that the baby would be a boy" (Oh ... OK...)

Began flying lessons at the Whanganui Aero Club when she was 16, and gained her pilot's 'A' licence the following year. In December 1933, she was a passenger when E F 'Teddie' Harvie made a record flight from one end of New Zealand to the other in a day.

 

 Teddy Harvie and family  (Alexander Turnbull Library, WA-06347-F)

 


 Postings: 6FPP

6 accidents, only 1 her fault:

- 26 Nov 1942, the starboard wing of her Hurricane II KW721 hit a marker beacon when she misjudged the landing approach

- 13 Jan 1943, a forced landing in Defiant TT1 DR978 following a burst brake pipe

- 21 Jan 1943, her Spitfire IIa P7889 veered off the perimeter track and nosed over, due to loss of brake pressure

- 9 Apr 1943, the hood of her Lysander II N1213 blew off after take-off, due to a technical defect

- 16 Jun 1943, another forced landing, this time in Argus EV806, due to petrol starvation caused by a blocked filler cap vent

- 12 Oct 1944, a third forced landing, after the undercarriage of Mosquito XIII HK380 failed to lock 'up'

 


m. 1950 James Colway, a journalist, and also a pilot

Later, a teacher of ballet, tap and ballroom dancing - "I fly if I have enough money left over, but my dance teaching definitely comes first"

 

 "On 3 December 1983 a re-enactment of the 1933 flight was staged by Harvie’s nephew, Don Haggitt. Harvie and Trevor Colway (née Hunter) were in Invercargill to greet him. Both had enjoyed careers in aviation: Hunter was one of five New Zealand women to serve in the Air Transport Auxiliary in Britain during the Second World War, while Harvie was chief air accident investigator from 1968 to 1977." - https://nzhistory.govt.nz/first-flight-from-kaitaia-to-bluff

 

d. 8 May 2002 - Whanganui

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trevor_Hunter

Interview here: https://natlib.govt.nz/records/35828591

 

  • Articles View Hits 821366

 

DSCI1060 1

Please feel free to send me your comments, requests, extra information or corrections.

Click here: Email Me