'It's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.'
I'm 79 now I was 29 at the time was an Airforce pilot, flying Camber Jet bombers and I was
a senior instructor on that unit, so I got the job of taking the airplane across there
to pick up the film. I understand that the NZBC paid the Air Force
for the use of the airplane. Because that was going to be the quickest way to get the
film back to New Zealand. So it was all arranged between NZBC and the
Air Force and the customs at both ends and air traffic control at both ends so you have
a very quick trip back from Sydney.
So first of all, you flew to Sydney and am I right that you got to see the moon landing
yourself there or footage of the moon landing there.
Well Yes, we did see we flew the airplane across in the morning. And we were put into
a little operations room where we could watch TV, watch the actual moon landing. Just sit
there until the reel of film arrived, which was being done. So as soon as that arrived,
we raced out to the airplane and headed off to Wellington.
So what was it like just carrying that roll of film knowing that was the one roll of film
or did you have more than one was it just one roll of film that you had to get to New
Zealand? It was just one roll of film. And it was in
a little case it didn't feel anything particular we just tied it down on a seat and off we
went. And you just and you made one of the quickest
trips Am I right across the Tasman? Well, we think probably at the time it was
the quickest trip between Sydney Airport and wellington airport. It wasn't the fastest
Tasman trip that have ever been done that they've done faster from Sydney to Auckland
and that sort of thing but certainly to Wellington Yes.
And so were you told you needed to put your foot down to get back as quickly as possible?
Was there a time frame that you needed to be back by?
Well that was the aim we would get back as quickly as possible hoping to get it onto
the 7:30 news which we managed to do, we landed at Willington about seven o'clock.
So what happened when you landed at Wellington then?
Well we just pulled it on to the tarmac open the door of the airplane we were met by NZBC
in a car and we handed in the film and they disappeared into the distance with an escort
of flashing lights with the police and that was that. we didn't go through customs we
just reached out of the aeroplane and flew it back to Ohakea.
It must have felt a little bit weird like to sort of landing it on the tarmac police
escort you know handing over this video tape. I mean, that's not something you do. Often
I guess That's not what you see done now at commercial
airports but we were given special treatment at Sydney to get us away quickly and special
treatment at Wellington to allow us to arrive quickly.
It's like you say it's a small role. It's not the NASA
side of things. But it's a huge moment that so many people remember watching on TV and
you were such a crucial part in that. Well, we like to think we were crucial, certainly
that we wouldn't have got on the news that night. If we hadn't done it that way. It was
the only way to do it.
So what do you make of all the 50th anniversary celebrations and the fact that you know, we're
talking to you about your roll in it now? Well, I think it's a it's a great thing to
celebrate the moon landing. It was a fantastic event at the time, everything I've read about
it since I showed how touch and go it all was. Yes, I'm very happy to be to be some
very small part of the celebration. Has it been something that you've spoken about
lots over the years? Is there a story that you have shared with lots of people and that
has impressed people? Well, not really. I mean, it's come up once
or twice, but I guess it hasn't come up, particularly until we were suddenly thinking about 50 years
since the moon landing. And that just reminded us to look at look at it again.
Have you got children and grandchildren, yeah. Is it something that you've told them about?
Or probably Yeah, I would think so. They would, they would know, in fact there was an article
written about me in a magazine A while ago that did include a small bit on it, but up
until then really I pretty much forgot. Well, yes, it
really it just had slipped my mind. How does that something like that? Just slip
your mind or have you just got other impressive things that you've done? Well,
I mean, in my flying the airport, so lots of exciting flights and I can't remember them
all and that was just a one off, but it's significance now has become something just
at this particular moment.