The Short Sunderland was developed as a long range maritime reconnaissance flying boat and was widely used during the Second World War. New Zealand purchased four Sunderlands in early 1944 for use as transport aircraft but did not receive them until the end of that year.
They were operated by the Flying Boat Transport Flight of the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) from February 1945, carrying cargo and repatriated New Zealand military personnel from the South Pacific back to New Zealand. They soon began carrying paying passengers and in late 1947 the Sunderlands were transferred to the New Zealand National Airways Corporation. After being used on passenger routes between Auckland and Fiji for a few years, they were eventually returned to the RNZAF.
The RNZAF acquired 16 more Sunderlands in 1953 and these equipped Nos. 5 and 6 Squadrons, operating from Fiji and New Zealand respectively, to carry out maritime reconnaissance and anti-submarine patrols. The Fiji-based aircraft were also used for search and rescue missions. Some Sunderlands were also used by the RNZAF's Maritime Operational Conversion Unit, based at RNZAF Station Hobsonville. Considered to be obsolete by 1960, they began to be withdrawn from service a few years later. The last operational flight for a Sunderland of the RNZAF was in April 1967. The majority were scrapped, although two still survive, one as an exhibit at the Museum of Transport and Technology in Auckland, and the other in the collection of the aviation enthusiast Kermit Weeks.
Background
The Short Sunderland, officially the Short S.25 Sunderland, was designed by Short Brothers as a development of the civilian Short Empire flying boat that was used by Imperial Airways in the 1930s. The Sunderland, of which around 750 were built from 1937 to 1945, first entered service with the Royal Air Force (RAF) in June 1938 and went on to serve in the Far East, Mediterranean, and Africa, the Pacific as well as in Europe.
Intended as a long range maritime reconnaissance-bomber, in its standard configuration the Sunderland was powered by four 1,200 horsepower Pratt & Whitney engines and had a crew of ten. Its top speed was but it cruised at . With a bomb load of just over , it had a range of about . Its wingspan was while the hull was long and deep. The aircraft was heavily armed, with twelve machine guns in total. Two of these were in a forward powered turret while four were in the tail turret. A machine gun was provided to the port and starboard sides at the beam and four were fixed firing forward. It also carried up to in bombs and/or depth charges. On account of its defensive armament, the Sunderland became known as the 'Flying Porcupine' to the Germans.
Sunderland Mk III At the start of 1944, the Empire of Japan was no longer the dominant force in the South Pacific that it had been and the British government was beginning to consider the postwar outlook for the region. The United States already had airfields on several islands in the area that could be used as the basis for commercial flight operations by civilian aircraft but the British lacked an equivalent land presence to achieve this. This led the British to favor flying boats as the basis for commercial operations since less land infrastructure, particularly runways, would be required.
On 27 January, the British government offered New Zealand the opportunity to purchase four Short Sunderland Mk III transport flying boats, to be operated by the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF). The asking price was £60,000 each, which was considered to be very reasonable. The New Zealand government agreed, also buying £80,000 of equipment to support the Sunderlands, which was envisaged to form the basis of a transport service in the South Pacific. The purchase met some resistance; it had to be approved by the Combined Munitions Assignment Board. The American representatives on the board, concerned about how the aircraft could be the basis for commercial operations in the South Pacific after the war, initially declined to approve the purchase but then indicated they would allow it to proceed if the commander-in-chief South Pacific Area Vice-Admiral J. H. Newton, decided the aircraft was needed in his theatre of operations. The Chief of Air Staff in New Zealand, Air Vice-Marshal Leonard Isitt, obtained approval from Newton for the purchase on the justification that they were needed for military use. However, there was still ongoing sensitivity around the purchase, and Isitt asked that there be little publicity of the purchase so as to avoid an impact on the allocation of American aircraft to the RNZAF.
The newly purchased Sunderland Mk III transports, of which there were already 24 in RAF service, were a modification of the standard aircraft. Each Sunderland had a crew of seven and was able to carry between 24 and 30 passengers plus freight. Its load capacity was just under and when fully loaded weighed . It was powered by four Bristol Pegasus XVIII engines and capable of flying up to per hour and had a range of . Four standard Sunderlands was converted to transports at Short's premises in Rochester, a process which began in June.
Entry to service Upon completion, the Sunderlands were ferried to New Zealand by RNZAF personnel, formerly of No. 490 Squadron, who happened to be present in the United Kingdom undergoing training on the aircraft. They were flown to West Africa, across to South America, onto North America and then through the Pacific. The ferry flights were the longest undertaken by the RNZAF during the war, as normally they would be via the Middle East, across the Indian subcontinent and onto Australia. Departing England on 21 October, the first two Sunderlands arrived at the RNZAF base at Laucala Bay in Fiji in late November. The other two arrived shortly afterwards. All of the Sunderland aircraft were quickly cleaned up and fitted with cabin chairs; it had been decided that they would operate a passenger service between Fiji and New Zealand. They then proceeded as a group to Auckland on 2 December, transporting 80 personnel from Fiji.
It had been intended that the Sunderlands would arrive in Auckland in formation as a publicity event for the RNZAF. Their arrival was marred when one collided with a Lockheed Lodestar carrying a photographer. Fortunately both aircraft were able make a safe landing, although the Sunderland did so well short of its intended destination. It was towed by a fishing boat to Whangārei and after repairs were carried out, and flew to Auckland the next day.
Flying Boat Transport Flight Sunderland Mk III aircraft codes RAF Serial No. RNZAF Serial No. Name ML792 NZ4101 Tainui ML793 NZ4102 Tokomaru ML794 NZ4103 Matātua ML795 NZ4104 Takitimu The four Sunderlands formed the Flying Boat Transport Flight, operating from Hobsonville Air Force base. From 1 January 1945, it was commanded by Squadron Leader Richard Makgill. Prior to entering service, they were painted with RNZAF markings and given new serial numbers. They also received names in Māori, the indigenous language of New Zealand; the namesakes were four of the legendary Māori canoes that carried the original migrants from Hawaiki to New Zealand. The interiors were reworked for carriage of passengers and freight and engineering staff of the RNZAF received training from experienced Royal Australian Air Force personnel.
In February the Flying Boat Transport Flight began operating regular return services from Mechanics Bay, in Auckland, and Espiritu Santo with a stop at Nouméa, and Suva, in Fiji, respectively. Special one-off flights were also to be undertaken as required. Flight times were typically between 7½ and 8½ hours, although adverse winds could add up to an extra 60 minutes to the flight. Their inbound cargo was repatriated RNZAF personnel from the forward areas as the war effort in the South Pacific wound down. They would also carry mail and unofficial supplies of sugar and cigarettes, valuable commodities in New Zealand due to rationing. Paying civilian passengers were carried on outbound flights to Suva, each paying £30 for the fare. By September, the flights to and from Espiritu Santo ceased, and the aircraft switched to the Auckland-Suva route and by the end of the year, a total of 8,300 personnel had been repatriated by the Sunderlands and the Lockheed Hudsons, Lodestars and Douglas Dakotas also carrying out repatriation flights. After a number of engine failures, all of the Sunderlands were laid up for a number of months from October for their propellers to be replaced. During this time, the paintwork on each Sunderland was stripped, leaving the aircraft in a natural metal finish.
One Sunderland, NZ4103, was converted for civilian operations in January 1946 and soon afterwards, two of the others were used for training of Tasman Empire Airways Limited (TEAL) flight crew, preparing them for the airline's newly acquired Short Sandringham flying boats. International service resumed in June, with the Sunderlands of the Flying Boat Transport Flight making a weekly flight to Suva on a Friday, and returning the next day. Outbound passengers were typically civilian with military personnel taking seats on the inbound flights back to Auckland. However, by the end of the year, the majority of passengers in either direction were paying civilians.
Civilian usage The postwar reorganisation of the RNZAF was conducted with a degree of uncertainty as to New Zealand's future defence policy. However, it was soon decided to hand over the Sunderlands to a civilian operator and in October 1946, NZ4103, now converted to an airliner, began flying to Chatham Island. Following a directive from the New Zealand government in May 1947, two more Sunderlands, NZ4102 and NZ4104 were converted to passenger operation and were handed over to the New Zealand National Airways Corporation (NAC). The last Sunderland, NZ4101, was transferred to NAC later in the year. It was subsequently scavenged for spares.
The NAC Sunderlands continued to fly to Suva and back from Auckland until March 1949, at which time TEAL took responsibility for the route with its own aircraft. The surviving NAC Sunderlands were returned to the RNZAF and parked up at Hobsonville for disposal in May 1951 although the tenders were not taken up. NZ4104 briefly returned to service with the RNZAF the following year, being used for training aircrew in taxiing and beaching until 1953. It was reduced to scrap in 1955.
Sunderland MR5 In 1951, the New Zealand government purchased 16 Short Sunderland MR5 flying boats as part of its first major postwar purchase of aircraft for the RNZAF. British-sourced aircraft, rather than American, was preferred as New Zealand's defense policy was tied into that of the United Kingdom and compatibility with the RAF was easier to achieve if both air forces operated the same types of aircraft. As part of its defense commitments under the Anglo-New Zealand-Australia-Malaya (ANZAM) defense plan, New Zealand was responsible for surveillance of the South Pacific. The Sunderlands were seen as suitable for this task, not only for their cost effectiveness and ability to easily access remote Pacific islands lacking suitable airfields, but also for the work involved: reconnaissance, escort and anti-submarine operations.