1.
New Zealand
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New Zealand /njuːˈziːlənd/ is an island nation in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. The country geographically comprises two main landmasses—the North Island, or Te Ika-a-Māui, and the South Island, or Te Waipounamu—and around 600 smaller islands. New Zealand is situated some 1,500 kilometres east of Australia across the Tasman Sea and roughly 1,000 kilometres south of the Pacific island areas of New Caledonia, Fiji, because of its remoteness, it was one of the last lands to be settled by humans. During its long period of isolation, New Zealand developed a distinct biodiversity of animal, fungal, the countrys varied topography and its sharp mountain peaks, such as the Southern Alps, owe much to the tectonic uplift of land and volcanic eruptions. New Zealands capital city is Wellington, while its most populous city is Auckland, sometime between 1250 and 1300 CE, Polynesians settled in the islands that later were named New Zealand and developed a distinctive Māori culture. In 1642, Dutch explorer Abel Tasman became the first European to sight New Zealand, in 1840, representatives of Britain and Māori chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi, which declared British sovereignty over the islands. In 1841, New Zealand became a colony within the British Empire, today, the majority of New Zealands population of 4.7 million is of European descent, the indigenous Māori are the largest minority, followed by Asians and Pacific Islanders. Reflecting this, New Zealands culture is derived from Māori and early British settlers. The official languages are English, Māori and New Zealand Sign Language, New Zealand is a developed country and ranks highly in international comparisons of national performance, such as health, education, economic freedom and quality of life. Since the 1980s, New Zealand has transformed from an agrarian, Queen Elizabeth II is the countrys head of state and is represented by a governor-general. In addition, New Zealand is organised into 11 regional councils and 67 territorial authorities for local government purposes, the Realm of New Zealand also includes Tokelau, the Cook Islands and Niue, and the Ross Dependency, which is New Zealands territorial claim in Antarctica. New Zealand is a member of the United Nations, Commonwealth of Nations, ANZUS, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Pacific Islands Forum, and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation. Dutch explorer Abel Tasman sighted New Zealand in 1642 and called it Staten Landt, in 1645, Dutch cartographers renamed the land Nova Zeelandia after the Dutch province of Zeeland. British explorer James Cook subsequently anglicised the name to New Zealand, Aotearoa is the current Māori name for New Zealand. It is unknown whether Māori had a name for the country before the arrival of Europeans. Māori had several names for the two main islands, including Te Ika-a-Māui for the North Island and Te Waipounamu or Te Waka o Aoraki for the South Island. Early European maps labelled the islands North, Middle and South, in 1830, maps began to use North and South to distinguish the two largest islands and by 1907, this was the accepted norm. The New Zealand Geographic Board discovered in 2009 that the names of the North Island and South Island had never been formalised and this set the names as North Island or Te Ika-a-Māui, and South Island or Te Waipounamu
2.
Royal New Zealand Air Force
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The Royal New Zealand Air Force is the air force component of the New Zealand Defence Force. The RNZAF fought in World War II, Malaysia, Korean War, Vietnam, the RNZAFs air combat capability ended in 2001 with the disbanding of the A-4 Skyhawk squadrons. The Air Force is led by an air vice-marshal who holds the appointment of Chief of Air Force, the RNZAF motto is the same as that of the Royal Air Force, Per ardua ad astra, meaning Through adversity to the stars. New Zealands military aviation began in 1913 when the New Zealand Army was presented with two Blériot monoplanes by the United Kingdom and these machines were grounded after a young woman was given a joyride. Both aircraft were handed back after war broke out. In the Great War, New Zealand aircrew flew as part of the British Royal Flying Corps, New Zealand pilots serving with British forces saw service in all theatres. Fifteen became aces, the top scorer being Keith Caldwell with, depending on how counted, the government assisted two private schools to train pilots for the conflict. The Walsh brothers flying school at Auckland was founded by Leo, from 1915 pilots trained on the Walsh Brothers Flying Boats including Curtiss machines, aircraft of their own design and, later in the war, the first two aircraft made by Boeing. In 1916 Sir Henry Wigram established the Canterbury Aviation Company at Sockburn, Christchurch and he gave the aerodrome, later Wigram Aerodrome, to the government for defence purposes. At the end of the war many New Zealand pilots stayed with the new Royal Air Force, others returned to New Zealand and, serving part-time, provided the nucleus of the New Zealand Permanent Air Force. At the close of hostilities Great Britain offered an Imperial Gift to each of the Dominions of a hundred war-surplus combat aircraft, New Zealand was the last to respond and least enthusiastic. Several of the aircraft were heavily modified—a 504 becoming a 3-seat floatplane. The importance of aviation in war was recognised, largely thanks to the efforts of visionary parliamentarian Sir Henry Wigram. It was initially equipped with the surviving Avro 504K, the DH. 4s, DH. 9s and these operated from an airfield outside Christchurch at Sockburn. In 1926 Wigram donated £2,500 for the purchase of modern fighters, Sockburn was later renamed RNZAF Station Wigram, a name adopted by the suburb which grew up around the airfield. It is the site of the present Royal New Zealand Air Force Museum, a trickle of new-build Bristol Fighters and other new types joined the NZPAF in the late 1920s and early 1930s. A Lewis gun-equipped De Havilland Gipsy Moth floatplane took part in operations against rebels in Samoa. The NZPAFs first action came in 1930 when the Moth dropped a bomb made out of a treacle tin on to a ship suspected of gun-running
3.
Douglas SBD Dauntless
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The Douglas SBD Dauntless was a World War II American naval scout plane and dive bomber that was manufactured by Douglas Aircraft from 1940 through 1944. The SBD was the United States Navys main carrier-borne scout plane, the SBD was also flown by the United States Marine Corps, both from land air bases and aircraft carriers. The SBD is best remembered as the bomber that delivered the blows to the Japanese carriers at the Battle of Midway in June 1942. During its combat service, the SBD was an excellent naval scout plane and it possessed long range, good handling characteristics, maneuverability, potent bomb load, great diving characteristics, good defensive armament and ruggedness. One land-based variant of the SBD — in omitting the arrestor hook — was purpose-built for the U. S. Army Air Forces, design work on the Northrop BT-1 began in 1935. In 1937, the Northrop Corporation was taken over by Douglas, the Northrop BT-2 was developed from the BT-1 by modifications ordered in November 1937, and provided the basis of the SBD, which first entered service in mid-1939. Ed Heinemann led a team of designers who considered a development with a 1,000 hp Wright Cyclone engine. The plane was developed at the Douglas El Segundo, CA plant, one year earlier, both the U. S. Navy and Marine Corps had placed orders for the new dive bomber, designated the SBD-1 and SBD-2. The SBD-1 went to the Marine Corps in late 1940, the distinctive perforated split flaps or dive-brakes had been incorporated into the BT-1 to eliminate tail buffeting during diving maneuvers. The next version was the SBD-3, which began manufacture in early 1941 and it had increased armor, self-sealing fuel tanks, and four machine guns. The SBD-4 provided a 12-volt electrical system, and a few were converted into SBD-4P reconnaissance aircraft, the next version, the SBD-5, was produced mostly in the Douglas plant in Tulsa, Oklahoma. This version was equipped with a 1,200 hp engine, over 2,400 of these were built. A few of them were shipped to the Royal Navy for evaluation, some SBDs were also flown by the Free French Air Force against the Nazi German Wehrmacht and Luftwaffe. SBDs were also sold to Mexico, the final version, the SBD-6, had more improvements, but its production ended during the summer of 1944. The U. S. Army Air Force had its own version of the SBD and it lacked the tail hook used for carrier landings, and a pneumatic tire replaced the solid tail wheel. First assigned to the 27th Bombardment Group at Hunter Field, Georgia, there were three versions of the Banshee flown by the Army to a very minor degree in the early stages of the war. The USAAF used 948 of the 5,937 Dauntlesses built. U. S. Navy and Marine Corps SBDs saw their first action at Pearl Harbor, most U. S. Navy SBDs were operating with their aircraft carriers, which did not operate in close cooperation with the rest of the fleet
4.
Vought F4U Corsair
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The Vought F4U Corsair is an American fighter aircraft that saw service primarily in World War II and the Korean War. The Corsair thus came to and retained prominence in its area of greatest deployment, the Corsair served to a lesser degree in the U. S. Navy. In addition to its use by the U. S. and British, the Corsair was also used by the Royal New Zealand Air Force, the French Navy Aéronavale and other, smaller, air forces until the 1960s. Some Japanese pilots regarded it as the most formidable American fighter of World War II, after the carrier landing issues had been tackled, it quickly became the most capable carrier-based fighter-bomber of World War II. The Corsair served almost exclusively as a fighter-bomber throughout the Korean War and during the French colonial wars in Indochina, in February 1938 the U. S. Navy Bureau of Aeronautics published two requests for proposal for twin-engined and single-engined fighters. For the single-engined fighter the Navy requested the maximum speed. A range of 1,000 miles was specified, the fighter had to carry four guns, or three with increased ammunition. Provision had to be made for anti-aircraft bombs to be carried in the wing and these small bombs would, according to thinking in the 1930s, be dropped on enemy aircraft formations. In June 1938, the U. S. Navy signed a contract with Vought for a prototype bearing the factory designation V-166B, the Corsair design team was headed up by Rex Beisel. When the prototype was completed it had the biggest and most powerful engine, largest propeller, the first flight of the XF4U-1 was made on 29 May 1940, with Lyman A. Bullard, Jr. at the controls. The maiden flight proceeded normally until a landing was made when the elevator trim tabs failed because of flutter. The USAACs twin-engine Lockheed P-38 Lightning had flown over 400 mph in January–February 1939, the XF4U-1 also had an excellent rate of climb but testing revealed that some requirements would have to be rewritten. In full-power dive tests, speeds of up to 550 miles per hour were achieved but not without damage to the surfaces and access panels and, in one case. The spin recovery standards also had to be relaxed as recovery from the required two-turn spin proved impossible without resorting to an anti-spin chute, the problems clearly meant delays in getting the design into production. Reports coming back from the war in Europe indicated that an armament of two.30 in synchronized engine cowling-mount machine guns, and two.50 in machine guns was insufficient, the U. S. Navys November 1940 production proposals specified heavier armament. The increased armament consisted of three.50 caliber machine guns mounted in each wing panel and this improvement greatly increased the ability of the Corsair to effectively shoot down enemy aircraft. Formal U. S. Navy acceptance trials for the XF4U-1 began in February 1941, the first production F4U-1 performed its initial flight a year later, on 24 June 1942. It was an achievement for Vought, compared to land-based counterparts, carrier aircraft are overbuilt and heavier
5.
Air Force Museum of New Zealand
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The Air Force Museum of New Zealands mission is to preserve and present the history of New Zealand military aviation for commemoration, learning, inspiration and enjoyment. The Museum holds the collection of the Royal New Zealand Air Force. Visitors can take a guided tour through behind the scenes areas of the Museum. The Museums most recent restoration project, an Airspeed Oxford, is now on display since February 2016. The Museum also has a Mosquito Flight Simulator, which features a mission based on the Allied bombing of German battleships in the Norwegian fiords, aermacchi MB-339 Jet trainer and light attack aircraft retired 2001. Auster Mk 7c New Zealand used Austers for army co-operation work in the immediate post-war period and they were fitted with floats and, in this case, skis. This aircraft accompanied the Hillary/Fuchs Trans-Antarctic Expedition, and has restored to this configuration. Avro 626 A development of the Avro Tutor biplane trainer featuring a cockpit with scarf ring. This aircraft was restored to flying condition in the 1980s by the RNZAF, developed as a maritime patrol aircraft New Zealand acquired a small number of Ansons early in World War II for use as navigation trainers, supplementing the Airspeed Oxford. A small number of more advanced model Ansons were used for work after the war. Bell Model 47 Sioux Helicopter trainer entered service in 1965, New Zealand acquired UH1Ds in 1965, and subsequently added UH1Hs. New Zealand Iroquois pilots have served in Vietnam, the Sinai, Antarctica, Bleriot XI Britannia New Zealands first military aircraft the Bleriot arrived in 1913 and was flown in New Zealand for two years before being returned to the United Kingdom in 1915. Replica built by David Comrie of Dunedin, the Bristol Freighters of the RNZAF were a familiar sight in the New Zealand sky for nearly 26 years. The museums aircraft was added to the collection after retirement from the RNZAF in early 1978, cessna 0-2A-CE Display painted to represent aircraft flown by New Zealand pilots on attachment to United States Air Force during Vietnam War. Restored to represent an RNZAF P-40E in the Pacific theatre of operations, manufactured in Wellington at Rongotai, the Tiger Moth was the RNZAFs primary trainer throughout World War II. The aircraft is painted as NZ825. De Havilland Vampire DH100 FB5 & DH115 T11, New Zealands first jet fighter procured in numbers, the Vampire was first used by the RNZAF in Cyprus in the 1950s. It survived into the early 1970s as a trainer, De Havilland Devon DH104 Replacement for the Anson, the Devon is a militarised version of the De Havilland Dove, used as a navigation and multi engine trainer
6.
Royal Australian Air Force
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The Royal Australian Air Force, formed March 1921, is the aerial warfare branch of the Australian Defence Force. It directly continues the traditions of the Australian Flying Corps, formed on 22 October 1912, the RAAF provides support across a spectrum of operations such as air superiority, precision strikes, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, air mobility, and humanitarian support. The RAAF has taken part in many of the 20th centurys major conflicts, thousands of Australians also served with other Commonwealth air forces in Europe. By the time the war ended, a total of 216,900 men and women served in the RAAF, later the RAAF served in the Berlin Airlift, Korean War, Malayan Emergency, Indonesia–Malaysia Confrontation and Vietnam War. More recently, the RAAF has participated in operations in East Timor, the Iraq War, the War in Afghanistan, and the intervention against the Islamic State of Iraq. The RAAF has 259 aircraft, of which 110 are combat aircraft, the RAAF traces its history back to the Imperial Conference held in London in 1911, where it was decided aviation should be developed within the armed forces of the British Empire. By 1914 the corps was known as the Australian Flying Corps, soon after the outbreak of war in 1914, the Australian Flying Corps sent aircraft to assist in capturing German colonies in what is now north-east New Guinea. However, these colonies surrendered quickly, before the planes were even unpacked, the first operational flights did not occur until 27 May 1915, when the Mesopotamian Half Flight was called upon to assist the Indian Army in protecting British oil interests in what is now Iraq. The corps later saw action in Egypt, Palestine and on the Western Front throughout the remainder of the First World War, by the end of the war, four squadrons—Nos. 1,2,3 and 4—had seen operational service, while another four training squadrons—Nos,5,6,7 and 8—had also been established. A total of 460 officers and 2,234 other ranks served in the AFC, casualties included 175 dead,111 wounded,6 gassed and 40 captured. The Australian Flying Corps remained part of the Australian Army until 1919, although the Central Flying School continued to operate at Point Cook, military flying virtually ceased until 1920, when the Australian Air Corps was formed. The Australian Air Force was formed on 31 March 1921, king George V approved the prefix Royal in June 1921 and became effective on 31 August 1921. The RAAF then became the second Royal air arm to be formed in the British Commonwealth, when formed the RAAF had more aircraft than personnel, with 21 officers and 128 other ranks and 153 aircraft. A total of 17 RAAF bomber, fighter, reconnaissance and other squadrons served initially in Britain and with the Desert Air Force located in North Africa, thousands of Australians also served with other Commonwealth air forces in Europe during the Second World War. About nine percent of the personnel who served under British RAF commands in Europe and this statistic is further illustrated by the fact that No.460 Squadron RAAF, mostly flying Avro Lancasters, had an official establishment of about 200 aircrew and yet had 1,018 combat deaths. The squadron was therefore effectively wiped out five times over, total RAAF casualties in Europe were 5,488 killed or missing. The beginning of the Pacific War—and the rapid advance of Japanese forces—threatened the Australian mainland for the first time in its history, the RAAF was quite unprepared for the emergency, and initially had negligible forces available for service in the Pacific
7.
CAC Boomerang
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The CAC Boomerang was a fighter aircraft designed and manufactured in Australia by the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation between 1942 and 1945. The type holds the distinction of being the first combat aircraft to be designed and constructed in Australia. The effectiveness of the Boomerang has been contested, the aircraft proving to be slower than contemporary fighter aircraft, during early wartime operations, the Boomerang was mainly dispatched to equip home-based squadrons, freeing up other fighters for use elsewhere overseas. In later service, the Boomerang would commonly be used for support duties, cooperating with Allied army units, in addition to secondary roles such as aerial reconnaissance. While British manufacturers were the source of RAAF aircraft, by 1942. In late 1941, Lawrence Wackett, Manager and Chief Designer of CAC, Wackett quickly made the decision to use elements of aircraft which were already being produced in Australia. Only two military aircraft were in production at the time, the CAC Wirraway, based on the North American NA-16, and the Bristol Beaufort bomber. Overseas, the NA-16 had already become the basis of the North American NA-50 fighter, crucially, CACs licence to manufacture the Wirraway already contained a clause allowing the design to be modified. However, Australian-made Beauforts used 1,200 horsepower Pratt & Whitney R-1830 Twin Wasp engines, David was well-suited to the CAC project, since he had previously worked for Heinkel in pre-Nazi Germany, as well as Mitsubishi and Aichi in Japan. As a result of this past, David possessed an excellent understanding of advanced designs, including the Mitsubishi A6M. In December 1941, the management of CAC issued its authorisation to proceed with the design of the new fighter aircraft. It had a new single seat cockpit complete with a sliding hood, accordingly, on 18 February 1942, the Australian War Cabinet authorised an order for 105 CA-12 aircraft, shortly thereafter, the name Boomerang was selected for the aircraft. The ordering of production aircraft had made in advance of any prototype being produced or maiden flight performed. On 29 May 1942, the prototype Boomerang, A46-1, conducted its maiden flight from Fishermans Bend and this initial prototype had been completed within only three months of having received the order to proceed, which was a considerably rare accomplishment for the era. An issue with engine cooling was encountered, which led to a revision of the oil cooler intake, on 15 July, No.1 Aircraft Depot of the RAAF formally received A46-1 from CAC. It was found that the Boomerang was faster in flight than the Buffalo. The Boomerang was superior in armament, with two 20 mm cannon and four.303 calibre machine guns, all mounted in the short and its pilots were better protected, with generous armour plating, than Japanese fighter pilots. In June 1943, manufacturing work upon the order for 105 CA-12s was completed
8.
Bougainville Campaign
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The Bougainville Campaign was a series of land and naval battles of the Pacific campaign of World War II between Allied forces and the Empire of Japan. It was part of Operation Cartwheel, the Allied grand strategy in the South Pacific, the campaign took place in the Northern Solomons in two phases. The first phase, in which American troops invaded and held the perimeter around the beachhead at Torokina, before the war, Bougainville had been administered as part of the Australian Territory of New Guinea, even though, geographically, Bougainville is part of the Solomon Islands chain. As a result, within the accounts of the campaign it is referred to as part of both the New Guinea and the Solomon Islands campaigns. During their occupation the Japanese constructed naval aircraft bases in the north, east, and south of the island and they developed a naval anchorage at Tonolei Harbor near Buin, their largest base, on the southern coastal plain of Bougainville. On the nearby Treasury and Shortland Islands they built airfields, naval bases and anchorages, to the Allies, Bougainville would later also be considered vital for neutralizing the Japanese base around Rabaul. In March–April 1942, the Japanese landed on Bougainville as part of their advance into the South Pacific, at the time, there was only a small Australian garrison on the island which consisted of about 20 soldiers from the 1st Independent Company and some coastwatchers. Shortly after the Japanese arrived, the bulk of the Australian force was evacuated by the Allies, once secured, the Japanese began constructing a number of airfields across the island. The airfield at Kahili was known by the Japanese as Buin Airfield, at the opening of the Allied offensives, their estimates of Japanese strength on Bougainville varied widely, ranging between 45,000 and 65,000 Army, Navy, and labour personnel. These forces constituted the Japanese 17th Army, commanded by General Harukichi Hyakutake, hyukatake reported to General Hitoshi Imamura, commander of the Japanese Eighth Area Army, headquartered at Rabaul on New Britain Island. Naval command at Rabaul was the responsibility of Vice Admiral Jinichi Kusaka, the level of cooperation between these two officers was greater than that usually found between the branches of the Japanese armed forces. The 17th Infantry occupied northern Bougainville, while the 6th had responsibility for the south of Tarina. Reduction of the main Japanese base at Rabaul was the goal of the Allied offensive in the Solomons. To achieve this, Allied planners formulated Operation Cartwheel, by 1943 Rabaul was already within range of Allied heavy bombers, but a closer airfield was needed for light bombers and escort fighters. Thus, the island of Bougainville did not need to be occupied. According to Morison this was the one and only reason why the JCS authorized Halsey to seize a section of Bougainville, the area around Cape Torokina was settled on since, among other things, the Japanese were not there in force and had no airfield there. Bougainville lay within the Southwest Pacific Area, so operations were nominally under the command of General Douglas MacArthur, whose headquarters were in Brisbane, Australia. Although MacArthur had to all major moves, he gave planning and operational control to Admiral William F. Halsey
9.
Shimla
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Shimla, also known as Simla, is the capital and largest city of the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. Shimla is also a district which is bounded by Mandi and Kullu in the north, Kinnaur in the east, the state of Uttarakhand in the south-east, in 1864, Shimla was declared as the summer capital of British India, succeeding Murree, northeast of Rawalpindi. After independence, the city became the capital of Punjab and was named the capital of Himachal Pradesh. It is the commercial, cultural and educational centre of the hilly regions of the state. As of 2011, the city had 171,817 permanent residents, small hamlets were recorded prior to 1815 when the English forces took control of the area. The climatic conditions attracted the British to establish the city in the forests of Himalayas. As the summer capital, Shimla hosted many important political meetings including the Simla Accord of 1914, after independence, the state of Himachal Pradesh came into being in 1948 as a result of integration of 28 princely states. Even after independence, the city remained an important political centre, after the reorganisation, the Mahasu district and its major portion were merged with Shimla. Its name is derived from the goddess Shyamala Devi, an incarnation of the Hindu goddess Kali, Shimla is home to a number of buildings that are styled in the Tudorbethan and neo-Gothic architectures dating from the colonial era, as well as multiple temples and churches. The colonial architecture and churches, the temples and the beauty of the city attract a large number of tourists. The major attractions include the Viceroy Lodge, the Christ Church, the Jakhoo Temple, the Mall Road and the Ridge, the Kalka–Shimla Railway line built by the British, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is also a major tourist attraction. Owing to its terrain, Shimla hosts the mountain biking race MTB Himalaya. Shimla also has the largest natural ice skating rink in South Asia, apart from being a tourism centre, the city is also an educational hub with a number of colleges and research institutions. The vast majority of the occupied by the present-day Shimla city was dense forest during the 18th century. The only civilisation consisted of the Jakhoo temple and a few scattered houses, the area was called Shimla, named after a Hindu goddess, Shyamala Devi, an incarnation of Kali. The area of present-day Shimla was invaded and captured by Bhimsen Thapa of Nepal in 1806, the British East India Company took control of the territory as per the Sugauli Treaty after the Anglo-Nepalese War. The Gurkha leaders were quelled by storming the fort of Malaun under the command of David Ochterlony in May 1815. In a diary entry dated 30 August 1817, the Gerard brothers, in 1819, Lieutenant Ross, the Assistant Political Agent in the Hill States, set up a wood cottage in Shimla
10.
Rotorua
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Rotorua is a city on the southern shores of the lake of the same name, in the Bay of Plenty Region of New Zealands North Island. It is the seat of the Rotorua District, a territorial authority encompassing Rotorua, the majority of the Rotorua District is in the Bay of Plenty Region, but a sizeable southern section and a small western section are in the Waikato Region. Rotorua is in the heart of the North Island,60 kilometres south of Tauranga,80 km north of Taupo,105 km east of Hamilton, and 230 km southeast of the nations most populous city, Auckland. Rotorua has a permanent population of 57,800, making it the countrys 10th largest urban area. The Rotorua District has an estimated population of 70,500. Rotorua is a destination for both domestic and international tourists, the tourism industry is by far the largest industry in the district. It is known for its activity, and features geysers – notably the Pohutu Geyser at Whakarewarewa –. This thermal activity is sourced to the Rotorua caldera, on which the town lies, Rotorua is home to the Waiariki Institute of Technology. The Lakes of Rotorua are a collection of many lakes surrounding Rotorua, the name Rotorua comes from Māori, the full name being Te Rotorua-nui-a-Kahumatamomoe, roto means lake and rua two – Rotorua thus meaning Second lake. Kahumatamomoe was the uncle of the Māori chief Ihenga, the explorer of the Te Arawa. It was the major lake the chief discovered, and he dedicated it to his uncle. It is the largest of a multitude found to the northeast, all connected with the Rotorua Caldera, the name can also mean the equally appropriate crater lake. The area was settled by Māori of the Te Arawa iwi. The first European in the area was probably Phillip Tapsell who was trading from the Bay of Plenty coast at Maketu from 1828 and he later married into Te Arawa and became highly regarded by them. Missionaries Henry Williams and Thomas Chapman visited in 1831 and Chapman and this was abandoned within a year but Chapman returned in 1838 and established a second mission at Mokoia Island. The lakeshore was a prominent site of skirmishes during the New Zealand Wars of the 1860s, a special town district was created in the 1883, to promote Rotoruas potential as a spa destination. Rotorua was established as a borough in 1922, elected its first mayor in 1923, the area of Rotorua has a relatively high altitude, measuring up to 290m or 950 ft. The Rotorua region enjoys a temperate climate
New Zealand
Royal New Zealand Air Force
