Captain Bert Mercer’s postal service south also carried supplies and the odd passenger, using the beach as a landing area. His plane, ZK ADI would become a familiar sight and sound in the sky. Many stories have become legends, including the plane being attacked by a bull during takeoff at the Weheka landing strip which aborted the service temporarily. Bulls in these years tended to be much wilder than today’s species.
The air service developed slowly over time and was used by mountaineers, deer hunters and sightseers. Mt Cook Airlines began operating from Fox Glacier in the late 1950s and they introduced the development of ski-planes to land on the glacier. Later in 1970, Glacier Helicopters began flying in the region. In a chapter titled Alpine Aviators in my book Westland Heritage, I included a recollection by Mick Sullivan Jnr. With Harry Wigley at the helm of an Auster aircraft newly fitted with skis, they had landed on the Fox neve just below Pioneer Hut. At the high altitude the engine lacked power so with one on each side of the plane pushing like hell and with throttle wide open, Wigley yelled at him “for God’s sake get in fast when she starts to go.”
A considerable amount has been written about the development of aviation on the West Coast and these books are available in public libraries, or, if out of print, in the New Zealand room of libraries.
Mick had met and married his wife, Agnes Boyle, in 1918 when 37 years of age. In time they became known to everyone both in the district and further afield as Uncle Mick and Auntie Ag. The distinctive style of the home he had built for his bride remains a landmark in the district. Of his three brothers, Patrick, as already stated, was deceased, Lawrence worked for his brothers on family land for a time and John (Jack) concentrated on running and extending the Sullivan land holdings. He suffered greatly as a result of leg injuries incurred during WWI. The wives and family members, as they grew old enough, also worked in the hostel, with other local relatives helping out when business was brisk.
83
