NEWSLETTER
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UNITED KINGDOM Association NEWSLETTER |
| No 166 | July 2001 |
Last year we visited the fine setting in the Henley Rowing Club grounds on the bank of the Thames. Happily the same prospect beckons this year. All that is required from the social subcommittee, apart from supporting beverages and foods barbecued to their customary perfection, is a clear fine day.
So put Sunday 5th August into your diary and come along to Henley Rowing Club and forget your worries while dangling your feet in the water and watching a slow moving scene of varied shapes and sizes of boats gliding past.
The details:
| Location: | Henley-on-Thames Rowing Club, about a mile from the town centre across the river and right into Wargrave Road (A321) as shown on the enclosed map. Rail travelers use Thames trains from Paddington or Reading |
| Date: | Sunday, 5 August 2001 |
| Time: | 12:00 noon onwards |
| Price: | £7.00 per head (children free) plus some help please with salads, deserts, and furniture as described below, |
Please gather your guests, complete the reply slip and return it without delay so that preparations for your delectation can proceed in good time. Melissa Kirker (Tel 0118 934 2437 in evenings) has kindly volunteered to coordinate the salads. She will coordinate your offerings to avoid, as far as possible, imbalances in our provisions. Please let her know what you propose to bring. In general, requirements are:
| - from committee members and partners | - | a salad or desert plate |
| - from other members and partners | - | a desert plate if you wish |
| - from all of you | - | some garden chairs, tables, sun umbrellas, if you have them, games and a helping hand with the laying out of tables, food, clearing and the washing up on the day |
Finally be sure to come and enjoy a nice day out. Don't forget hats, sunscreen etc.
| Chairman: | Gordon Weir | |
| Honorary Secretary: | Malcolm Davidson | |
| Honorary Treasurer: | Selwyn Aickin | |
| Committee Members | Grabam Barber [ex-officio] | |
| Lindsay Barr | ||
| Rachel Felton | ||
| Ian Kirker | ||
| Graham Withers |
The new comiittee will meet on the 26th of July to organise a coordinated set of events for members to attend in the coming year.
Articles for the Newsletter
As always, contributions to the newsletter would be very much appreciated. If you have any news for us, events, etc., that you would like us to tell people about in the newsletter, please e-mail or fax them to the Hon. Secretary. Feel free to write about the projects you are working on, any differences in British practice compared with NZ, or how you resolved any particular difficulties encountered.
News From New Zealand
Jail for US sellers of fatal chopper parts
A father and son have been imprisoned for more than a year in Los Angeles for their part in a bogus helicopter parts scam that killed two New Zealanders. Deer hunters Chris Midgley and Ross McMurtrie, both 27, died in October 1995 when their Robinson R22 plunged onto State Highway 35 and was ripped apart by fire and exploding ammunition. Frank Curtis Cherry jnr, 57, and his son Frank Curtis Cherry III, 33, pleaded guilty last October in the District Court in Los Angeles to making false statements about a Robinson R22 helicopter and other parts. Cherry jnr was today sentenced to 18 months in prison. He faced a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and fines of up to $1.25 million. His son was sentenced to 14 months in prison. The maximum for his crimes was five years' prison and fines of up to $618,000. The two men who died had bought the helicopter two weeks earlier from local pilot James Edward Gedson, 53. The helicopter was one of two Gedson bought from the Cherrys. At their family-run spare parts firm in Torrance, California, the Cherrys had refurbished both with parts they said were newer than that they actually were. In court last October, Assistant Attorney Alejandro Mayorkas said the Cherrys claimed the blade had flown for only 621 hours when it had actually done 1999 - just one hour short of the maximum allowed. Mr Mayorkas said the main blade and a bogus tail rotor were fitted to an R22 sent to New Zealand. The men also fitted a bogus tail rotor to another Robinson - the one that crashed - and made it look real by sticking genuine caps on the ends of the blades. New Zealand scientists found that glue on the rotor came unstuck, causing the chopper to crash. Gedson, who maintains his innocence, spent two years in Auckland's Mt Eden Prison after being convicted of manslaughter in 1997. He was found guilty of importing counterfeit tail rotor blades fitted to the helicopter and allowing it to be flown. The Cherry case became a New Zealand milestone in February this year when the Americans sent a virtual travelling roadshow of attorneys, FBI agents and investigators to Tauranga. They were armed with video and tape-decks to record statements from witnesses. Staff at the Ministry of Justice and Department for Courts said the visit was extremely unusual. Gedson's manslaughter conviction was the first in the world for fitting bogus parts to an aircraft, and the number of international witnesses at his trial - 17 - was also thought to be a New Zealand record.
Enza adamant growers to pay
Directors on Enza Ltd's besieged board last night fought back against their critics in the run-up to Monday's crucial meeting of the company's board. A spokesman for the company declined to disclose where the meeting would be held or when but issued a statement making it clear that Enza is sticking to its guns in saying growers should pay the company's foreign exchange debts rather than shareholders.New Zealand Pipfruit Growers Otago chairman Stephen Darling said last night he was astounded Enza intended to persist with its plans to deduct the money from orchardists. "Such a move would effect some growers viability to continue operating," he said. However, growers would not sit back and let that happen without a fight, he said. "Growers will use every means available to fight this move. I believe Enza's proposal to try to take this money is morally wrong," Mr Darling said. Otago growers will meetNational MP Nick Smith in Alexandra tomorrow to voice their concerns. Enza has started deducting $4.50 a carton from early payment for fruit in the past fortnight, while growers have complained half the claimed $50 million of debt is actually a $25 million loss on foreign currency options which will not be brought to book until June 20 next year. Growers and Enza critics, such as Dr Smith, have said the company cannot legally deduct from this season's fruit payments potential forex losses expected next year. Agriculture Minister Jim Sutton has said crown lawyers support the growers' opinions that Enza could not deduct next year's foreign exchange losses from this year's returns.
Burst pipes create havoc
Dozens of desperate Wakatipu residents face waits of up to a week for plumbers after burst pipes have left some homes flooded with ankle-deep water. Some residents have been forced out of their homes and frantic receptionists have been copping flak from angry victims unable to get plumbers and drying equipment for days on end.Close to 100 homes are thought to have been affected by burst pipes in the extreme cold temperatures over the past four or five days. Many affected residents are away for the school holidays, while others were alerted by neighbours spotting water running out the doors. Although an estimated 20 to 30 plumbing companies were operating in the area, many from out of town, they were all rushing to meet contract deadlines, C H Faul manager Neal Young said on Thursday. "There are so many plumbers precommitted on set contract timetables they can't afford to take plumbers off as some of these jobs have huge liquidator damages if they're not finished on time," Mr Young said. His receptionist had fielded more than 50 calls about burst pipes in the past three days and had to turn many people away. She had been abused by some angry callers, wading in up to 5cms of water in their homes. "It seems callous, but there's basically nothing we can do, we've run out of plumbers," Mr Young said.CH Faul's spent almost $5000 advertising nationwide and on the internet for plumbers and got no responses. Chemdry carpet cleaners had run out of drying equipment having to hire extra gear from Dunedin. "Every time the phone goes it's another burst pipe," co-owner Fran McFarlane said. Victoria Gray and her two Arrowtown flatmates were forced out of their Davey's Place home after it was inundated with up to 5cm of water on Tuesday when pipes burst in the ceiling.
Wellington roars with Lions fever
British Lions fever has hit the Capital. Expats are shelling out big bucks on the red Lions rugby jersey, creating a sea of red support. The jerseys cost just under $150 each but several sports stores in the Capital have sold out. Lifestyle Sports on Willis St had sold 50 in two batches within a fortnight. Store spokesman Jason Warren said demand for Lions gear had outstripped that for All Blacks merchandise. Stirling Sports, also in Willis St, said the same. Spokesman Greg Jolliffe said the shop had asked Adidas in Auckland to send more after selling out in less than a week. But they were told demand was so great that reserve stocks imported from Britain had already gone. Adidas New Zealand spokesman Andrew Gaze said 1500 jerseys were imported into New Zealand and sold to stockists. "We had to buy them in 750-lot units so we were not sure, given the small window (of time) the tour lasts for, we would sell 750 more," he said. He was surprised stockists reported Lions jerseys were more popular than All Blacks shirts.
Team New Zealand Sponsorship
Team New Zealand have signed German software giant SAP to the "family of five" sponsorship spot left vacant by Television New Zealand.
The multimillion-dollar package gives SAP exclusive naming rights on the Team New Zealand spinnakers as well as sharing sponsorship signs with Telecom, Toyota, Lotto and Steinlager on the hulls and mainsails of the black boats.
The deal is a big boost for the New Zealand campaign to retain the America's Cup in 2003. SAP co-chairman Hasso Plattner told the Herald last month that talks with Team New Zealand about a major sponsorship deal had broken down, but it was still interested in a minor sponsorship role. But Team New Zealand chief executive Ross Blackman said Mr Plattner's comments were made in the context of market rumours that SAP was looking at a sponsorship figure that exceeded the syndicate's whole campaign budget.
TVNZ said last month that it would retain broadcasting rights but was pulling its One logo from the "family of five" because sponsorship costs were much higher now.
Sponsorship requirements for the next cup defence are tipped to be as high as $85 million. The main sponsors are believed to have contributed about $5 million each to the last campaign. SAP is the world's third-largest software company. It holds naming rights for the US grand prix and is a corporate partner of the McLaren Formula One team.
Martin Homlish, SAP global marketing chief, said the America's Cup provided the company with a powerful marketing vehicle to expose its brand to millions of people.
Dates for Your Diary
| Joint Technical Meeting with IEAust | To Be Advised |
| IPENZ BBQ | Sunday, 5 August 2001 |
| Graduates Evening | Thursday, 25 October or 1 November 2001 |
| Christmas Soirée at New Zealand House | Friday, 7 December 2001 |
| Possible failure/problem evening | To Be Advised |
| Traffic Management talk | To Be Advised |
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