Draft:Cliff Tait
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Clifford Vincent Tait (29 October 1929 - 9 October 2025) was a New Zealand aviator and author. In 1969, he circumnavigated the globe solo in a New Zealand built AESL Airtourer. He later joined New Zealand Aerospace as chief pilot, and ferried around 110 single-engine New Zealand built aircraft to different customers around the world. He set FAI records for a number of flights, including speed record for solo England to New Zealand flight in a single-engined aircraft. Tait died on 9 October 2025 following a stroke.
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Early life
Tait was born in Wellington, New Zealand, on 29 October 1929. He was educated at Stratford Technical High School and Sacred Heart College Auckland. He left school at the age of 15 to work as an apprentice engineer at Cable Price and later Bish Engineering.
Work History
At the age of 18, in 1977 Tait joined the Royal New Zealand Air Force as a student radio technician, but was discharged medically unfit the following year (due to a spinal defect). A series of jobs followed, including employment as a bus driver, conductor and motorman for the Auckland Tramway Board, and as an adult apprentice with Goodyear electrical.
In 1957, he established an electrical contracting business in Te Atatu. In 1965, he moved to Hamilton to take up a sales position with R. C. Dimock Ltd, a manufacturer of cash registers.
Aviation career
After moving to Hamilton, Tait learned to fly (in an Airtourer) in 1967, at the age of 37. In 1969, he bought an Airtourer 115, then being manufactured at the Aero Engine Services Ltd (AESL) factory in Hamilton. In 1969, Tait set out, as an amateur pilot, to fly around the world in his Airtourer as a personal effort to promote New Zealand. On the completion of his flight, Tait was offered a job as a ferry pilot for AESL, and made the first of a series of long range over-water delivery flights in late 1970.
In 1973, AESL had changed ownership to become New Zealand Aerospace Industries Limited (NZAIL), and Tait was appointed Chief Pilot. He continued long range ferry flights until the early 1980s, making an estimated 110 single-engine flights delivering Airtourers, Fletchers, and Airtrainers.
Tait's 1969 around-the-world flight was documented in his book Flight of the Kiwi: Around the world solo in a tiny single engine plane (1970).
Tait borrowed NZD1,000 from his then employer, R. C. Dimock Ltd, to purchase AESL Airtourer 115 ZK-CXU for a flight to promote New Zealand manufacture. Tait named the aircraft "Miss Jacy".
Tait departed Hamilton on 12 May 1969 for Norfolk Island, New Caledonia, Espiritu Santo, Honiara, Rabaul, Kavieng, Truk, Guam, Iwo Jima and Tokyo. The flight was then interrupted when the USSR would not provide clearance to fly through Soviet airspace. Tait then dismantled the Airtourer and packed it into a container, and then shipped the aircraft from Tokyo to Seattle, and on to Vancouver by rail. Tait re-assembled the aircraft and flew from Vancouver to Lethbridge, Winnipeg, Moncton, Goose Bay, Narsarssuaq, Sondre Stromfjord, Angmagssalik Kulusuk, Reykjavik, Prestwick, London, Marseille, Rome, Athens, Cyprus, Damascus, Badanah, Bahrain, Karachi, Lahore, New Delhi, Varanasi, Calcutta, Rangoon, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Mau Hau, Jakarta, Bali, Darwin, Mount Isa, Longreach, Brisbane and Norfolk Island. Tait arrived back at Hamilton on 1 August 1969. The total flight time was 284 hours, and the distance travelled was 49,000 km (30,500-miles).
Books
In addition to Flight of the Kiwi, Tait wrote the book 'Water Under My Wings', chronicling his many long distance flights.