Avro 504K ZK-ACU restored

As you may know, the remains of ex-NZPAF 504 202/ZK-ACU have been scattered around parts of New Zealand for many years.
I now see – with delight – that the latest NZCAA register updates show that this aircraft has now been restored to the register as at 13Oct08:
http://www.caa.govt.nz/Script/Aircraft_Hist.asp?Aircraft_ID=7257

The owner is listed as The Vintage Aviator Limited, which is associated with film producer Peter Jackson.

This Avro was one of a batch of six new Avros ordered by the NZ Government in 1925 to replace the WW1 British Government Gift aircraft that had been in use in NZ since 1920.
They were serialled with their constructors numbers, 201 to 206.
These new Avros were in turn replaced by DH60 Moths, and the four survivors were sold onto the civil market in 1931.
202 was sold to J A Thomas, Frankton Junction who did not use it before passing the Avro on to F C Norton, Wanganui.
Norton crashed it at Wanganui 23Jan36. Remains to C Parker of New Plymouth. Airframe then to E R Brewster, who utilised some of the timber to construct his Flying Flea (which is now at the Taranaki Transport Museum). The remains of the Avro also went to the Taranaki Aviation Marine & Transport Museum & then to The Vintage Aero Club 1987 for rebuild by Stuart Tantrum at Levin.
When this fell through, and Stuart went to Omaka, the Avro bits went with him.

Despite some reports on the internet, this Avro is not a WW1 survivor, as the NZ Government ordered new machines at the time.

From Graeme Claridge’s Aviation Prints website

As an interesting note, when this Avro takes to the air again it will displace DH60 Moth ZK-ADT as NZ’s oldest airworthy aircraft, a distinction that it has held for many years.
The contenders are:

– Avro 504K 202/ZK-ACU f/f early 1925 – test flight in the UK?
– DH60G Moth G-AAJO/ZK-ADT f/f Jun29
– Spartan ZK-ABK f/f late 1929
– DH60M Moth G-AAXG/F-AJZB/G-AAXG/ZK-AEJ f/f Jun30
– DH83 Fox Moth G-ACAJ/G-ACDD/OO-ENC/G-ACDD/ZK-AEK f/f Nov32
– DH83 Fox Moth ZK-ADI ff/f late 1934
– Avro 626 NZ203 f/f Jun35

Everything else is too new!