Don’t even think about entering Truckie McTruck-Face, it won’t have a chance.
That’s the inside word from a competition being run by Hawke’s Bay Airport on New Zealand’s east coast to name its new fire truck.
I have a personal connection to this airport, as it was here that I first fell in love with aviation, growing up in nearby Hastings. So, I wanted to share this lovely story from the team in Aotearoa about the competition.
Hawke’s Bay Airport Business Development Manager, Judi Godbold told Traveltalk that despite the competition only being open for a few days, there’s already been hundreds of entries.
“The naming competition has been running for less than a week and we have already had over 700 entries from the community which is incredible.
“We don’t have any guidelines as such but we are excluding names that use profanities and derogatory terms. We’ve been pleasantly surprised by the number of thoughtful entries so far,” Godbold said.
The new truck is a Rosenbauer Panther.
The Panther has a 700 horsepower engine, applies new car technology, can carry 7400 litres of water, and its two monitors can spray water up to 90 metres.
It was purchased as part of a joint procurement process with two other NZ airports and cost $1.6M.
It will be based at Hawke’s Bay Airport on the North Island’s east coast.
Hawke’s Bay is a Great Wine Capital of the world and boasts some of the best food, wine and weather in New Zealand.
Hawke’s Bay Airport services more than 650,000 domestic passengers a year and while that won’t be many from an Australian perspective, the airport terminal is the gateway to the region by air.
“We believe in authentic community engagement which is why we’re running the naming competition. Before the fire truck is fully operational, our fire team will be taking it around to local schools for the kids to get involved in the naming competition too,” Godbold said.
If you think you’re smart enough to out do the locals with a name, then head here to enter: https://www.hawkesbay-airport.co.nz
