Search for the Dragonfly – November 2023
For 61 years, the whereabouts of New Zealand’s most famous lost aircraft has eluded searchers. Last weekend, a major exercise was launched to find the Dragonfly plane that disappeared carrying a honeymooning couple and three others. Mike White joined Wānaka’s … Continued
Operation Ada- April 2022
Wanaka Search and Rescue canyon/swift water team Milford Sound area – April 28-31 – 2022 Mid-morning on Tuesday, April 29, Wanaka Search and Rescue canyon/swiftwater team coordinator Roy Bailey received a call from Wanaka Police asking him to place a … Continued
Gillespie Pass: 2015
20-year-old American student Ally Willen went missing after crossing the Gillespie Pass with two other young American female students in torrential rain, hail and gale force winds. Ally died – while making her way, alone, through flood water covering a section of the … Continued
New SAR base is completed
A far cry from operating out of the Wanaka Police Station’s meeting room. Grants and donations have enabled our volunteers to construct a SAR base building permanently set up with communications, specialist equipment, and state of the art Incident Management … Continued
LandSAR NZ Supreme Award
The LandSAR New Zealand national office has a series of annual awards honoring individual contributions. At the top of the tree is the “Supreme Award”. This is not necessarily presented annually, and requires extraordinary skills, commitment and circumstances. Wanaka Search … Continued
Cascade Saddle: 2009
Auckland woman Irena Yun set out in January 2009 to tramp the tough 8-10 hour Cascade Saddle route from Aspiring Hut in the West Matukituki to the Dart Hut on the upper Dart River. Travelling alone, she rejected warnings that … Continued
