Passionate farmer, pilot known for innovation
Date | 22 June 2021 |
Published date | 22 June 2021 |
Publication title | Ensign, The |
A forward thinker who relished the creative development process, after carefully researching and planning a project, he was immediately into action. He had limited tolerance for inaction and ‘‘bureaucrats’’ wasting his precious time.
A popular man, often described as larger than life, with a welcoming smile and an engaging personality, he enjoyed the company of others, good conversation, and rigorous debate.
Phillip never wasted a moment of his 62 years. He lived life to the full, achieving much before his death, on February 2, in an aircraft accident on the Old Man Range, understood to be the consequence of a sudden and unexpected weather event.
‘‘Phillip was fortunate to be able to combine his passions for both aviation and farming, using his aircraft to commute frequently between his homes in Bannockburn and Pukerau,’’ close friend and fellow aviator Shaun Gilbertson said.
‘‘This is a return trip he would have done over 500 times, passing over some beautiful landscapes — both mountains and rolling farmland. Phillip never took these for granted.’’
Phillip Gordon Pullar was born in Gore on May 6, 1958, the eldest child of Margaret and the late Gordon Pullar, and sibling of Karen, Bronwyn and Logan.
He was educated at Pukerau Primary School and Gore High School, where he was acknowledged as a good hockey player and an exceptional swimmer, competing throughout New Zealand in both sports.
As a youth, he played the piano, organ, and double bass, and throughout his life, he enjoyed good music.
A keen Scout, he attended the national Jamboree in Pukekohe over the 1971-72 summer school holidays, where he was awarded a flight training scholarship. Fascinated by flying, space and astronomy from a young age, he made his first solo flight with the Gore Aero Club at age 16.
An enthusiastic photographer, tramper, and shortwave radio operator in his youth, as an adult he enjoyed boating, fishing and holidays with family and friends.
After leaving secondary school, Phillip worked for sheep farmer Jim Young at Kaiwera, near Gore, then the Lovett family on an arable farm near Ashburton, growing grain and potatoes.
Following graduation from Lincoln College with a diploma of agriculture in 1979, he worked on a vegetable and cropping property in Scotland, toured Europe, and returned to New Zealand in 1981 to work on the family property, Crichton...
To continue reading
Request your trial