The North American Harvard is probably the best known RNZAF aircraft type, thanks to many years service with the Red Checkers display team, and then beyond that with the civil Roaring Forties display team. Eventually 202 Harvards of various marks were taken on charge with the Royal New Zealand Air Force. The first twelve Harvard II's arrived in New Zealand in March 1941, and were assembled at Hobsonville. These were American built aircraft, but to a British order so with British cockpit systems. In the USA they were known as the AT-6A. Of them, three (NZ901, 902 and 904) entered RNZAF service with the Central Flying School at RNZAF Tauranga to train instructors on the type. The other nine were divided up issued to No's 1, 2 and 3 Service Flying Training Schools respectively at Wigram, Woodbourne and Ohakea. In June 1941 two more batches of Mk II Harvards arrived in NZ bringing the total in service to 67 aircraft, between CFS, and the SFTS's. A further 38 Harvard II's arrived in January 1942, bringing total strength to 105 machines, which were designated as NZ901 through to NZ1005. Compared with the obsolete Gordons, Hinds, Vincents and Vildebeest biplanes they replaced at the Service Flying Training Schools at Wigram and Woodbourne, the two-seat monoplane Harvard proved powerful, comfortable and a very suitable lead in to the fighters like Kittyhawk, Corsair and Spitfire.
With the entry of Japan into the war, the RNZAF restructured itself into a defensive, and later offensive force, rather than simply a training institute for the Commonwealth Air Training Plan. This meant No. 3 SFTS at Ohakea disbanded so that station became an operational training unit, and No's 1 and 2 SFTS were expanded. Then in June 1942 Wigram became a completely multi-engined training station with Oxfords, while Woodbourne's SFTS training strength became 1/3rd multi-engined (Oxfords) and 2/3rds single-engine training with Harvards. Thus most training Harvards moved to Woodbourne, with a peak of some 60 Harvards on strength operationally at 2 SFTS at one point. In October 1943, the first of the RNZAF's new Mk III Harvards arrived. These all metal aircraft had a different electrical system from the Mk II, being 24 volt. They also had the US style cockpit layout as opposed to the British style Mk II that had been supplied under the Empire Air Training Scheme (or also known as the Commonwealth Air Training Plan). These later model aircraft continued to arrive in New Zealand through till November 1944, though not all were Mk II's. The odd different model crept into the package, with the likes of NZ1070 being a Mk IIA which had a wooden rear fuselage (from a time when the manufacturer was having difficulty in sourcing necessary metal componentry, an issue later resolved by the time the Mk III's were being built). Also three Mk IIB models arrived (NZ1100, NZ1101 and NZ1102). These were Mk II's but built under licence in Canada by the Noordyn Aircraft Company. these were known in the USA as the AT-16.
By late 1944 the situation in the Pacific was going the Allies' way so No. 2 SFTS was closed down, and the Harvards moved back to Wigram. The CFS moved from Tauranga to Woodbourne to take the school's place, thus maintaining a small Harvard connection there. Of course training at the SFTS's was not the only role for the Harvard in WWII. many were used as communications aircraft and there was hardly a station in the country that didn't have at least one Harvard attached for this purpose. The type also came into play as a fighter-bomber under the Forces Available For Anti-Invasion (FAFAI) Scheme, which saw guns and bomb racks fitted to Harvards (and other types) within training schools in case of Japanese invasion. The instructors would have been their brave pilots, in a desperate, perhaps suicidal, attempt to stem an invasion force.
Harvards also served with No. 2 (Fighter) Operational Training Unit at Ohakea, and No. 14 (Fighter) Squadron at Hood Aerodrome, Masterton. Others served as trainers for dive bomber squadrons, on strength with No. 25 Squadron at Seagrove (and later No. 26 Sqn there), and No's 30 and 31 Squadrons at Gisborne. By war's end most of the 150 surviving Harvards were withdrawn to storage. All the Mk II's and most Mk III's went to Wigram to be stored, while the Mk IIA's went to Ashburton to await their fate. The MkII's never flew again, (apart from NZ1004 for a short period) and many became instructional airframes. In 1949 however the Compulsory Military Training Scheme saw the Mk III Harvards return to service at Wigram, after an overhaul at No. 1 Repair Depot, Woodbourne. And the four Territorial Air Force squadrons (No. 1 Sqn at Whenuapai, No. 2 Sqn at Ohakea, No. 3 Sqn at Wigram and No. 4 Sqn at Taieri)were issued with Mk IIA's from Ashburton.
From 1953 the MkIII's were again withdrawn, replaced by the Mk IIA's which had now been modified to Mk IIA* standard. From 1955 when the TAF Mustangs were withdrawn some of the stored MK III's were issued to the TAF, serving till 1957. Then the TAF disbanded and the Mk III's went to Woodbourne for overhaul. The Mk III's then replaced the Mk IIA*'s at Wigram, which all went into storage apart from the odd station hack and a handful with No. 42 (Communications) Squadron. In 1959, the 59 surviving Mk II's (which had not been active at all and were used for training purposes or stored) were sold to Bennett Aviation at Te Kuiti for scrapping. Parts of these aircraft were later used in the Bennett Airtruck topdresser, a short lived venture that had little success. Others from the scrap yard ended up in park playgrounds, such as in Tauranga, Takapau, Pahiatua, and Methven, and one still resides in the Museum of Transport and Technology. others have survived elsewhere. In 1977 the Mk III harvards were finally withdrawn and replaced by the NZAI Airtrainer. At this point most were stored for a short time then tendered for disposal, and good numbers went into private hands, where today well over a dozen remain active today, and many more in Australia.