All services were withdrawn and taken over by TEAL on 15 October 1952, except for Norfolk Island which continued until September 1955. In June 1975, Air New Zealand commenced Norfolk Island services with a chartered NAC Fokker F27-500 Friendship. NAC wanted to return to the Pacific area in the late 1970s and began to lobby the NZ Government for a return of its international licence as it planned to equip with the larger Boeing 727-200. This was one of the catalysts for the forced merger with Air New Zealand in 1978, as the latter airline felt it could lose the Pacific Islands and charter market to NAC. Fleet history Piston power After World War Two NAC continued to rely on prewar 'tailwheel' types of aircraft. Both the high-speed twin-engine 10 seat Lockheed Model 10 Electra and the 15 seat Lockheed Lodestar were used, along with the slower British built de Havilland Rapide/Dominie and single-engine Fox Moth. All three twin-engine types could operate into all airports while the Rapide and Fox Moth could land on remote beaches on the West Coast as well as some lighthouse station airstrips. The de Havilland Dominie operated until 1963. Douglas DC-3 The Douglas DC-3 was the airline's major type right through to the mid-1960s with up to 27 being operated over time. NAC operated a large airfreight network using dedicated DC-3 cargo planes under the 'Freightair' banner. These aircraft operated into airports that were not on the regular passenger network, such as Opotiki, Masterton, Alexandra and Roxburgh. In the 1960s NAC's 12 best DC-3 "Douglas Liner" airframes were upgraded. This included better soundproofing, new interior fittings, and the fitting of larger windows. This was in response to competition in the provincial market from SPANZ, who operated DC-3s equipped with large double sized 'viewmaster' windows. NAC's upgraded aircraft were branded as 'Skyliners'. In 1954, NAC asked the government to encourage the development of airports so it could operate the Convair 440 or the Elizabethan airliner. NAC continued using DC-3s into the 1970s. Kaikohe was permanently dropped as a destination in 1972. Passenger services to Timaru and Oamaru were operated with DC-3s until their runways were paved. One 'Skyliner' DC-3 renamed Waitaki was kept on for this service, until December 1974. De Havilland Heron NAC operated one tricycle landing gear type of piston-powered airliner in the 1950s, the de Havilland Heron 1. Being the first four Herons