Sir Tim Wallis dies: Wife remembers aviation pioneer as ‘special bloke’

Tim Wallis, founder of Warbirds over Wānaka, pictured at the Classic Flyers museum in 2007. He has died, aged 85. Photo / File

The wife of legendary adventurer, aviation entrepreneur and Warbirds over Wānaka founder Sir Tim Wallis has paid tribute to “a special bloke” who was well-loved by his family.

Wallis passed away yesterday afternoon, aged 85, surrounded by family and with a helicopter outside his window.

Last night, Lady Prue Wallis told the Otago Daily Times how he will be missed.

“He was a tough cookie,” she told the ODT.

“He loved his family and his sons.

“He died peacefully at home with both sons and me there, with his favourite helicopter parked by the window.”

Prue Wallis said today was the anniversary of the death of their son Nick in 2018 – which tragically came just three months after another son Matthew died in a helicopter crash in Wanaka.

“We thought he would hold out for that, but no, he wanted to give himself his own day.”

In a statement to media, his family described him as “an exceptional man who led a wonderful life”.

The businessman from Greymouth, who discovered that helicopters were ideal for live captures, helped establish the deer farming industry in New Zealand.

In 1994, Wallis received a knighthood for his contributions to the community and deer farming exports.

In addition, he established Warbirds over Wānaka, an airshow that attracts 50,000 spectators every second Easter.

Wallis bought his first helicopter in 1964, and crashed while learning to fly the following year.

Tim Wallis. File photo / Paul Taylor

Wallis’ enthusiasm for flying continued, however, and developed into a love affair with classic planes, leading to purchases and reconstructions of, among others, Soviet and American fighters - and a Supermarine Spitfire Mark 16 which he loved to fly.

A Spitfire crash in 1996 left him in a wheelchair.

Warbirds Over Wānaka Community Trust chairman John Gilks said Wallis has left an “amazing legacy”.

“Today the airshow attracts more than 50,000 people over three days and pumps $42 million into the regional economy,” Gilks said.

According to Gilks, Wallis first arranged the airshow primarily to display his collection of WWII aircraft to the public and to draw tourists to Wanaka, which “was a sleepy little town back then”.

“He achieved all of that and a lot more,” Gilks said.

“He was a real business entrepreneur and his legacy in this region goes way beyond the airshow.”

Warbirds Over Wānaka general manager Ed Taylor recalled fond memories of Wallis from his time with him.

“Sir Tim was a regular out at his airport office and I loved nothing more than having chats with him which almost always were about the airshow,” Taylor said.

“He loved nothing more than talking about aircraft and the airshow.

“I might be talking to a relatively young Warbird display pilot in the US or Europe and they would ask after Sir Tim – they all knew him by name.”

A funeral for Wallis will be held at the Wānaka Airport later next week.