The first thing you notice about Tony and Carolyn Whitehead's Pauanui property is the plane parked in the hangar under the house.
Sure, there's a garage as well, but taking pride of place in the wide hangar, facing the Pauanui Airfield, is Tony's Italian Alpi Pioneer two-seater.
"I have always had an interest in aviation and when we used to come here from Auckland for holidays - we had a bach in McCall Ave - I would bring an aeroplane down and use the airfield," says Tony.
"I always had this idea that maybe one day it would be great to have a house on the airfield ... pull my aeroplane out and take off from my backyard. That was the prime motivation for being on the airfield."
The Whiteheads had been coming to the coastal town for school holidays but when they retired they sold their bach as their two children were adults and had started their careers.
"But we weren't sure we were finished with Pauanui and we bought this section," says Tony.
"It was the old camping site outside the airfield. We bought it in 2005 on the basis that one day we might retire here. We started building in 2007 and moved down in 2008."
The couple built their two-storey home for the views and sun. "We face nor-east and we can look straight down the runway. We can sit in our lounge and see the aircraft coming in from the sea and landing," he says.
"We have a view across the sea to the Alderman Islands, Paku near Tairua on the northern side and then 360-degree views round to the Coromandel ranges."
Tony and Carolyn designed the contemporary, open-plan home with an architect in Thames.
"The difficulty was the section is long and narrow so to get a house of a suitable size with sufficient room for a hangar and all the right angles, and to comply, took a bit of work," says Tony.
The ground level has the 8.5m by 7.5m hangar on the airfield side with two double doors. Behind that is a double garage and self-contained area with two bedrooms, bathroom, toilet, shower and office.
Upstairs, open-plan living includes dining, kitchen and lounge. The master bedroom has an en suite and walk-in wardrobe.
On the western side are a laundry, toilet, and storeroom/pantry.
"We have an eastern side deck for the morning sun and western side deck for the evening sun," says Tony.
The plaster-finish home has a low-pitch, corrugated iron roof with 21 solar panels. For heating, there's a wood burner in the lounge.
"Because the house is north-facing, it is very warm because it gets the sun all day." Tony says Pauanui has a great community.
"I think there are about 800 permanents here. There are all the support clubs, and we have the Pauanui Club. You can please yourself whether you join in or you don't; it is a very relaxed lifestyle."
"I try to fly at least once a week depending on the weather; I usually go up for an hour to an hour and a quarter. When our kids or the grandkids are down, I try to take them for a fly as well.
"The other activity we enjoy is going out on the Coromandel roads in our sports car." But now they are selling. "To have a change."
Tony says 25 Oceanair Drive is an ideal property for a family.
"It is a home more than a holiday house. The schooling down here is very good. We have seen far more families coming to settle here."
