Vol. XVI No. 5 November—December Price $1.55 Registered for posting as a periodical Category B. Aviation Historical Society OF Australia JOURNAL Founded 1959 Goya Henry The Lockheed Era r )* East West Airline's Lockheed Hudson 4 landing at Mascot. P.J. Ricketts Left. Carpenter Airlines Lockheed 14 VH—ADS. H. Broe Right. Lockheed Hudson VH—SMM. Ricketts Left. South Coast Lockheed Lodestar VH-FAD. Both PJ. Ricketts Right. Gibbes Sepik Lodestar at Mascot. Left. Lockheed Hudson 3 VH—AGX at Mascot, NSW, during April 1963. E.E. Allen Right. The Adastra Lockheed Hudson VH—AGJ fitted with target towing equipment. P.J. Ricketts ■ ■ Left. Survey equipment fitted on Hudson VH—AGS. P.J. Ricketts Right. The same aircraft with different equipment. E.E. Allen AVIATION HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF AUSTRALIA JOURNAL -57- Vol. XVI No. 5 November—December 1975 President: Dr. L.V. Turner Secretary: E. Allen SIR DONALD ANDERSON C.B.E. T reasurer: P.J. Ricketts Journal Editors: P.J. Ricketts It is with the deepest regret that we record the recent death of our F. Walters esteemed patron. Sir Donald Anderson. News of Sir Donald's untimely passing Photo Page Layout: J. Gallagher came too late to be included in our last journal. Third Level Notes: J. McDonald Contributors: G. Reid After a distinguished career in the R.A.A.F., Sir Donald Anderson N. Apperley J. Vella joined the Department of Civil Aviation of which he became Director in 1956. In D. Eyre D.Thollar 1973 he retired from that position and was appointed Chairman of Directors of Lae Aviation News Qantas. He graciously consented to become the first patron of this Society in South Australian Air Journal 1974. Western Airletter Alongwith all Others connected with the aviation Industry, we mourn his passing and extend our sincerest sympathy to his family. Contents: Page The Lockheed Era 57 Goya Henry and the Air THE LOCKHEED ERA - THE POST WAR PERIOD Navigation Regulations 64 Monthly Notes — Civil 65 by G. Goodall - Military 66 - Third Level 69 Lionel M. Van Praag was a well-known Sydney professional motor­ - People 69 cyclist when he joined the RAAF In 1940, and he flew transport aircraft through­ — Museum 69 out the War, being shot down in a RAAF Dakota in January 1942 and spending — Papua New 30 hours in the water before rescue, then going on to serve with No. 35, 36 & Guinea 72 38 Squadrons and by 1944 he commanded No. 1 Paratroop Training Unit. After Avalon Family Day 72 demobilisation Van Praag purchased three Hudsons from disposals at Richmond Navy Week 1975 73 over a period of a year, to be used by the New Guinea operator Guinea Air Letters to the Editor 73 Traders for whom he was a pilot. Museums in Australia 1975 74 Guinea Air Traders Pty Ltd was formed in September 1946 by Sydney brothers John & Samuel Jamieson, and commenced operations at Lae All manuscripts for publication in the with a large fleet of Avro Ansons obtained from disposals, flying mainly to Bulolo Journal should be typed (If possible) at first taking over the brunt of the work that Guinea Airways had carried out double spaced using one side of each pre-War. They then extended to regular services to Madang, Wewak, Aitape, Wau sheet only. All work on this Journal and Mount Hagen, and the company Is accredited with opening up the highlands is voluntary and no payment can be after the War, being promoter of the famous Bulolo Gold Dredging Co and hold­ made for published material. ing the record of the greatest number of flights between Bulolo and Lae by a single aircraft in a day. GAT urgently needed higher performance transports than The views expressed by named contri­ the Ansons, and through their pilot Van Praag they obtained Lockheed Hudsons. butors and correspondents are their own and do not necessarily reflect the The first Hudson was overhauled at Camden in April 1947 and views of the Editors or the Company. became VH—ALA fitted out as a freighter, departing for New Guinea the follow­ ing month. Later that year a number of GAT's Ansons were grounded at Lae Membership is for one full calendar due to glue deterioration in the mainplanes and they were abandoned on the edge year commencing March 1st. Annual of the strip at Lae alongside unconverted RAAF Ansons held by the company, membership fees of $10.00 (Australian and this derelict collection of Ansons became a Lae landmark for many years. currency) will be due for renewal Tragedy struck on April 18, 1948 when the Hudson VH—ALA took off from Lae during February each year. for Bulolo, and after suffering engine trouble stalled and dived into the jungle one mile up the Markham Valley, killing the pilot Captain G.S. Bowen and two crew Published by: Aviation Historical plus 34 native passengers. GAT denied allegations that the aircraft was overloaded, Society of Australia Limited, pointing out that the load did not exceed the 5,000 lb maximum payload listed Box C.208, Clarence Street, on the CofA and that it was company policy to load natives as freight, not Sydney, N.S.W. 2000. passengers. This led to an intensive DCA investigation and, in March the follow­ ing year, the official report of the Department was tabled in Parliament in Can­ berra, in which it was stated that no action was going to be taken against Guinea Air Traders. At the time of the Lae accident, work was proceeding on the © 1975 Aviation Historical second Hudson A16—219 at Camden, this also to be fitted out as a freighter. In Society of Australia light of the accident however, the configuration was changed to side-saddle seating for 26 passengers with individual seatbelts, and this aircraft went into service in New Guinea in July 1948 as VH-BLA. With the Guinea Air Traders name emblazoned above the cabin windows and the name 'Silver Bullet' on the nose, ISSN 0045 - 1185 this Hudgon was flown mainly by GAT's Captain Dick Burt "with awe-inspiring technique" as one report put it, and joined the company's growing fleet of air­ craft, which included DC-2s VH-ARB & -ARC and DC-3s G-AGHN & G-AKNB flown out from England to be used on livestock charters down to Sydney as well as migrant charters from Europe to Australia. Hudson BH—BLA was retired and ferried south to Mascot in late October 1949 for disposal and was sold the following year to Adastra Aerial Surveys. HOTSPOT INSTANT PRINT Aviation Historical Society of Australia Journal - 58 - November—December 1975 GAT's third Hudson A16—222 was also originally to be a freighter, but during overhaul at Camden was con­ verted to nine passenger layout, becoming VH—BLB in November 1948 under the ownership of Mr. Brian Thomas of Sydney. This third Hudson was never delivered to New Guinea, and the following February left Mascot for the Middle East in a private flight in GAT's name under the command of GAT Director Samuel Jamieson. In May 1949 the Hudson was unservicable at Rome with engine trouble but was testflown on May 29 after a replacement motor from England was fitted and continued Its flight to Palestine where it was handed over to the Israel Airforce. GAT operations In New Guinea meanwhile were winding down and the company was liquidated In 1950. In June 1949 Australia House In London learnt that an Australian civil aircraft still bearing the markings VH—BLB was being used by the Israeli forces in hostilities against the Arabs, and urgent cables were sent to the Australian Government. This led to investigations by DCA that for the first time revealed the extent of illegal exports of aircraft to the Israel Airforce. At the same time Australia House officials interviewed an Australian pilot In London who had been engaged in ferrying Lockheeds to Israel from Australia. The DCA investigations into all these activities were seriously hampered by the departure for overseas of the majority of the persons Involved, but as late as 1956 questions were still being raised by the Customs and other Government departments about the exports to Israel at this time. The Hudsons purchased by MM A and APL were stripped for usable spares then sold for scrap. A16—116 was purchased by MMA for its instruments and engines, but a condition of its sale was that it had to be removed from RAAF Base Pearce, so an unservicable engine had to be removed and worked on at the company's Guildford workships then refitted before the Hudson was ferried from Pearce to Guildford in late 1947, pilots being Cyril Goode and Cyril Kleinig (now MMA's Managing Director). The twenty mile ferry flight was made with undercarriage extended, and a flapless landing was made at Guildford, where the aircraft was soon broken up for spares for the DC—3 fleet, and the airframe sold to a Perth scrap dealer who had plans to convert the fuselage Into a caravan. By 1949 the majority of the now deteriorating Hudsons at Camden laying in the open awaiting sale and conver­ sion were obtained by Wllmore Aviation Service Pty Ltd of Bankstown, and the company also obtained the bulk of the RAAF spares collection for Hudsons. Wilmore was formed by Sydney identities W.H. Morley and J.R. Palmer, and the com­ pany still operates as an aviation spares business at Bankstown, although various aircraft have been used over the years, rang­ ing from Anson VH—BLL for charter, to the Mustang VH—WAS.