Rocky History
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A HISTORY OF HEY – G’DAY , and WELCOME. 6TH DECEMBER,1946. This was the date on which seven modellers met together, and decided to form a Club. The following pages contain an account of that Club. The information was obtained over many years, from various sources, including: Memories, photographs, and newspaper cuttings, from members, and former members. FACTS & Club minutes books, and cash books, dating from 1954. FIGURES and Club Newsletter, “PROPWASH”, from it’s first issue in January, 1975. MEMORIES & Special mention must be made of the overwhelming co- PHOTOGRAPHS operation, support, and willingness to share that I have received from our members, particularly of the 1940’s and early 1950’s, without whose help this account would not have been as WHICH PORTRAY complete, especially for the era before 1954. I have given credit where due for contributions, but there are numerous people who have assisted, in various ways, to THE OF make this record both detailed and factual. These include past and present members, and non-members. My grateful thanks to you all, for without your help, I’d still be struggling. OUR CLUB Hubert de Chastel. CONTENTS PAGE EARLY YEARS” by Don. J. Millroy. Editorial Inside Front Cover IN THE BEGINNING - No Club! by Don Millroy Early Years – 2 (A) GETTING HOOKED. Aeromodellers form Club – Morning Bulletin 9 Around winter, 1936, my parents took we kids on an overland Memories – of our Club, by Ken Maclean 11 Odyssey, in Dad’s faithful canvas top 1934 Chev. Tourer, from Rockhampton Aeromodeller’s Club Rockhampton to Home Hill, (on the Burdekin River), whereat my - Editorial of December, 1947 12 maternal Grandparents owned a long established sugar cane Control Line Years – by Neale Oswald 13 plantation, with intent to temporarily deposit we kids with the Terry Phillipson’s “Thumbnail Autobiography” 14 “Grandies” whilst my parents travelled further North to enjoy, Past “Fields of endeavour”, by Terry Phillipson 15 unhindered, all the delights that tropical Townsville had to offer Memories – of Club and Members, by Barry Frederickson 17 during the placid mid 30’s. To which intent we kids did not object in the least, especially after enduring a three day motoring ordeal from My Club Involvement – by Jim Schafer 19 Rockhampton over dusty, corrugated dirt tracks, (now the Bruce Ralph Phillipson Tribute 20 Highway), camping by the roadside, fording flooded creeks, and Propwash Editors 21 bogging countless times in bottomless ooze. Trivial Fact 21 Upon return from Townsville, my parents presented to we kids Some Club Photos 22 their “Peace Offerrings”, which, to my seven year old self, was a Important Dates and Events 26 ready to fly model aeroplane of silk covered, soldered wire RMAC Club Trophies 36 construction, rubber band powered, boasting undercarriage with main RMAC Executive Members – 1946 to 1999 40 wheels, plus a small label to testify “Made in Japan.” – WOW! Club Membership List – from 1940’s 42 In the absence of ceremony or delay, the model was readied for flight, fully wound and hand-launched from the dizzying height of Grandpa’s back stairs, only to turn inside out in mid-flight, before burying itself in the topmost branches of Grandpa’s favourite Custard Apple Tree, which then had to be most carefully scaled for purpose of retreival. With the embarrassing result of that initial attempt embedded in my conscious, I embarked on a primitive ritual of “TestFlying”, involving glide and low powered flights of short duration, experimenting with wing/elevator settings and angles, until I could actually make the blessed thing do a “Three Point” landing, (just like in the “Tailspin Tommy” matinee movies!), and, wait for it; actually take off by itself, complete with a wake of propwash created dust, (just like real aeroplanes did in those days). Once suitably armed with all the knowledge of child-hood, the “Made in Japan” silk covered model aeroplane was again hand launched, fully wound, from Grandpa’s back stairs, and, to the 2 delight of myself, and amazement of those present, it flew right Ryan, Fairchild, Luscombe, Waco, Travelair, and even early Radial around the homestead, and actually landed all by itself alongside engined Cessna’s and Lockheeds. Our favourite flying fields of the Grandpa’s chook house. Although I didn’t realise it at the time, I was day were the wide flat hilltop of Jardine Street, next to the corner of “hooked” on flying. Rundle Street, and the then open paddocks downhill to the west, <<<<<>>>>> towards Connor Park Aerodrome, where we also spent a lot of our (B) GETTING OTHERS HOOKED – Still No Club. time in inspecting newly arrived aeroplanes, and in listening in awe to Upon return to Rockhampton, I was enthused to the point where I the leather-clad pilots – our Heroes! bought a Postal Note which I despatched to the “Scientific Model <<<<<<>>>>>> Aeroplane Company” for a mail order kit of their fearsome looking DURING WARTIME – and yet still no club. “Curtis Fighter”, which Dad and I (mainly poor old dad) burnt lots of Initially, there was little impact on our modelling; Jas. Gillan’s midnight oil in trying to figure out the intricacy of the plan, all the store was kept well stocked, Australian and American kits were Dams and Haw to assemble the wretched thing. readily available, and improving in quality, therefore all of us kept on About this time, I found that I had soul mates in brothers Jim and building and flying everything that we could lay hands on. By the Bruce Gillan, who lived just around the corner in Jardine Street, and time of the American occupation of Rockhampton, modelling supplies who also had just commenced to make models – in no time flat, we were becoming quite scarce, and of dubious quality, therefore we had joined forces to build and fly model aircraft for the sheer were obliged to taper off our activities, and to concentrate on our enjoyment and satisfaction of it all. The father of the Gillan brothers, school work instead, which became increasingly difficult because of (Jas. Gillan), owned a radio sales and repair shop in East Street, the veritable smorgasbord of allied warplanes flying in and out of (about opposite where Mark Bunt Menswear is today), and doutless Connor Park. encouraged by the enthusiasm of we model aviators, began to stock Our favourite observation post (apart from the aerodrome model aircraft kits, balsa wood, cement, tissue, dope, banana oil, fence), was sitting on the roof of Mr. Gillan’s chook house, from rubber, piano wire, etc., as a sideline. where all the action could be seen – and there was stacks of it. In Accordingly, word spread, and before long, quite a nucleus of those days, the runways were not sealed, therefore a great cloud of modellers developed in the Wandal area. Other names that come to dust inveriably meant a landing mishap, of which there were plenty, to mind are Alec Hiskens, Harold and Alan Richardson, and Stewart a point of becoming something of a spectator sport to us; for example, Pennycuick, to name a few. The 1930’s were a magic period for scale wagering on how many of a flight of P40 “Kittyhawks” about to land modelling, since aviation was still in it’s infancy, and therefore a would bite the dust in a spectacular ground loop, due mainly to pilot source of wonderment to many; the aerial dogfights and flying Aces inexperience on the type. of the Great War were still fresh in memory, and subject of many an Strangely enough, it was during this period that I first witnessed enthralling movie and magazine story, but, at the same time, that pre- a model actually flying O.O.S.(out of sight), and one of my own at World War 2 decade produced significant advances in design of that! I had just built a 12” span chuck glider out of some valuable military, commercial, and private aircraft. balsa scrap, and it being so small, I decided to test fly it in the middle During those years, diesel motors were unheard of, (likewise radio of Rundle Street, right outside the house. All was going nicely, when I control and control line), and petrol engines were big, heavy, was joined by Mary, an American nurse from the U.S.Army Medical expensive, and scarce. Therefore, our modelling was focussed on Corps., which had rented Kingel’s big house directly across the road. chuck gliders, sailplanes, rubber powered “Duration” models, (both Mary wanted to give the chuck glider a go or two, and it soon solid and flying), mainly WW1 fighters, and then current light aircraft developed into a contest of who could make it fly the highest and from Bi-Plane trainers, pylon racers, and the latest in private aircraft longest, which event Mary won hands down when, in result of her 6th of the day, viz: Bellanca, Stinson, Monocoupe, Aeronca, “chuck”, the little“12incher”just kept on circling, 4 3 getting higher and higher, from a fluke thermal, until it simply to his large workshop and cutting tables one night per week for disappeared – I retired in disgust; a modeller beaten by a mere nurse! purpose of meetings, modelling, tuition, and discussions. Towards the final year of the war, our modelling activities had Another great allay appeared in the form of Mr. Andrew Dunn, a almost ground to a halt, due to lack of supplies, and to the fact that member of the family that owned and operated The Morning Bulletin Jas. Gillan had shut up shop, and moved the family to Canberra. In at that time. Andrew was responsible for providing our fledgeling consequence, we local modellers were obliged to obtain all scant Club with lots of greatly appreciated free Publicity, Photographs, and supplies by mail order to whatever Hobby Stores we happened to hear Editorial in his daily newspaper, and accepted the position of Patron or read about.