NEWS Published by the Aviation Historical Society of Inc. A0033653P, ARBN 092-671-773 Volume 33 Number 1 (Published January, 2017) editor: Dion Makowski All images by editor unless otherwise credited E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.ahsa.org.au (memberships available) facebook: look for us under Aviation Historical Society of Australia

REMINDER: THOSE WHO HAVE NOT YET PAID THEIR FEES ARE REQUIRED TO SETTLE THESE BY 31 JANUARY

Welcome to AHSA News 2017. I won't dwell on matters discussed below, however this issue brings the publication up to where I feel we have been heading. It is "newsy", more immediate and covers both past and upcoming events with something to interest all mem- bers. An indication that contributions are increasing, is that I spend more time creating it! Please keep sending news and imagery and we will print it. This issue appears somewhat later than intended - life can do that when job, renovations and writing missions keep one away from the computer and is no reflection on the promptness of items appearing in my inbox! Happy new year. Dion Makowski

PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS It seems like only a few weeks since the annual AHSA Inc. elections and I found myself voted in as President. It has been good working with the committee as a team to drive the AHSA forward and achieve our aims. That will continue. The time that has elapsed has allowed a bit of time to look both backwards and forward and review several things. Two things come to mind immediately. The first is that of COLLECTIONS.

For most AHSA members we have gathered up a collection of records over the years. Those records comprise books and periodicals, photos, prints, notes and ‘things’ given to us or obtained along the way. All of an historical bent. The issue that I raise here is what happens to those collections when the member or owner passes away or is no longer capable of look- ing after them? I recall two cases in the Sydney area where AHSA members passed away and next we heard was that their collections of valuable mate- rial, gathered over many years, had ended up on the tip as ‘no one knew what to do with it’! Those records cannot be replaced and con- tained many unique and one only notes. What all this boils down to is the aspect of what happens to our collections with our passing? Could it be that with increasing years we should make a written note as to what should happen to our collections in the event of our passing and who to contact in the short term. That note to be given to Trustees or family prior to the passing. The other avenue may be to start decreasing our collections as we age. We all gather books but some we will never look at ever or again. Could it be that we have a book sale, perhaps lists made available via this AHSA Newsletter or perhaps sold via E-bay or given to our local friendly air museum for retention or disposal. By reducing our private collections there will be less for others to worry about to dispose of in the event of our demise. With records it probably means that our records that we both gather and create should be in some sort of order thus a friend or trustee can make sense for their retention or disposal rather than just a pile of scrap random paper. Of late I have heard of several situations where the original historian has passed away and the family has ended up with a stack of books. They are keen to ‘get rid of them’ and call up the AHSA or an air museum and simply say ‘please come and collect them by a stated time or else we will have to get rid of them some other way’. In an ideal world it might be nice to have what I call the AHSA Centre where we could run a research centre and have a place for the retention of past member collections. A place where records could be used for further use and books and the like could be sorted, a li- brary created, and the excess sold off. The funds so gained going to the running of the AHSA Centre. Unfortunately I cannot see it in my lifetime. In summary we as members need to put serious thought as to the ultimate disposal of our collections so that they will go to a good home and be expanded on, in the case of records, and book collections go to likewise good homes and to people who appreciate some- times rare interesting and useful books or limited editions. Perhaps you as the reader should put some thought towards the fate of your collection. My second subject is that of MEDIA.

A lot of research for historical articles comes from the media, in particular the newspapers of the day. Trove would be the classic example of the day for notes regarding aviation happenings in years gone by. Now in case you have not been noticing it a number of things have been happening with both the printed newspapers and also the tele- vision news reporting. Newspapers face an issue regarding their survival. Newspaper make a profit by selling advertising, not making a buck from the sticker price of the paper. In recent years print media has been under assault by advertisers moving to the internet. Cheaper, more effective and a bigger audience would be some factors advertisers might say. In order to cut costs media organisers have reduced staff, use more out- side agencies to gather news, utilize outside stringers to supply news clips and sometimes do not run news items that may take advertis- ing print space as well as running news items that they feel will sell papers as distinct from reporting serious news items that they may have had to pay for. All this means that for the serious aviation historian the newspapers of today are not as good as those of yesterday in reporting all worthwhile aviation related news items. It also means that the future quality of the reported news items is under threat. This in turn will be reflected in the quality of the use of those very papers by historians in the future. Put simply there will be a lack of 1

news material to refer to in the process of building up research on a particular subject. Indeed it has been said that newspapers as we know them today may not exist in the future. Television and news reporting. TV station boards may have chuckled about the possible shrinking of the printed media but the same is happening to television, in case you have not noticed. TV is under assault like printed media and television boards have elected to try the same by having less expensive shows and more reality productions, with a lesser production costs. The quality of news reporting has noticeably decreased in recent years as TV studios chase the dollar and try to shrink costs. The quality of news reporters has also noticeably decreased. Certainly the news reporter may have spent several years at media school but the product that we see is still of the model that comes out with the ‘Yeah, and how does it feel’ presentation. Being blonde and female helps to become a news pre- senter. How many times have we as aviation people seen an accident of say a single-engined RA aircraft presented as a ‘twin Cessna’ and ignoring the obvious. One flawed reporting case that stood out with me was a morning TV show. Its prime entertainment reporter had become naturalized as an Australian. The beautiful people prattled on for an excessive time about how did that person feel, why did he become an Aussie etc. The one thing missing was any discussion of where said reporter had come from! The motto of the said TV station was that their news reporting is the best. Really? For the record he came from New Zealand. I knew you were hanging out for that! So my case rests regarding the quality of TV news media reporting. Again, TV news is not there to present a full and accurate story but only give you enough to whet your appetite so that you will view the so called news and at the same time take on board the advertising that supplies the dollar to run the station, hopefully at a profit. Again TV news in under threat as the internet gains pace to supplement and possibly pass both printed and TV media in the presenta- tion of news. A brief clip and not always accurate is the future as I see it. Not good for we aviation historians keen to review previous news for future research for the recording of aviation history. We are also seeing this with the likes of YouTube, facebook etc. A brief clip as someone rushes to get their news item onto the screen but leaving out facts, facts that us historians can use. What was the rego or serial? What is the history of the aircraft? Where did it come from, who owns it, why was it there. The old who, what, why , when, where and how. All missing. There I have said my piece. Food for thought.

GENERAL COMMENT Members enjoyed a BBQ and general chat and gathering at the annual December afternoon at the Australian National Aviation Mu- seum at . Good company and time to talk outside of the usual meeting. On another subject our November Annual Duigan Lecture meeting speaker was Mr. Mike Smith. Mike flew his Searey amphibian around the world and enthralled the audience with details of the flight. Low and slow was the motto. Mike is publishing a book on the flight and in 2017 will be releasing a movie of the flight. I for one will be at the front of the queue waving folding money.

CONTRIBUTE Once again gentlemen I am keen to encourage you as members to put pen to paper and record that subject on aviation history that you have a knowledge of and that means so much to you. Leave the world with your written record on some part of Australian aviation history, civil or military. I quote that old salesman’s motto in that ‘You can have the greatest product but unless you tell the world about it they will not know (to buy it)’. For us that means recording aviation history and getting it into the newsletter or the journal, Aviation Heritage. Have a think about it and then get to work. Neil and Dion, our journal and newsletter editors, are waiting for you to email (see title pages of the respective magazines).

AVALON The AHSA will be running a stand at the Avalon event (see above). If you are available and would like to put some time in at Avalon in support of the AHSA send our Secretary, Allan Trower, an email on [email protected] and entry passes can be arranged. No, it does not mean that you will be on the stand 24/7 as there will more than adequate time to enjoy the show and all that it embraces. If not, we would still be pleased to have you visit us. Authors: are invited to present their books for sale, you must be in attendance. Let us know your intended dates of attendance. Note: No responsibility will be taken for items left unattended.

VALE

It is with much regret that we advise the passing of our immediate past President, Antony Grage. Antony passed away peacefully at home on December 30 2016 from cancer. He was aged 76. His family were with him. Antony was the President of the AHSA for the last three years. He took the reins from Keith Meggs who had been President before him. In his time Antony gave the AHSA the drive that a new President is wont to do. His previous business experience was carried over into his management of the AHSA. His drive extended into the Journal and the newsletter and various activities that the AHSA got involved in such as Avalon. Antony contributed to the newsletter and the journal and added life to both publications. He became the front man when involved with the media in relation to historical aviation matters.

Antony held engineering qualifications and spent some twenty three years in the Road Transport Equipment 2

Industry before moving across to the Pump Industry which he remained with until retirement. Along the way he developed an inter- est in unique and vintage motor cars and restored a Ferrari. He learnt to fly and was a keen sailor. He was a key member of the Flin- ders Yacht Club and was well regarded by his fellow members.

A Celebration of Life Service was held for Antony at the Flinders Yacht Club on the Mornington Peninsula on Monday 9th January. Some 250 people were in attendance including 15 members of the AHSA Inc. Those present represented a cross section of the people that Antony had known over many years from business, yachting, motoring and aviation. The service closed with a rendition of the hymn ‘Sailing’.

It is sad to lose a President especially one who had become the CEO of our organisation. Antony was not only the President of the AHSA but a friend to many of the members, both local and interstate, from his direct contact with them. Antony was keen to look at the big picture of Australian Aviation History and to that end he pushed for the AHSA to be a member of or have direct contact with fellow historical organisations. Antony was behind the drive to get the whole of the Journal digitised, from 1959 to 2017. He was always to be found at the AHSA stand at Avalon promoting the organisation. Above all he was the drive from the top needed to keep the AHSA on a steady forward and upward path.

We also regret to advise the passing of member Gary Sunderland on November 3. Gary was aged 82. He apparently passed away while flying his beloved scale model aircraft at Bacchus Marsh. Gary had a long term involvement in aviation. He worked with DCA, built his own sailplane, was a keen glider pilot, built nu- merous scale model aircraft and was very knowledgeable on World War One German aircraft. The celebration of Gary Sunderland's life was held on Friday 11 November at the Bacchus Marsh Gliding clubhouse. Gary moved in many aviation circles and attendance at the service included AHSA committee members, fellow glid- ing and AHSA friend Alan Patching and many of his colleagues from the gliding, model flying and Department of Civil Aviation days. Accomplished in all that he took on in life, Gary's many achievements were spoken of by friends and family. Some of his multitude of awards and prizes were on view, including the AHSA 2010 Bob Wills Memorial Plaque for his article "First flights in Australia -an Engineering Analysis". His mod- els included a stunning WWI Aviatik-C, and outside on display, "MOBA", his self- constructed glider. To quote the family, "fly free.."

Sydney member, Greg Banfield, passed away on November 9. Greg was aged 71. He was a long time member of the AHSA having joined in 1962. He was a member since 1962 and a noted contributor to Newsletter and Journal over many years - especially with his biographical interviews with airline and aviation industry luminaries. Also from Sydney, Milton Lalas passed away in October. No other details are to hand. All will be sadly missed.

MEMBER'S PAGES

BOB WILLS MEMORIAL PLAQUE The Bob Wills Memorial Plaque commemorates the memory of our late AHSA Newsletter Editor and historian. The AHSA expert panel of peers has announced that the 2015 Bob Wills Plaque has been awarded to Darwin member Mike Flanagan for his article, “An Informal Look at Northern Airlines.” The article appeared in Volume 46, #1, of March, 2015. Attached is a photo of Mike holding the plaque.

QUESTION & ANSWER Q8. AHSA Member Ian D Macarthur moved from Melbourne years ago to work for Hawker De Havilland in Sydney. He then walked off the AHSA map. Does any one have any knowledge what happen to Ian? Dave Prossor

COMING EVENTS:  The Australian International Airshow, Avalon Victoria. February 28 to March 5, 2017.  Antique Aeroplane Association of Australia. Annual Fly-In and gathering. Echuca, Victoria March 17-19, 2017  75th Anniversary of 1 Flying Boat Repair Depot, Catalina Park, Lake Boga Victoria, March 17-19 2017  Aviation Cultures MkIII seminar: Airspaces, Mobilities, Identities, University of Sydney, April 27-29, 2017.  Wings Over Illawarra Airshow, Illawarra regional Airport, Albion Park NSW. May 6 & 7, 2017.

EDITOR’S COME-UPPANCE DEPARTMENT From Neville Parnell: Just as a browse through the latest edition and sometimes it's the detail that gets you. Page 9, end of Spitfire item. .... 79 Squadron reformed in 1962 operating Mirage fighter aircraft...... Yes....BUT not with Mirages. It was SABRES !! Correct progress post WW2; Was reformed 31 May 1962 - Sabres, disbanded 2 Aug 68; reformed again 31 Mar 1986 - Mirages, disbanded again 30 Jun 1988; fi- nally reformed 1 Sep 1998 - Macchi then later Hawk. (the editor appreciates the pick-up and as penance, will spell "editor" with an small "e" for the duration of this issue) Apologies to 79 Squadron too... 3

MEMBER’S BOOK OFFER Kevin O'Reilly has recently completed his epic book Charles Pratt of Belmont Common, A Life in the Air. The books will retail at $48 but will be a special price of $35 for AHSA members. As only 500 copies are avail- able, and Kevin wishes for AHSA members to get first go, he would like those interested to make contact and will ensure a copy is kept for them. It is nearly 300 A4 pages with many photos, has a hard cover and dust jacket.

The Book's launch will be in March at The Gordon College at Geelong. (Until advised by Kevin at the Gordon, they had no idea that the Pratt brothers had built two DH.6 machines on their premises in 1921/22 and as it is an anniversary year they are very interested and kindly offered to do the launch there.) They have plenty of media access which should ensure the success of the launch. Contact preferably by internet as this ensures a record is kept, the email address is [email protected] or phone 03 9551 1814. Any queries happily discussed. Kevin O'Reilly, 12 Kimber Crt, Dingley Village, Vic 3172.

BOOK REVIEW Doing a book review 74 years after the book was first published (in 1942) may be a record but nevertheless that is the case with THE FLYING TIGERS by author Russell Whelan. The reason that this review is brought to the fore is that it is about what the reasons why Australian registered DC-3/C-47A, VH-XUX, recently arrived in China to be part of the Flying Tigers Museum at Guilin. The book was written by Whelan under tight wartime restrictions of security and a scarcity of non-critical printing.

THE FLYING TIGERS is the story of the American volunteer group of pilots who went to China to fly for Claire Chennault and fight against the Japanese with their Curtiss P-40 Tomahawks. Bitter day to day air combat was their stuff, a group of 55 Tomahawks against 800 Japanese aircraft. Eight American pilots were lost in the ac- tions that commenced in 1941. Author Whelan writes close after the action took place and did not have the depth of time to stand back and view the big picture, only the immediate action as he saw it.

Many books have followed using the same title but the book, by Whelan, was actually set up, printed and bound in Australia in 1943 by Halstead Press Pty Ltd in Sydney. The hardcover book has a listing of pilots by name, those killed, as well as other impor- tant names from the action. The book has 216 pages and 17 photos, all b&w. It is still possible to obtain a copy via Amazon. Recent prices started at $5.57 for a hard cover copy, plus postage. An interesting read for those interested in the background to VH-XUX flying to China and the saga of The Flying Tigers in their P-40 Tomahawks. Dave Prossor

MELBOURNE MEETINGS September The Last CAC Apprentice Robert Anderson (left, with President Dave) shared the years of his aviation career. This was a reflection on four years as an apprentice at Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation (shortly after CAC was taken over by Hawker de Havilland, followed by 20 years servicing Qantas aircraft - from the 737-200 to the A380. Robbie also outlined his interest and involvement with aircraft restorations since leaving Qantas. He brought along his models of CAC air- craft he has built himself, as well as some interesting aircraft components.

October The CAC Ceres Member, Derek Buckmaster (standing right of Colin, son of CAC test pilot, Roy Goon) discussed his self- published book on the commonwealth CA-28 Ceres agricultural aircraft, derived from the Wirraway military trainer. He spoke on the development, technical and operational history of the type also how he has considered to publish the book. Colin additionally recalled, at 11 years of age, flying in to a 1961 Avalon airshow in the rear transit seat of the Ceres demonstrator.

November The annual Duigan Lecture—Flying solo around the world Michael Smith was approaching the broken western coast of Canada when he figured his long and solitary adventure — and probably his life - was ending. Thick fog lay beneath his little plane, Southern Sun, and heavy cloud sat above. The two systems were closing fast. Suddenly, he lost visibility. He didn't know which way was up or which was down. His plane spun out of control and reached such velocity his speedo rocketed into the red, way over its maximum reading of 120 knots (222km an hour). His perspex windscreen began caving in. "I thought it was all over," Smith remembers. Frantically trying to regain control, he discerned a tiny dot through the murk. It was the 4

sun. He levelled out of the spin and flew towards the light. And then, his chest pounding, he found beneath him the coast. Smith, of Melbourne, had been flying across the Atlantic for eight hours. He followed a river for 80 nautical miles until, within a great estuary, he came to Goose Bay airport and landed. It was, he says, the worst moment on his 210-day solo circumnavigation of the world, during which he spent 480 hours in the air, consumed 9700 litres of fuel and visited 80 cities during 2015.

Such a trip might not be so unusual these days — except he did it in a tiny two-seater, single-engine amphibious plane, a SeaRey, originally designed as a hobby craft with enough fuel for a three-hour hop. The factory in Florida set it up to carry enough fuel for 13 hours, reducing cabin space to one seat. For longer flight legs he equipped the machine, which he named Southern Sun, with another fuel bladder, stretching flying time to 21 hours. He landed at airstrips and on the water, including on New York City's Hudson River. He "Huck Finned" the entire length of the Mississippi River, tying up to trees and sleeping nights bobbing on the river. "It was magical," he says. To ensure he didn't ice up during an all-night flight from the Aleutian Islands to Japan, he skimmed along at 460m — not much higher than Mel- bourne's Eureka Tower — the moon shining on the water below. No one had done such a journey in such a plane before. The extraordinary expedi- tion has won for Michael Smith the 2016 Adventurer of the Year from the Australian Geographical Society, awarded at a ceremony on Thursday in Sydney.

Smith, who with his wife Anne owns and operates cinemas — the Sun Theatre in Yarraville and the Sun Cinema in among them - didn't plan on becoming the first pilot to circle the Earth solo in an am- Michael Smith prepares to land his seaplane on the Hudson River in New York phibious plane. Long captured by the romance of the flying boats of the 1930s, he set out initially to retrace the old "kangaroo route" from Australia to England, and to study cinema in communities along the way. He hopped from Australia to Indonesia, , , , couldn't get permission to land in Burma, substi- tuting it with Bangladesh, crossed India, dropped in to Saudi Arabia and landed at Aqaba, Jordan, because Iraq was also closed. Then it was on to Israel and several stops across Europe to Southampton, England. Along the way, he landed on Lake Como, Italy — the oldest on-water airport in the world — and had a blissful short holiday with his wife. The couple met up again in London, and Anne told him that, having got so far, he might as well continue.

And so Smith flew to Ireland, Scotland, Iceland, Greenland and on to his frightening arrival in Canada. Averaging eight hours in the air at a time, he says he never got lonely. "I was actually pretty busy," he says. "I had no auto-pilot, so I had to navigate, fly the plane, check the fuel. I'd eat something every hour. I drank two or three litres of water on each flight." And yes, he never drank "out of the red bottle" — his toilet. After flying the length and width of the US, Smith planned to cross from Alaska to Russia. The weather was already against him, and he was grounded for two or three days at a time. Permission to fly over Russia never came. "I'd painted myself into a corner," he says. He flew six hours from Alaska over the Aleutian Islands and another 18 on to Japan, flying out first and storing fuel on an abandoned island, Attu, to make the trip possible. "I wouldn't do it again," Smith says. "But I wanted to get home." And home he went, via The Philippines, Indonesia and Horn Island, Australia's northernmost point. Finally, he landed on the water at Williamstown, where he was reunited with family and friends at the Royal Yacht Club of Victo- ria. His little plane, after all, was part yacht. Adventurer of the Year sounds barely adequate.—The Age, Oct 30.

GIPPSLAND ARMED FORCES MUSEUM Dion Makowski

West Sale Aerodrome, 200kms south-east of Melbourne, is not a destination familiar to most aviation enthusiasts. More recently known for the small fleet of 11 ex-RAN Fleet Air Arm Grum- man Trackers which have now been removed in pieces to the USA, West Sale features a grow- ing, volunteer-run military museum highlighting the role played by Gippslanders in the Austra- lian military forces. Gippsland is a region roughly two hours drive from Melbourne, Victoria.

Based on an original collection of military memorabilia from Australian Army's earliest origins, the museum features a significant aeronautical collection. During December, we had the oppor- tunity to have a look through this collection. Our hosts were President, Rick Hanning; former Korean War army veteran, Lester Jackson and Mr Alan McEwan. As with many similar regional museums, it is most inspiring to hear the stories and research gathered, and view the restorations being conducted on site by pas- sionate volunteers. 5

During WWII, the region hosted a complex of no less than three active airfields in the operational and training roles:

RAAF Base East Sale opened as a training base on 22 April 1943. Initially, the base was home to No.1 Operational Training Unit (1 OTU) equipped with Bristol 152 Beaufort light bomber aircraft and crew trainers. Over 3,000 crew were trained here for operations in the South West Pacific Theatre of Operations. Convoy protection and maritime patrol (general reconnais- sance) operations were also flown from here. Following World War II, the RAAF Central Flying School - one of the world's oldest military aviation units, was relocated from RAAF Base Point Cook (where it formed in 1913) to East Sale in 1947, operating DH Vampire trainers, Macchi MB-326H and currently, Pilatus PC-9s. Several of the RAAF's iterations of display teams have called East Sale home, including the Red Sales (Vampire) and Telstars (Macchi) and presently, the Central Flying School's (PC-9/A). The School of Air Navigation (which once operated Hawker Siddeley HS-748 Navigation trainers) is now incorporated into the School of Air Warfare. Currently, the base is home to several other units including No 32 Squadron (which flies the King Air 350 multi-role aircraft), RAAF Officer's Training school and School of Air Traffic control.

RAAF Station, West Sale for two years from 1942-43 was home to 3 Bombing and Gunnery School (3 BAGS) and 1 Air Gunnery School (1 AGS) 1943-45, whilst operating, amongst other types, Ansons and Fairey Battles for target towing duties.

RAAF Station, Bairnsdale No.1 OTU Beauforts were flown from Bairnsdale until relocated to East Sale. General Reconnaissance School (GRS), formed at Point Cook in 1940, with Ansons was also resident here from 1943 to 1946..

(Koo-Wee-Rup airfield was constructed in 1942 as a protective fighter base outside Melbourne to protect the vital Yallourn power stations from air attack, while Monomeith Park aerodrome complex was partly completed in 1943 but further work was curtailed due to the tide of war moving in the allies' favour).

Located in the old National Safety Council of Australia Sport Complex, the original squash and basketball courts allows this mu- seum to stage separate themed displays. There is a large Army display in what would have been the basketball court while some Navy items are displayed in the foyer area including German WWII sea mines recovered from Bass Strait - the result of the raider, Passat casting her attentions on our sea lanes. An Anson cockpit, from airframe MG872, is restored in Bombing and Gunnery School configuration.

WWII Gallery Probably the largest part of the aviation collection, at least by volume, is the WWII collection. The visitor will see many compo- nents which have been sourced from crash sites - ingeniously displayed with photos of the site and history of the aircraft and/or crash reports. Many of these components have significance to the area, having been retrieved from scrap dealers, farmers or do- nated by locals. Other material can be seen which has been recovered by members of the team on their interstate travels, investi- gating WWII crash sites. Items yielded further afield include captured data plates obtained from wrecked axis aircraft in North Africa, and donated to the museum.

There are memorial boards dedicated to those 195 service personnel killed in training or operations from the three principal RAAF bases in Gippsland during WWII. Of these, 191 were aircrew involved in operational training accidents and of these, 53 are still listed as missing off the Gippsland coast. The vast majority, were Beauforts fatals, with 97 aircrew killed. The infamous "Gippsland hailstones". Some of the components have a sad story to tell. Gippsland region features some rough country where many aircraft came to grief and many went missing. Several were rediscovered only years later:

Near Walhalla on 10th Mar 1942, a US Army Air Corps pilot, Capt. Joseph P McLaughlin of the US Army Air Corps, flying a P- 40E Warhawk 41-5526, crashed in a remote hilly area. The site was only discovered in 1948. Rick was involved in the rediscovery of the wreckage and the US Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command, based in Hawaii, attended the site to recover and identify any human remains. These were brought together with partial, fragmented remains discovered in 1948 and buried as "unknown' in Hawaii, and were subsequently reinterred at Arlington National Cemetery, Washington DC. The story is told in a booklet which can be purchased at the museum's gift shop, the Walhalla P-40.

A USAAC Brewster Buffalo crashed, on a mountainside on 1 July 1942, killing Lt Henry Orous Null, USAAC from 4th Air Depot Group, Laverton (possibly on a delivery flight).

A RAAF Republic P-43 Lancer crashed in remote mountain country past Healesville. It was A56-7 and P/O Alan William Green was killed in this crash.

A6M2 Zero components are displayed, very typically Japanese in appearance, which feature anodised green metal. The origins of the fuselage from which these came is unclear, it is possible the aircraft was a captured example tested for intelligence purposes then later converted into a target near Sale. Tendered for scrap in 1949 (and seen on base by Lester), it was buried in the local RAAF landfill. Data plates, in Japanese, indicate these originated from an A6M2.

6

Lester provided a story which emphasises the challenges of wartime operations in Gippsland. When several P-40s were lost locally on delivery to Laverton, whilst following the coast to West Sale (East Sale was still being built) and only the flight leader had exter- nal communications. He decided to land and the rest (there were possibly 14 aircraft) followed him. When the flight arrived, only 87 octane fuel was available, whereas P-40s ran on 100/145 octane. A train load had to be sent from Melbourne the next day.

On another occasion of following the coast, a flight of P-40s found themselves lost near Wilsons Promontory. Told to go to Sale, they were to "Look for the aerodrome - it looks like a country town". They found the "country town" and to announce their arrival to the base, instead 'beat up' the real town (Sale or Maffra)! The leader flew low over the railway station looking for signs, which had been removed per wartime regulation, so he landed at a house, left his aircraft ticking over and was nearly shot by the lady owner. Dis- creetly landing further up the road to ask a farmer directions, he was directed "to the nearest gate", that was East Sale aerodrome.

Postwar Gallery During a training mission, RAAF 33 Squadron Boeing 707, A20-103 "Wilberforce", crashed into sea off Woodside beach, killing the crew of five, 29th October 1991. The crash occurred whilst manoeuvring on asymmetric thrust (both live engines on one side were shut down). A small engine and flap components are on display here.

Red Sales history, Roulettes, and other Sale-based demonstration teams within the "postwar aviation" hall, represents the military aviation history of East Sale predominantly, as that station continued on as a RAAF base, including the Central flying School and the School of Air Navigation. A HS-748 synthetic trainer, components, photographs, models and uniforms together paint a fascinat- ing picture of the way the base has expanded in partnership with the communities in the area.

A3-75, a Mirage III, crashed at Dowd's Morass, near East Sale on 18th Feb 1980. Pilot Officer J W Carr, ejected safely from 3,500 ft at 230 knots. Recovered components are on display here.

On external display, we satiated our Top Gun predilections with a "sortie" in one of two ex-RAAF Macchi MB-326H the museum has on display - A7-015, still resplendent in its' 76 Squadron camouflage scheme. Nearby is the fuselage of A7-014 in the Roulettes Fanta-can scheme. This is said to be the first locally assembled Macchi for the RAAF and was planned originally to be mounted on a pole in Sale proper but this plan was discontinued due to the expense. These airframes were apparently sourced from RAAF Base East Sale on disposal of the Macchi fleet in 2004. An unidentified BAC Strikemaster has appeared in recent times while a radial engine mockup from the movie The Pacific, rounds off the external displays.

Army Hall Worth seeing in it's own right is the United States flag, presented to Australian Field Marshal Blamey, following the surrender cere- mony on board the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, 2 September 1945. This is a true icon and an exhibit the museum are justly proud to display.

Among the many exhibits (featuring items from the Boer War and two World Wars to the present day) are applicable aviation ex- hibits. RAAF Korean War Pilot F/O George Hale and his Mk.8 "Halestorm", A77-871 are featured. Also present is the tail fin off an Army Bell 206B Kiowa reconnaissance helicopter, A17-016. There is a small restoration shop within this part of the museum, featuring Beaufort nose A9-164, which was an acquisition from another restorer. This is an active project with many smaller parts already prepared and the cockpit gradually taking shape. Many components ready for inclusion, are on display nearby and are easily seen before they go into the project. A post-war , A13-150, A D-4 Mk.1 version, on loan to the collection, demonstrates the early value RAAF placed on ground-based ab-initio, advanced refresher and currency training, in this case for bomber and transport pilots.

Admittedly, it is a large space for a small number of volunteers to manage - they seem to do it well, and we can forgive them for some displays being "works in progress" or seemingly placed somewhere as there was no room elsewhere. I find the fun part of visiting such a museum is tak- ing the time to look at everything - in every corner of the display cases, or underneath, or in cor- ners; you may be surprised what you find!

As with many smaller museums, volunteers are most welcome. Museum opens Saturday- Monday, 10am-4pm, or by appointment. Entry is a miserly $4.00 AUD (I always support these smaller museums with a few purchases of merchandise and they do have some publications and memorabilia for sale). Call +61 3 5144 5500 (during their operation days) or call in at Lyon Cres, A Roulettes PC-9/A Pilot’s flight gear , Fulham VIC 3851. Email contact is [email protected].

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"HAPPENINGS"

73-year-old Spitfire Mystery Solved 30 September 2016 More than 70 years after Flight Sergeant Colin Duncan fought his way The wreckage of the WWII Supermarine Spitfire from the burning cockpit of his Spitfire, its twisted wreckage — spotted from the air by pilots recently re-discovered in Litchfield National Park in recent months — is set to become a museum piece.

The crash site, in a rarely- visited patch of Litchfield National Park, far from established tracks, was described in military records as “rough country” and is likely why Duncan’s plane, unlike many other wrecks, remained undiscovered and unpilfered. The remoteness of the crash site — which is now protected by the Heritage Act — is likely also why rescue crews took five days to reach Duncan after he crashed on June 30, 1943. In following days, his mates dropped him food and ciga- rettes along with a note saying: “You owe me a beer for all this.”

In an in interview before his death with fellow pilot and historian Jim Grant, Duncan told how he forced the canopy of his plane open, while his legs were on fire, when the rip cord came off in his hands. “I realised then I had a battle on my hands — a red hot engine, a stuck canopy and the possibility of one or more Zeros following me,” he said. Duncan, a carpenter before the war, went on to play cricket for Victoria and run a successful building company. He learnt to fly on Spitfires in England.

Darwin Aviation Historical Society president Tony Simons said the find was significant. “It’s another piece of the puzzle, putting together the history of the aircraft that defended Darwin,” he said. He welcomed the site’s protection, saying too many wrecks had been picked over for parts.

In a statement, a Tourism and Culture Department spokesman said plans were being made to (en)sure the wreckage was preserved or displayed in a meaningful way. The NT News understands the Australian War Memorial, which declined to comment, is heavily interested in putting the wreckage on display. Several experts said its collections relating to the air war over Northern Australia were weak. The wreck itself effectively remains the property of the air force, which is spearheading recovery efforts, due to start in early October 2016.

Tourism and Culture Minister Lauren Moss, who signed off on the wreckage’s legal protection in recent days, said the discovery was “of high significance for all Australians, in particular Territorians”. Spitfire Association president Lysle Roberts said only two pilots from Duncan’s squadron were known to be still alive, both in poor health with little memory of the war. He said Duncan’s 452 Squadron was highly regarded, but suffered more casualties because they were often sent in to “hairier” mis- sions. “When (the Japanese) arrived here they were already battle hardened,” he said. - NT News

Viewing platforms have plane spotters flying high 12 October 2016 What started as a low-cost solution to getting photographers over the fence became a popular attraction for plane spotters across Central Queensland and wider areas. Councillor Neil Fisher, chair of the airport, water and waste committee, said he had heard of people driving from as far away as Roma to see some of the unique planes flying into the region as part of military exercises. Three years ago, Rockhampton Regional Council installed a viewing platform at the airport to let photographers and plane spotters get a better view of the runway. A sec- ond one was installed last year, just before Exercise Wallaby kicked off. Cr. Fisher said the platforms had been an "overnight suc- cess”. "It's been an overwhelming success,” he said. "The plane spotting community are some of Rockhampton's greatest allies. They pro- mote what's happening in Rockhampton to the whole country if not the world. They do a great job of showing people how great this region is. Some of the best things that happen with council are the things which are outside the box which we do on a shoe- string that provide hours of enjoyment for the greater community.” Throughout Exercise Wallaby this year, Cr Fisher said people had been "popping in and out” of the airport to try and get the per- fect shot of military aircraft and large passenger planes like the Boeing 787 Dreamliner which will be touching down in the region again this weekend. - The morning Bulletin

Albury Council and Uiver Trust come to understanding 23 October 2016. The Uiver DC-2 restoration day on Saturday allowed the community to view the progress so far. A new agreement with Albury Council and a well-supported public event has encouraged the group restoring the Uiver memorial plane. Monday’s council meeting will be asked to endorse a community and cultural committee recommendation for a three-year memorandum of understanding with the Uiver Memorial Community Trust. The day also marks 82 years since the air emergency over Albury, where residents joined together to help the Uiver, a competitor in the London to Melbourne Centenary Air Race, land safely.

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On Saturday an estimated 100 people, many of them children, attended the Uiver DC-2 restoration open day. Uiver Memorial Community Trust director and project manager David Stoffels welcomed this response. “The main thing that we want to do is make sure that we engage the next generation,” Mr Stoffels said. The restoration’s for them, it’s not for us at the end of the day, it’s for their future and for them to enjoy.” Melbourne University library map curator David Jones, one of the visitors, said he enjoyed talking to the restorers and seeing the progress so far. Mr Jones’ interest in the Uiver is increased by Melbourne University possessing an original map from the 1934 air race, one of many distributed to the public. The map marks the landing places between London and Melbourne but Albury rates no mention, highlighting the emergency nature of subsequent events.

Trust chairman Pieter Mol said the memorandum of understanding would bring all matters related to the Uiver under one um- brella. “It means we now have a clear recognition between council and ourselves that we are together working towards restoring the aircraft and making it available ultimately to the public as a physical reminder of the historical event that happened in Albury in 1934,” Mr Mol said. Albury Mayor Kevin Mack said "the Uiver landing remained a significant part of Albury’s history." The council transferred ownership of the DC-2 to the then Uiver Memorial Museum Group in 2013.

100 Years of Australia's first flying squadrons 28 October 2016 The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) celebrated its' first flying squadron's centenaries (of Nos 1, 2, 3 and 4 squadrons), 4 Squadron being the most recent to commemorate its establishment in 28 October 1916.

AHSA was present for the official program which commenced with a colours parade, reviewed by the Governor-General, His Excellency, General the Honourable Sir Peter Cosgrove, AK, MC (Ret'd), as Commander-In-Chief. The Squadron colours, for 1, 2 and 3 Squadrons (large, tasselled banners surmounted with gold eagles) as displayed, were replicated from the originals.

Attending the events were personnel and staff at RAAF Base Williamtown, veterans, their fami- lies and a contingent of 1 Squadron personnel visiting from RAAF Base Amberley, Qld. Follow- ing the Royal Salute, the Last Post was played, followed by a minute's silence. Hearing the playing of the Last Post at an opera- tional RAAF base, attended by many hundreds of serving and veteran RAAF and Army personnel in full dress, could not fail to be moving. Follow this with a screaming F/A-18A Hornet flypast (with A21-30 doing the honours), breaking hard overhead, is a not-to-be-forgotten experience. Static displays included: (representing 1 Sqn) Boeing F/A-18F A44-213, (2 Sqn) Boeing E-7A A30-001, (3 Sqn) MDD F/A-18A A21- 47 and (4 Sqn) Pilatus PC-9/A A23-032.

P-8 Poseidon has Welcome to Service Ceremony 25 November 2016 AHSA was present for the welcome to service ceremony for the Boeing P-8A Poseidon to RAAF Base Edinburgh (north of Adelaide, South Australia) on 25th November. A Welcome to Country ceremony was performed for the P-8 by a small indigenous dance contin- gent and the aircraft was blessed with a prayer of dedication by RAAF Chaplain Susan Page. Boeing is building 12 P-8 Poseidons for the RAAF to replace the venerable Lockheed AP-3C Orion and with the first delivery to the famous No. 11 Squadron now achieved, one can be ex- pected every three months with the next due in March 2017 - until all are in service here in 2021.

Wing Commander David Titheridge, CO 11 Squadron, in an exclusive interview with AHSA, remarked on the uninterrupted history of 11SQN on show here today including the Historic Aircraft Restoration Society's Con- solidated Catalina VH-PBZ and SP-2H Neptune VH-IOY, AP-3C Orion A9-664 Felix (a nod to the famous "Black Cats" of WWII) and of course, the P-8A, A47-001.

It will be business as usual for the P-3 with 10 SQN, which has operated by the side of the P-8 squadrons for some time already". With the P-3 phase out due by 2019, the Squadron of 8 P-8As should be online by 2018. P-3s will maintain the lions' share of op- erations next year, then the balance shifts as P-8 becomes operational. When P-3 retires in 2019, trained-up instructors and mainte- nance teams will have had sufficient time to integrate into the P-8A airframe. It is noted that numbers of P-3s have already been retired and converted to components, given two squadrons have now become one. Among the reported 11 airframes potentially set aside for preserva- tion are: A9-756 for the South Australian Aviation Museum and -751 for the RAAF Museum in December 2017: author. As an aside, for Avalon 2017, P-8 will be in attendance.

11 Squadron: was formed as a general reconnaissance squadron at RAAF Base Richmond on 21 September, 1939. Following the retention of 10 Sqn and its Sunderland aircraft in the UK in late 1939, 11 Sqn promptly proceeded to Port Moresby with two ex- Qantas Empire flying boats, Centaurus and Calypso on patrol duties of northern Australia and islands immediately north as well as New Zealand waters. Thus 11 Sqn became the first RAAF unit to serve in New Guinea. In October, the squadron received two Supermarine Seagull V biplanes. 11 Sqn was to remain in the South-West Pacific Area (SWPA) for the duration of hostilities.

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Moving ceremony on Jervis Bay to remember naval aviators 28 November 2016 Two young naval aviators killed in a crash in Jervis Bay 60 years ago were remembered with a special service on Sunday. Sub Lieutenant Arthur Arundel and trainee navi- gator Midshipman Noel Fogarty were farewelled, 60 years to the day after the accident that claimed their lives.

With the aid of modern technology, the moving ceremony was witnessed by one of the survivors of the accident, 81-year-old David Eagles, albeit through a live Facebook feed by the South Coast Register in the UK.

In November 1956, Eagles and Arundel were on loan from the Royal Navy. They were flying Fairey 'Firefly' anti-submarine air- craft from 851 Squadron at HMAS Albatross which collided at about 2000 feet altitude, two miles east of Huskisson. Arundel and Fogarty, both aged 20, were killed, their aircraft WD887, breaking apart upon striking the water near the crash site. Eagles (20) with his navigator, 18-year-old Midshipmen Don Debus, struggled to maintain control of the aircraft, VX381, after seven feet of the starboard wing, including the aileron, sheared off by the collision. They ditched in Hare Bay off Callala, about three miles from the crash site, launching their life-rafts before the aircraft sank. They were winched to safety by a Sycamore helicopter of 724 Squadron. Despite extensive searches of the area, including by divers, the plane and Arundel and Fogarty’s bodies were never recovered.

The exact location of the aircraft’s crash site remained a mystery, until local Greg Stubbs, found it earlier this year. Stubbs had dived on the wreck of VX381 in Hare Bay for a number of years and after 10 years of searching he found the other crash site, re- covering debris which identified it as the right plane. After researching the crash Stubbs learnt of the wreck’s story and even man- aged to track down the surviving pilot, David Eagles, in the UK and Don Debus in Canberra.

Sunday’s service was held over the site of the wreckage, followed by a wreath laying by Greg and Kruz Stubbs, Commander Fleet Air Arm, Commodore Chris Smallhorn and retired Commodore Geoff Ledger representing the Fleet Air Arm Association and Nowra RSL Sub-Branch secretary Rick Meehan midway across the bay to the other crash site. HMAS Albatross Fleet Air Arm Museum manager and senior curator Terry Hetherington hosted the service saying it was a day to remember the sacrifice made by the two aircrew. “But it is also a chance to celebrate that during this tragedy, two survived and went on to very fruitful lives as aviators,” he said. “We needed to know where the two bodies of the aviators lay so we could do something to recognise their loss and sacrifice,” he said. “They have no graves to mark their loss - this is what we commemorate.

Other special guests on Sunday were Joan and Michael Maby, whose husband and father John Maby was the winch operator on the Sycamore helicopter which saved David Eagles.

Hercules Air Asset Ready for Summer 14 December 2016 AHSA visited Avalon to familiarise with the Victorian aerial fire-fighting fleet which this year comprises 48 aircraft (last year it was 47) in a diverse fleet comprising large and small fixed wing and helicopter assets. These are operated, al- most in a military sense, as bombers, reconnaissance, intelligence and communications platforms. While 60% can drop water or retardant, the other 40% of the fleet are the "eyes in the sky", providing fire scanning, also air traffic control to ensure safety.

There are also the Large Air Tankers "LATS"- including the Coulson Aviation Lockheed EC- 130Q (N130FF "Hercules"). Such conversions of military and civilian airframes boast large- capacity water or retardant tankage. The LATS have been trialled since 2014 in southern Aus- tralia - Victoria and , the results have shown their ability to transit quickly to fire fronts throughout Victoria and deliver substantial loads where needed, in a timely man- ner-reaching fires across Victoria within the hour. They are proving to have the biggest impact on fires that 'run'. Both are based at Avalon for the duration of their contract.

An L-382C-44M-05 model built in 1981 for the US Navy, as EC-130Q Bu.Aer.161495, N130FF was once resplendent in a scheme not unlike that in which RAAF C-130Es flew in the 1970s. This Hercules was assigned to one of two US Navy squadrons of Hercs converted to perform the US Navy TACAMO role. Take Charge And Move Out meant maintaining links with the US Navy's ballistic missile submarine force, should the unthinkable hap- pen and a shooting war begin.

Known while in Australia as Bomber 390, she can carry up to 15,000litres with RADS-XXL tank fitted (a palletised option utilising the Herc's legendary roll-on/roll-off capabilities).

Australia’s is now considered one of the largest and best-balanced aerial firefighting fleets in the world, in terms of numbers, types and dynamics of aircraft.

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