REGISTERED FOR POSTING AS A PERIODICAL CATEGORY B !■iillll ill i— \ lllllilllillllli •j D ■I111 £V ll . a. III AVIATION HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF AUSTRALIA..Jllilll ■■ill ii Iillll*■ u iili ii ■ii ■II ii ii ii PRICE $1.95 ,l»« ■ 111 lllll lilll iili 11 Sliillil iiiiiiiliiiiili ■111■ :ii ■■ii iiliiiiiiil ""pillBlllr*ill iili ii 1111 !Uiili ill I Il.i ipi ili®^ iilliliK;# iiiiiiii issiiiiiiii isi»;;:ite *11111111111 iili iiiiiiii ................. - :iililliillM^^^ iiliiiiiiil • " " " "■ ------------------------- ■ . iiiii ?i|i iililiSiii|llilii|iiig|g|g^ ii 11 III ;;siliiiiiP» ii iiliiiiiiil iiiiliiiiiliiili iiiil iili Biisffi ■"'"■■‘“'liilliiiB ii ‘““"Tlllli Iiiil VOLUME 20 ^iiiti iii NUMBER 2 liiiii llii iiiiliis. .......... iiiii iiiii»i*:iiipi|ii^ lili ill SsM-rMSSixm-:* ;li A7-092 M ifj llllppi®:;;!**^ illili iiiliiiiliili* AHSA VOLUME 20, NUMBER 2 J UVJ LRJ LJ Contents AHSA ADDRESS LADY LUCK AT OLD BONALBO 24 P.O. Box 212, Footscray, Vic., 3011. VICKERS VISCOUNT 27 EDITORIAL ADDRESS P.O. Box 63, St. Kilda, Vic., 3182. 78 WING RAAF IN MALTA 36 SUBSCRIPTIONS SECRETARY Comment Mike Madden EDITOR In volume 19 Number 41 outlined the situation re the availability of material for the Journal. I am unhap­ Peter Malone py to have to say that the situation has changed little since that time. We still have no material in hand for Volume 21. I realise that not all members are in a position to actively research and thus cannot help with articles for the Journal. However, there are a number of others who can, but elect, for whatever reason, not to let other members read the results of their efforts. In some cases the reason is pure selfishness and there is little we can do about that. However, in a number of cases of which I am aware, it is just simply that the person concerned lacks the confidence in his own abilities to put pen to paper. If that is your problem, forget it. That is why I am here. It is part of my job Membership is for one full calendar year and as Editor to assist authors in making their manuscripts suitable for publication. The most important thing includes both Journal and AHSA News. is to put pen to paper and get all the facts down. Once you have done this, I can help you to refine the Annual Membership fees of $12.00 (Australian finished product. O.K., all you budding authors, deluge me with material. Currency) will be due for renewal during Another area in which members can be of help is with photos for publication. Many have a few photos of January each year. some historical significance or interest. How about letting others see them too? Perhaps you have a photo that can’t be identified; send it in, one of our readers may be able to supply an answer. The only require­ INFORMATION FOR AUTHORS All ment is that photos should have some historical interest and preferably have an Australian theme. manuscripts for publication in the Journal should be typed or clearly handwritten on one side of each sheet only, and must be double spaced. Photographs should where possible have a subject width of at least 5” (12.7 c.m.) or 8” (20 c.m.). This is not essential, but is preferable, and photos of all shapes and sizes will be accepted. cover Where possible we prefer negatives, even if prints are also sent. This greatly simplifies the FRONT COVER. Typical of the many Vickers Viscounts that saw service in Australia in the late 1950’s Editor’s job. All negatives will be returned and and the 1960’s is Trans Australia Airlines’ Viscount 756, VH-TVL, (c/nl97), seen here at Essendon Air­ prints will be returned if so marked. If you do port on 12 January 1963. (J. Hopton) not want prints cut, mark “Do not crop’’. If you are thinking of preparing an article, please REAR COVER. Viscounts in service with three Australian operators. contact the Editor at the above address for fur­ Top: TAA’s first Viscount 756 VH-TVH, (c/n 146). (TAA photo). ther advice, and so we can plan ahead. All Center: Viscount 839, c/n 436, was originally ordered as VH-TVS, George Evans, for TAA but was not work on this Journal is voluntary and no pay­ delivered to this airline, and eventually went to Iran. After some three years there it eventually arrived in ment can be made for published material Australia, but as A6-436 for the (RAAF photo) RAAF Bottom: Following five years service in the USA with Continental Airlines, Viscount 812, (c/n355), Published by: Aviation Historical Society of became VH-RMK with Ansett-ANA. (Ansett photo). Australia, P.O. Box 212, Footscray, Vic., 3011, Australia. INSIDE FRONT COVER. A selection of photo’s taken at RAAF Laverton on the open day on 8 April 1979. Top: The only unit still operating CAC Winjeels is 4 Flight at Williamtown which uses the aircraft for FAC duties, and is represented here by A85-426. Center: The Army were represented by one of their newly acquired GAF Nomad N.22s. Bottom: The Roulettes, although restricted by poor weather and mechanical failures, still managed to fly with their usual elan. Their Macchis, with their subtle but effec­ © 1980 Aviation Historical Society of Australia tive changes to the basic training markings, are one of the prettiest aerocraft team mounts extant. (Photos P.T. Malone) ISSN 0045 — 1185 INSIDE REAR COVER. A further selection of photos from the Laverton open day. Top: Nearly thirty years up and still performing a useful task. The Canberras of 2 Sqn, represented here by A84-229, are very active in the photo survey role. Center: An added bonus for the crowd as it leaves the airshow. Iro­ Printed and Typeset by quois, A2-486, gives an impromptu demonstration of its ability to manoeuvre in restricted areas, as it Loma Printing Service prepares to return to its home base. Bottom: A97-004, a C-130H Hercules of 36 Sqn in its shiny new 8-10 Vale Street,North Melbourne camouflage scheme. “Gloss camouflage? Well you see Old Boy, we carry camouflage because we really Telephone: 328 4080 - 328 4874 don’t want to be seen, but if we are, we do like to look our best.’;’ (Photos P.T. Malone). 23 VH-UMH As a new decade jets towards us, it is interesting by Ron J. Gibson to look back fifty years to the golden age of Australian aviation. The 1930s produced so much Luck experimental and exploratory flying that Australians were able to establish themselves as the world’s greatest flyers. An honour roll would be lengthy and would contain the names of men and women who saw the value of flying to all miankind at Old Bonalbo and were determined to prove it. The decade opened for two great Australians with the realisation of a dream. In this realisation disaster almost struck — but Lady Luck was at Old Bonalbo. Kingsford Smith and Ulm had founded illi Australian National Airways Ltd in 1929, to iillil i j operate inter-city air services, without government ■ subsidy, and had chosen the Sydney — Brisbane route as the first link. They assembled a fleet of tri- motored Avro X aircraft and set 1 January 1930 as the opening date, with simultaneous departures from Sydney and Brisbane. “Smithy” and G.U. (Scotty) Allan flew the northbound service in Southern Cloud (VH-UMF) without incident. Jack .^1 Shepherd and Charles Ulm flew Southern Sky (VH-UMH) to Brisbane earlier in the week. Lady Goodwin, wife of the Governor of Queensland, christened the aircraft on 31 December and declared the service open. i"' " ......... On the following morning, with Shepherd at the iy controls and Ulm in the co-pilot’s seat. Southern Sky took off from Eagle Farm on schedule, carry­ ing a full complement of passengers and some i mail. Shortly after take-off the aircraft ran into heavy rain, the remnants of a cyclonic disturbance which had been in the area for several days. The visibility became very poor and the buffetting very severe — “the thickest weather I have ever struck” — said Ulm. Shepherd, following the coast line generally, climbed to 8,000 ft in search of clearer weather, but could not find any relief there. He then turned south west in the hope of finding less severe conditions. This course took him over several heavily timbered ranges which form part of 24 the Great Dividing Range, but the buffetting con­ tinued and visibility was still minimal. Shepherd then decided to descend. He knew that this could be dangerous but could not, under the cir­ cumstances, take any other action than to seek a site for a forced landing. It is possible that the crew had lost their bearings. There were no sophisticated aids such as we have today. Whatever the real reason. Shepherd felt his way down until his decision was irreversible — he was 11 now almost surrounded by mountains and trees. But then came Lady Luck .... In a break in the weather Shepherd sighted one of the small farming pockets on the western slopes and, in the middle, a small cleared paddock. The owner of this pad- dock, Mr George Minnis heard the aircraft and realised it was in trouble. With great presence of mind he grabbed some sheets from his bed, ran out waving them to attract the pilot’s attention and then spread them out on what he considered was the best place to land. Shepherd, using all the skill at his command put the heavily-laden Southern Sky down at 10.20 a.m.