Traffic

Also heading for New Guinea was Air Melanesiae BN-2A YJ-RV2 which in early September was sold to Talair as P2-ISW.

Passing through Brisbane on July 12th was Malaysian BN-2A 9M-AYJ, which was on delivery to Wing & Rotor in Auckland as ZK-FMS.

In Australia, Aerial Enterprises based at Derby have added BN-2A VH-AEC c/n 2164 to their fleet. In turn they have sold Islander VH-SYU to Rottnest Airlines and it entered service with its new owner on August 27th.

Cessna 208 Caravan in Australia

The first Cessna Caravan to visit Australia was the demonstrator N208CC c/n 00004 which toured the country in August 1985. It was New Zealand however who placed the first of this type on their register. Sky Ferry at Picton took delivery of two Caravan’s in November 1985. They were ZK-SFA c/n 00051 and ZK-SFB c/n 00059.

In Australia, the former demonstrator N208CC was registered in May to Rex Aviation as VH-JEE though it has since operated on lease to the National Safety Council. On July 15th two Caravan’s N9421F c/n 00049 and N9452F c/n 00057 flew into Sydney from Norfolk Island on delivery to Rex Aviation. N9421F was registered VH-TFT and it departed Bankstown on August 19th on delivery to Tillair. N9452F was registered VH-JEJ and like VH-JEE it has entered service with the National Safety Council.

Bizjet Fleet Expands

Arriving in Perth from Brunei on July 26th was Boeing 727-100 VR-BHK on lease to the Bond Corporation. The Boeing is owned by Gulftrading Co. , Hamilton, Bermuda but has been leased through Jet Aviation of Zurich, Switzerland. VR-BHK c/n 18933 was built in 1965 on order for Lufthansa and was delivered to them in September of that year as D-ABIR.

The first Canadair CL-601 to be registered in Australia was delivered to Westfield Ltd. , Sydney in late August. VH-MZL c/n 3054 ex N605CL replaces BAe 125-7008 VH-HSP, which was sold earlier in the month to the Coles Myers Group.

The bizjet scene is certainly changing in Australia as companies are upgrading from the smaller Citation and Learjet to Falcon’s and BAe 125’s. At time of writing Ariadne (Australia) Ltd. , based in Brisbane are awaiting delivery of a Falcon 200. Registered VH-PDJ, c/n 479 has already visited Australia when as N200WD it made a demonstration tour in October 1984. Other Falcon 200 news concerns c/n 505 which has been allocated to Hawker Pacific. As N221FJ this aircraft was delivered to Falcon Jet in the United States in July. It is expected that it will be delivered later this year to Moana Airlines as ZK-MAY.

Noted in Sydney on August 16th was BAe 125-800B G-GAEL c/n 258007. This aircraft has been leased by British Aerospace to a New Zealand banking group.

Publication & Broadcasting of Sydney who presently operate Learjet 35A VH-CPH have purchased a Gulfstream 28 in the United States. This aircraft was due to be delivered to Australia in early October.

In June 1983 interior of Essendon imported Mitsubishi Diamond N335DM c/n A048. Over the years the aircraft led a very sheltered life and it wasn’t until October 1985, after conversion to 1A standard, that it was registered VH-JEP. In mid-August VH-JEP departed Essendon on sale to an operator in the United States.

Ferry Flights

Arriving in Sydney on July 22nd from Honiara were two PA60-601B Aerostars on delivery to Aviation Centre at Bankstown. N3654Q c/n 8162154 has become VH-NOE while N6080R c/n 8062146 was registered VH-NOA. Another PA-60 in the Pacific during this period was VH-PJC which flew into Brisbane from Tarawa and Honiara on August 24th. This Aerostar is based in Jandakot and it was completing a Round the World flight which took it to Oshkosh.

Cessna A185E C-FZOP c/n 01835 flew into Melbourne on August 1st after a direct flight from Vila. After receiving its Australian CofA, it was registered VH-HTS to Wilderness Air, Tasmania. The Cessna was then flown to Parafield for fitment of floats before heading for its base in southwest Tasmania. Another long-distance Cessna ferry was P210 N731HE c/n 00549 which flew into Melbourne from Honiara. This aircraft has since been registered VH-DXA.

South Africa still remains as a major source of aircraft for the General Aviation market in Australia. Arriving at Bankstown on July 29th were Commander 500s ZS-JPU c/n 3202 which has since become VH-JPO and Cessna 182 ZS-IUW. The following day Baron 58 ZS-LBT c/n TH. 470 flew in from Alice Springs. Due in Darwin on September 16th was Baron 58 ZS-JJW, PA31 ZS-FAN and BN-2A A2-VIS. Final destination for all these aircraft is Bankstown.

Outbound from Brisbane for Honiara on July 27th was N-24A VH-NOM. Final destination for this aircraft was Florida where it was to be handed over for use by the US Customs Service.

Fokker Update

For Fokker, Australia has provided an excellent marketplace for their F27 airliner. Since the first F27 was delivered to TAA in April 1959 there have been 77 of different series registered in Australia. This figure has now decreased to 30 and with the impending delivery of replacement types such as the ATR42 and Fokker 50 we are going to see further deterioration of the fleet in the coming year.

F27-600 VH-FNU has been sold by Ansett to Air UK. This aircraft has been stored at Melbourne Airport in Air Queensland colours since withdrawal from service in February. On August 22nd it departed Melbourne on its ferry flight to Norwich, England.

F27-600 VH-FNT which is the last aircraft to carry the old Ansett Airlines of Australia red colours has also been in storage at Tullamarine since late June. In August it was ferried over to Essendon, where it is now hangared for long-term storage.

In the early hours of March 26th 1971, Ansett-ANA F27-200 VH-FNE had its fuselage gutted by fire while hanging at Essendon. Though the wings and engines were salvaged the fuselage was beyond repair so it was presented to the Airport Fire Service. For years the remains of VH-FNE sat behind the airport reservoir. However, in July it disappeared. Enquiries revealed it had been used as filling for works that were being done in that area of Essendon Airport.

In the August 2 issue of Flight International, Australian Airlines were offering for sale 3 F27-200s presently operated by Air Queensland- VH-FNM, VH-FNV and VH-FNW.

F27-600 VH-TQT was ferried from Melbourne to Brisbane on July 26th. At the time VH-TQT carried Air Queensland colours and Trans Australia titles. In early September it commenced flying with Air Queensland evidently replacing in service VH-FNW which was flown south to Melbourne.

The first 1 0 Fokker FS0’s for Ansett have been allocated registrations VH-FNA thru VH-FNJ with construction numbers P006 thru P015.

Cook Islands International Commence Operations

The latest Pacific island nation to start up an International Air line is the Cook Islands who will use the expertise of Ansett to operate, manage and market their new airline.

Using a wet-leased Boeing 767, Cook Islands International will operate a weekly return service on the route Sydney/Raratonga/ Auckland. Using the airline code KC the first service departed Sydney on August 17th. Boeing 767 VH-RMD carries Cook Islands International titles though the remainder of the aircraft remains in Ansett colours. Due to mechanical problems with VH-RMD, the second service on August 24th was operated by 767 VH-RME.

To cater for the expected rise in numbers of Australian tourists visiting the Cook Islands, the locally based Air Raratonga have added a DH114 Heron to their fleet. Built as a series 2D c/n 14131 was delivered to Shell Oil in Venezuela in January 1958 as YV-P-AEB. In 1967 the Heron was converted to Riley configuration. On June 19th this year as YV-284P, the Heron was flown from Honolulu to Raratonga on delivery to Air Raratonga with whom it has since been registered ZK-TAJ.

In New Caledonia locally based Air Caledonie have taken delivery of the first of two ATR42-300’s they have on order. F-ODGM c/n 018 finally reached Noumea in mid-August after an extensive sales tour was undertaken en route. In turn Air Caledonie have sold one of their Twin Otter’s to Talair. DHC6-300 F-OCQF c/n 313 was delivered to Talair in August as P2-RDJ.

In October 1985 Polynesian Airlines withdrew their 737-2U9 5W-PAL from service and it was replaced by Ansett Boeing 737-277 VH-CZM. 5W-PAL was flown to the United States where it entered service with America West Airlines as N149AW. Then in a major reshuffle, Polynesian Airlines took redelivery of their former SW-PAL in September. To achieve this Ansett purchased 737-2A6 N1288 from United Technologies and it entered service with America West as N146AW. This in turn released N149AW back to Polynesian as SW-PAL and VH-CZM back to the Ansett fleet. If you think this is complicated wait till Ansett, Ansett Worldwide and Corsair start shuffling their fleets of aircraft around.

Re-Registration Disease

In December 1967 the then Department of Civil Aviation brought in a ruling that an aircraft could only have one set of registration letters for the period of its life in Australia. Prior to that registrations could be changed on request and some aircraft were running through eight or nine registrations in a short period of time.

It is apparent that the old re-registration disease is once again raising its ugly head. Apparently, the Department will now grant a dispensation to owners if they feel thay have a good case for a change. While this may be acceptable in one or two extreme cases, there is no doubt that the re-registration. of aircraft currently on the register is gaining momentum.

Examples in the last few months have included – BAe 125 VH-JCC to VH-LRH, Bell 206B VH-CPA to VH-TFH, King Air 200 VH-THS to VH-NSS, Baron 58 VH-TMV to VH-NET and Commander 690 VH-WLS to VH-WLO. The strangest case concerns Cessna 550 VH-TNP which was sold by Skywest to a Sydney-based company Bacritas P/L. At the time Bacritas operated PA31T-2 VH-LJK and they evidently wanted that registration for their newly delivered Cessna 550 as LJK were the initials of the owner’s three children. Therefore VH-TNP the Cessna 550 became VH-LJK while PA31T-2 VH-LJK was changed to VH-TNP!

Boeing 737-300 Enters Australian Service

During August the first of twenty four Boeing 737-300’s on order for Ansett and Australian Airlines was delivered and entered service.

The first 737-376 for Australian Airlines VH-TAF was rolled out at Seattle on June 8th. After the official handover ceremony it was handed back to Boeing to be used as a flying test bed for new EFIS and windshear systems. While engaged in this work VH-TAF was registered N3281U. When VH0TAF finally arrived in Australia during October it was the fifth of its type to be delivered to Australian Airlines. The first 737-300 to arrive in Australia was VH-TAG ‘Advance’ which flew into Sydney and later Melbourne on August 4th. Ferry routing was Seattle/Oakland/Hilo/Pago Pago/Noumea/Sydney/Melbourne. The remainder of the Australian Airlines 737-376’s will ferry Noumea direct to Melbourne. VH-TAG operated Australian Airlines inaugural service with the type on August 20th when it flew from Melbourne to Sydney on TN472. Other 737-376 deliveries to date have been – VH-TAH ‘Adventure’ on August 16th VH-TAI ‘Boldness’ on August 26th and VH-TAJ ‘Challenge’ on September 9th.

Ansett Airlines first 737-377 VH-CZA arrived in Melbourne on August 25th on the routing Seattle/Hillo/Nadi/Melbourne. This aircraft operated Ansett’s first service with the type on September 15th when it flew from Melbourne to Sydney on AN2. The second 737-377 for Ansett Airlines VH-CZB was due in Melbourne on September 19th.

As Ansett take delivery of the 737-377 they will withdraw from service their 737-277 fleet. These aircraft will then be ferried to the United States on delivery to America West Airlines. The first 737-277 to be withdrawn was VH-CZX which operated its last flight for Ansett on September 15th.

Ansett leasing company Trans-Pacific Enterprises have been allocated construction numbers and registrations for their first twelve Boeing 737-33A’s as follows – c/n 23625 thru 23636- N3281V, N3281W, N3281Y, N3282G, N3282N, N3282P, N3282R, N3282V, N3282W, N3282X, N3282Y, N3283G.

The first 727-276 to be painted in Australian Airlines colours was VH-TBP. Its entry into service was planned to coincide with the first day of operations by the 737-376 on August 20th.

Another Qantas 747-2388 has departed on delivery to an overseas operator. VH-EBF in full People Express colours and now registered N610PE departed Sydney for Honolulu on July 23rd.

Inbound to Sydney on September 2nd on re-delivery to Qantas was their first 747-2388 VH-EBA. In June 1984 this Boeing departed Sydney as 4R-ULF on delivery to Air Lanka. Now it has returned to Qantas service to cover an extremely busy period of aircraft refurbishing and repainting.

Helicopter Movements

This section of the industry is extremely buoyant at present with an unprecedented number of foreign registered helicopters coming into the country on delivery to Australian operators.

Perhaps the most interesting are two Sikorsky S-62A’s imported from Taiwan by North West Air Charter at Archerfield. Previously operated by the Taiwan Provincial Government, the S-62A’s B-13101 c/n 62-106 and B-13102 c/n 62-108 were noted at Archerfield in mid-July. By mid-August they had been registered VH-NWB and VH-NWC respectively.

The Victorian Government have meanwhile purchased two SA-365C1 Dauphin’s for the Police Flying Unit. They will join SA-365C VH-PVF c/n 5042 which was delivered in October 1979. Previously operated by the Romanian Government in the VIP role the first of the Dauphin’s was noted at Essendon on August 18th after being air freighted from Paris. This was VH-PVK c/n 5033 which was previously registered YR-DFB. Close inspection of the aircraft reveals the number 104 on the tail. VH-PVK will be converted for use as an Air Ambulance by the Victorian Police. The second SA-365C1 is YR-DFA c/n 5025 which will be registered VH-PVM. Until the Dauphin’s enter service the Victorian Police have leased Bell 412 VH-AHH from BH Pacific Ltd.

Kestrel Helicopters at Moorabbin have imported three more Bell 47’s from Canada. Noted there in late July were Bell 47G-2 VH-JCN ex C-FMUZ, Bell 47G-4 VH-KHR ex C-FPVV and Bell 47J VH-KHX ex C-FAFI. This brings to seven the number of Bell 47’s imported by Kestrel this year from Canada.

Also returning from Canada are the four Bell 205A’s leased by the National Safety Council to Connair subsidiary Frontier Helicopters for the Northern summer fire season. First back will be VH-UHP ex C-GFHU and VH-NSQ ex C-GFHT. It is expected that Frontier will send four of their Bell 205A fire bombers to Australia this summer.

Heli-Muster based at Victoria River Downs in the Northern Territory operate a large fleet of Bell 47G’s in the cattle mustering role. They have recently purchased a number of Kawasaki-Bell 47G-3B’s in South East Asia. Already registered to them are VH-JAJ c/n 2188 and VH-JWB c/n 2192 while in prospect are JA-7411 c/n 2051 and JA-7463 c/n 2105.

Propjet Fleet Changes

Arriving in Sydney on July 21st was the first Beech King Air 300 to be delivered to an operator in the South Pacific. N69264 c/n FA. 105 was destined for Moana Airlines in New Zealand how- ever before delivery it was demonstrated to a number of interes- ted operators in Australia. The King Air commenced its ferry flight in Lakeland, Florida, where its ferry tanks were fitted. From there it flew to Sydney via Wichita, Santa Barbara, Honolulu and Nadi. When in service with Moana the King air is expected to take up the registration ZK-MAB.

Another New Zealand-bound King Air was C-FCOS a model 200 c/n BB. 690 which arrived in Christchurch from Australia on August 31st.

Beech 1900C N72391 was noted at the Beech factory in July carrying Hawker Pacific titles. This aircraft is expected to be demonstrated in a number of south-east Asian countries before arrival in Australia.

Corpair Cessna 441 VH-HWD was delivered to Air North in Darwin in September. Tillair have sold one of their Commander 690A’s. VH-ATF was delivered to George Harris & Associates at Essendon in early August and replaces Commander 680FLP VH-DCE. Pacific Aviation have purchased the two Merlin Ill’s VH-CAL and VH-CAM from Civil Flying Services. They were noted at Essendon on August 8th where they were being refurbished and repainted before entry into service with Pacific.

In Traffic, September 1986, we mentioned the arrival of two foreign registered MU-2’s in Australia. MU-28 ZK-WAL was on delivery to Heli-Muster at Victoria River Downs. MU-2K N45GE was registered VH-MUO after certification by Interair at Essendon. On August 14th it arrived in Perth on delivery to its new owners Great Western Aviation.

Arriving at Essendon on August 5th after its trans-Pacific ferry was MU-2J N9MA c/n 549. Purchased by Peninsula Air Services from a private owner in Houston, Texas the MU-2J has been allocated the registration VH-JMU. One of the pilots on the ferry was Bill Suhr the owner of Peninsula. On September 3rd he was tragically killed when the Air Ambulance Cessna 402 he was piloting, crashed on takeoff from Essendon.