Civil Register Update

VH- started to appear on Australian aircraft in 1928 when the owners of the 75 aircraft in the country were advised by the Civil Aviation Branch of the Department of Defence that they would be required to change their registration prefix from G-AU to VH-U within twelve months. The first aircraft to be registered using the new prefix is generally believed to be a Gipsy Moth, VH-UKF, owned by Mr T Manifold. By 1933 the numbers had reached almost two hundred and included Kingsford Smith’s Fokker USU. Forty years later the number of aircraft owned by Australians had reached almost 4,000 and by the end of 1987 this number had climbed to nearly 7,500. But it was in 1982 that the then Department had realized that available markings were fast running out and had released the VH-H, VH-J, VH-L, VH-N, VH-0 and VH-X blocks previously reserved for the Armed Services.

With these blocks filling up fast the CAA have now released the last two blocks reserved for military use and we should see aircraft carrying VH-Y and VH-Z registrations very soon. This still leaves two complete blocks that will not be used, VH-Q and VH-V.

The CAA expects to be changing to a new registration system in 1991 utilizing the registrations VH22AA to VH99ZZ. The present system allows just over sixteen thousand combinations whereas the new system would allow over forty four thousand, although a change to this type, based on the American system, will presumably involve every aircraft in Australia changing its registration. If Australia had adopted the Canadian system only a change in the position of the hyphen would have been needed. Canadian authorities had the same problem some years ago and decided to change their registration prefix from CF- to just C-. This enabled current aircraft to maintain their present registration as well as allowing thousands more combinations using a different second letter. Some letters were unable to be used as a second letter as these combinations were being used in other countries, such as CC in Chile and CU in Cuba; however just by using one letter (Canada chose C) registration combinations increased by over sixteen thousand. In fact Australia already has VH-, VI-, VJ-, VK- and VM- allocated by ICAO.

Even though this issue’s list of new registrations is short, some interesting aircraft appear. MBB Bo105 LCS was given a German test registration before being delivered to Bond Helicopters at Bourne, England as G-BCDH in 1974. During the next thirteen years it spent some time in Spain before coming to Australiain 1987 asHRM. It has been used extensively by theSydney SLSAHelicopter Rescue Service for sea and land rescues since then. The rescue service have now replaced the sixteen year old machine with an Aerospatiale AS365C Dauphin and in order that the Dauphin could use the registration HRM the Bo105 has been changed to LCS. Most of the single engined aircraft listed have been imported from the USA with the exception of Cessna 210L NCG. This turbocharged Centurion was originally delivered to New Zealand in December 1974 as ZK-DRI. During March 1982 it went to Papua New Guinea as P2-GWM, where it flew for six years with G W Modra of Boroko and whose initials it carried as a registration. It was cancelled from the PNG register in January 1988 and exported to Australia, however it has taken over two years to appear on the local register. BN-2A Islander UBD was built at the BrittenNorman factory at Bembridge on the Isle of Wight, England and had its first flight on 15 December 1969carrying British markings G-51-59. It was to go to Honda Motors, Japan in April 1970 but the sale fell through and the aircraft was delivered to Miles Aviation at Ford, Sussex in February 1971. The following year it eventually arrived in Japan but joined the Nippon Naigai Airways fleet. After a number of Japanese owners during its eighteen year stay it now joins the Missionary Aviation Fellowship fleet and will be used either in the NT or in its vast PNG network.

JSQ is a 1979 maufactured Piper Aerostar that can trace its origins back to the 1940s when TedSmith was a project engineer with Douglas Aircraft. During 1945 Smith designed an all metal light twin engined aircraft and formed the Aero Company to produce it. From this humble beginning came the range of Aero Commander aircraft. The company went through a series of takeovers and mergers over the years which featured great aviation names such as North American, Rockwell and Gulfstream, and in 1966 Ted Smith left to form a new company to produce a very high performance range of light twins based on a common airframe and a variety of engines. What emerged was a six seat, mid wing design with a circular cross section fuselage and a swept fin know as the Aerostar, which first flew in November 1966. The company was taken over by American Cement in 1968 and only one year later was again sold to Butler Aviation who had recently acquired the Mooney range. Butler went through several financial crises and during 1972 Smith bought back the aircraft production rights and soon added a pressurised model to the range. The final change came in March 1978 when Piper bought the design to fill a gap in the range of aircraft that they produced. JSQ was the third 6018 model built in 1979 at Piper’s Santa Maria plant.

The most interesting aircraft returning to the register is Miles Falcon Major AAT. This classic British design was built in 1935 and came to Australia two years later. Put on the register on 7 July 1937, it was impressed in January 1941 and given the serial A37-3. It returned to civil use in 1946 only to crash five years later at Echuca, Vic. It was rebuilt and again returned to the civil register in 1959. Withdrawn from use during February 1978 for a major rebuild, it is now flying again as the only one of its type still active in this part of the world.

Musketeer MJS and Cessna Skymaster PSC both return to the register after lengthy periods of maintenance, MJS after three years and PSC after four years.

With only three deletions from the register this month (all changes of registration) it gives space to details of some aircraft that were deleted in the August issue. Cessna 182E EMF was damaged after loss of power shortly after departing Elliot, NT. The pilot elected to carry out a forced landing on a dirt road but·clipped trees on approach. On landing, the nosewheel collapsed and the aircraft flipped over causing serious injuries to two of the four on board. Retractable Cessna 182 JMS was damaged at Yulara when it landed in strong crosswinds and the undercarriage collapsed and Cessna Agwagon;UDG was destroyed near Ayr, Old when it hit powerlines and crashed at night in heavy rain and thunderstorms.

Aztec THG was destroyed after crashing on takeoff from Yam Island Qld. Long wet grass on the strip was thought to be responsible for the crash from which all six occupants escaped injury. Robinson R22 HBB was lost at sea off Terrigal, NSW after the pilot was taking his nephew for a joy flight. Control of the helicopter was lost after flying low along the beach and it was ditched into the sea. The pilot was able to swim to shore to raise the alarm but unfortunately the passenger was not rescued.