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An Unusual Recent Visitor to Australia Was the Kuwait Air Force's Md-80 Vip Transport Seen Here at Canberra. The Kuwaiti Mo-80 Is the Only Md-80 in Military Service, and Was Acquired to Replace a Dc-9-30 Which Was Destroyed During the Gulf War.
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Electra For Charrak Air
Charrak Air was due to take delivery of Lockheed Electra L-188CF freighter N340HA at Avalon in October. N340HA was to ferry across the Pacific under the command of Captain Neville Baker with the remainder of the crew being Captain Robert ‘Spike’ Jones and F/E Alan Graco. The Charrak Air Electra was to originate its ferry flight at Willow Run Airport, Ypsilanti, Michigan with enroute stops to be made at Wilmington/Delaware, Austin/Texas and Camarillo/California before the Electra commenced its Pacific crossing via Honolulu, Pago Pago and Auckland. Charrak Air will operate its Electra on contract to Tassal P/L, carrying its export Atlantic Salmon between Hobart/Melbourne and Hobart/Sydney. Though the Charrak Air Electra was delivered as N340HA it was registered VH-CHD before entering service. Lockheed L-188C Electra msn 1109 came into being in September 1957 when Pacific Southwest Airlines of San Diego, California placed an order for three aircraft with msn 1109 being the second of these. On November 21 1959 the Electra now registered N172PS made its first flight from the Hollywood/Burbank Airport in Los Angeles. N172PS entered service with Pacific Southwest early the following month operating primarily on intrastate routes within California. In March 1969 N172PS was withdrawn from service by PSA and placed in storage at the Hollywood/Burbank Airport. In July 1970 the Electra was sold to California Airmotive Corporation then one of the largest dealers of used aircraft in the United States, who in turn sold N172PS to another dealer Bill Murphy Buick Inc, in December 1970. In June 1971 the Electra was leased by Holiday Wings of Los Angeles to be used for travel club operations however Holiday Wings never became operational. By October 1972 N172PS had entered passenger service with Flamingo Airlines who were based in Nassau in the Bahamas. In May 1974 N172PS was purchased by American Jet Industries and the following month by MCA Leasing. In October 1974 the Electra was converted for freight operations by the ESCO Service Company of Miami, Florida and this in turn led to N172PS being leased in February 1975 to Guyana Airways of Georgetown, Guyana for freight operations out of Miami to various Caribbean ports. The next lease for N172PS was in June 1975 when the aircraft entered service with Aerocosta of Bogota, Colombia. During 1976 N172PS was converted to an L-188CF with the fitment of a rear cargo door. In December 1976 the Electra was sold to LACSA, Costa Rica with the aircraft being registered TI-LRN and named ‘Cocori’. LACSA mainly used the Electra freighter for operations between San Jose and Miami. (It is interesting to note that LACSA operated a second Electra freighter TI-LRM ‘Camaquire’ an aircraft which had been built on order for Qantas who operated it between October 1959 and June 1967 as VH-ECA ‘Pacific Electra’.) In July 1977 LACSA sold TI-LRN to International Air Leases with the Electra once again being registered N172PS. In February 1978 N172PS was sold to Hawaiian Air Cargo who later reregistered the aircraft N340HA. Hawaiian Air Cargo used their Electra freighters for mainland based operations on contract to the United States Air Force/Military Airlift Command. Finally in September 1980 the Electra was sold to Zantop International Airlines of Detroit, Michigan who operated a fleet of some 25 Electra freighters. From their base at Willow Run Airport near Ypsilanti, Michigan, Zantop mainly utilised its Electra freighters on the uplift of automotive components throughout the United United States.
Regional Airline News
Airlines of Tasmania Metro III VH-NEL returned north to Tamworth in mid August for a planned maintenance layup with Tamair. As a replacement, Airlines of Tasmania initially operated Metro III VH-NEJ which carried Tamair colours. Later the all white Metro III VH-NEM was operated by Airlines of Tasmania. VH-NEL had returned to Airlines of Tasmania service by early October. PA-31-310 VH-CFE was retired from Airlines of Tasmania service in late September. Airnorth Regional took delivery of a second Metro 23 on September 12 when VH-ANW msn DC-873B arrived at Darwin Airport on termination of its ferry flight from San Antonio, Texas. To allow its new Metro 23 to take up the markings VH-ANW Airnorth reregistered its Metro II VH-ANW as VH-CUZ. Airnorth took delivery of the Metro III VH-ANW/CUZ which they leased from Fairchild Industries in August 1994. Aus-Air has sold its PA-31-350 VH-OZQ to Eastland Air at Toowoomba with the aircraft being reregistered VH-MKK. Eastern Australia Airlines announced on September 5 that it had ordered a Dash 8-200 for delivery in January 1996 and that options had been taken on a further three Dash 8-200s. Eastland Air withdrew from service its PA-31-310 Navajo VH-SJQ in August with the aircraft being sold to a Moorabbin based operator. In turn PA-31-350 VH-OZQ was purchased from Aus-Air with the Chieftain later being reregistered VH-MKK. Flight West Airlines added DHC-6-300 Twin Otter VH-FNY to its fleet in early September with the aircraft being noted at Cairns Airport. VH-FNY was previously operated by Talair as P2-RDM and was one of a number of aircraft recently taken out of storage at Mareeba. Flight West has leased EMB-110P1 VH-XFJ and EMB-110P2 VH-XFL to the Australian Army which brings to four the number of leased Bandeirantes operating with the military. Geelong Flight Centre continues to operate its twice weekly service from Geelong/Grovedale to King Island. PA-31-350 Chieftain VH-AYP and PA-31-310 Navajo VH-SGQ can still registered ZK-REZ crossed the Tasman again has been noted recently flying its services. transitting Brisbane, Townsville and Port Moresby enroute Kendell Airlines withdrew its Metro II VH-KDQ from to the Mariana Islands where the aircraft was registered service on August 24 after the aircraft operated flight N501TA to the Lemon Family Properties on Tinian Island. KD236 from Melbourne to Wagga via Albury. By the time In January 1994 N501TA was sold to Pacific Island Aviation of this is read Kendell will have also withdrawn from service Saipan and they reregistered the Caravan N501P the follow and sold Metro II VH-KDR. This aircraft holds the distinc- ing May. In November 1994 N501P returned to the US where tion of being the first and last Metro II in the Kendell fleet. it was sold in May 1995 to Wipaire Inc, of Inver Grove Unlike the other six Metro II aircraft previously operated by Heights, Minnesota. Kendell both VH-KDQ and VH-KDR were delivered new. Skywest Aviation took delivery of Metro 23 VH-SWM Kendell operated its first Metro II service in February msn DC-875B at its Perth base on September 12 after the 1979 when it leased VH-BPL from local Swearingen dis- aircraft ferried in from Honolulu, Majuro and Townsville. distributors Stillwell Aviation. The following month Kendell Skywest will base its Metro 23 in Alice Springs where it will announced that it had placed an order for this new regional replace a King Air 200 on a resources contract. airliner. On May 17 1979 Metro II N5659M was delivered to The delivery of VH-SWM brings to 17 the number of Metro 23s in our the Stillwell Aviation hangar at Essendon and later that region — Kendell/7, Hazelton/4, Airnorth/2, Air Post/2, Skip- month it entered service with Kendell as VH-KDR. In April pers/1, Skywest/1. 1980 Metro II N1007G arrived at Essendon and the follow- Also of interest is that Metro 23s serial numbering ing month it was delivered to Kendell Airlines as VH-KDQ. DC-870B thru DC-875B inclusive have all been delivered KentiaLink Airlines is operating PA-31-350s VH-SVN to Australian operators — DC-870B VH-DMO/Hazelton, and VH-SVV on charter flights out of Lord Howe Island and DC-871B VH-HCB/Hazelton, DC-872B VH-KEX/Kendell, is the new operating name for Seaview Air. DC-873B VH-ANW/Airnorth, DC-874B VH-WAI/Skippers Port Douglas Air took delivery of EMB-110P1 VH-BWC and DC-875B VH-SWM/Skywest. in late September with the company planning to operate the aircraft on RPT services between Cairns and Port Douglas.
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