Warbirds

The completed aircraft was dedicated to the memory of Gary’s father, Alan Scott, at a ceremony at the QAM on December 27 2008. The aircraft will be placed on permanent display at the Caloundra based museum. The QAM records its gratitude to Lyn and Gary Scott for constructing the very fine replica of a CAC CA-18 Mustang Mk.23, and donating it to the museum.

The replica, painted up as an RAAF aircraft, carries the serial A68-201. The last RAAF Mustang carried the serial A68-200. A nice continuation of the production line! The machine carries the name Nell in honour of Alan Scott’s wife Eleanor. A number of genuine Mustang parts were used in the construction of the replica. Some were donated while others were purchased. Other genuine but not Mustang parts were used in the building of the machine. Moulds taken from a genuine Mustang for fibreglass replication included the port and starboard inner and outer wheel fairing door stiffeners exhaust stubs and prop spinner. Except for the trim tabs the flight controls are functional.

One item that the museum could not readily source was two genuine Mustang wheels. If any AA reader is able to assist the QAM with a pair of genuine Mustang wheels the museum would be keen to hear from them!

Warbirds To Go Overseas

Not all warbirds in Australia are destined to stay here. A few warbirds have been noted recently that are destined for overseas destinations.

Former RAAF P-40E Kittyhawk, A29-43, has been noted registered in Norway! The aircraft was originally 41-5549 before it took up the RAAF serial. On April 24 1942 it was shot down by a Japanese Zero fighter and crashed and burned near Port Moresby, PNG. The remains of the wreck was salvaged by well know aircraft recovery hunter, Robert Greinert, in September 2003 from the crash site near Porebada village. It will form the basis of a rebuild project in Australia but for new owner, Oyvind M Ellingsen of Sandvika, Norway who reserved the registration LN-WNC on October 2 2008.

Tiger Moth A17-194 has been registered in England as G-TYMO. This Tiger was built by De Havilland Australia at Mascot, NSW, in 1940. Taken on charge by the RAAF in December 1040 it spent its wartime service at Cunderdin, WA, with 9EFTS. It was eventually offered for disposal ex Base Squadron, Pearce AFB, in early 1953. No civil history is recorded for this aircraft. It was acquired by Barry Markham some 10 years ago, while under restoration at Ray Windred’s workshop at Luskintyre, NSW. Around two years ago Nick Rose bought the aircraft, still under restoration. The machine will be rebuilt with a 145 hp Gipsy Major 1C engine and will have a tailwheel and brakes. It will be painted in yellow training colours with WW2 blue and white RAAF roundels. It is Nick Rose’ intention to fly the aircraft around Australia and then on to the UK where it will be based. The registration G-TYMO has been obtained especially as it is the name of a Tiger Moth in a series of children’s picture books about aeroplanes that Nick is writing and which will be published in the UK summer of this year.

A17-194/G-TYMO has c/n 195. It was registered G-TYMO on September 8 2008 to Nick Rose of Bournemouth, UK.

The big question is where has the machine been for the last 50 odd years?

The Passing Of Captain Boggles

It is with regret that we record the passing of Captain Boggles. Otherwise known as Robert St. John, Captain Boggles was the name that Rob used as he lived life to the fullest by turning the clock back to the 1930s and operating a barnstorming Tiger Moth flight in south-eastern Australia. A qualified civil engineer he worked with DCA/DOT for many years as an aerodrome surveyor. In the late 1970’s he owned a share in DH82a VH-ART with the Adelaide Tiger Group. It gave him a taste for antique aeroplane flying. He later bought and DH84 Dragon VH-AQU. Bob started his barnstorming in the early 1990’s with Echuca, Victoria, his first place of business. He operated Tiger Moths VH-ART and VH-ALP. These were later replaced by VH-BVZ and VH-BFD. Meningie, South Australia, was later to become his eventual home base. As Captain Boggles Bob barnstormed the area embracing south-eastern South Australia, Western Victoria and up into the South Western corner of NSW. The two Tigers and a support caravan and truck would descend on a country town and sell Tiger Moth joy flights to all who would buy a ticket. Sometimes a large paddock became their aerodrome. Real wind in the wires flying in a world that was fast going the way of high tech aircraft. Along the way the Tiger flight would run into all the incidents, adventures and setbacks that the barnstormers of the depression era would have experienced.

Bob, Captain Boggles, passed away peacefully on December 1. Bob was 69. He was given a send off by his family and many friends at his funeral in the Meningie RSL hall. He would no doubt have thought that the flypast of three DH82a Tiger Moths’ was most appropriate.

Junkers W-33 Replica For Bankstown Museum

The Australian Aviation Museum at Bankstown, but soon to move to Camden, has acquired a full scale and very realistic of the Junkers W-33 floatplane Atlantis. The original Atlantis floatplane flew all the way from Germany in 1932 but the crew encountered problems on the north-west coast of Western Australia and almost lost their lives before being found.

The original Atlantis, D-1925, was returned to Germany after the flight and no longer exists. Several books have been written about the epic flight. In 1984 the ABC elected to make a television mini-series “Flight into Hell” about the flight.

Work on the “Atlantis” began at the ABC’s film studios at French’s Forest in May 1984 and was completed in August that year. A fabricated wooden timber frame was used and the aircraft was clad in corrugated aluminium. The two floats were constructed of fibreglass. The engine used was a Daimler Jaguar six cylinder. The complete building project was supervised by airframe technicians from No. 38 Squadron, RAAF.

The aircraft replica, built from plans and photographs, is 11.14 metres long, has a wing span of 17.76 metres and is 3.89 metres high from float to tail. The total cost of construction for the ABC was A$150,000 (1984).

After completion of filming at locations in Broome and derby on the North West coast of Western Australia, the replica was presented as a gift to the people of WA and donated to the RAAFA Museum in Perth by the ABC. Since then the aircraft has been on continuous display at the Bull Creek Museum. The display was added to in later years when an original float from the Atlantis, that had been removed from the aircraft and turned into an improvised canoe by the two pilots, was re-located and put on display in the museum.

In recent times the AFA museum has had a change of display layout brought about in part by the arrival of a Consolidated Catalina. The museum has been divesting itself of a few aircraft and Atlantis was acquired by the Australian Aviation Museum. It was transported from Bull Creek to Camden, NSW, in two large shipping containers. The aircraft will be a major display when the museum locates to Camden later this year.

Footnote: The AAM is keen to obtain a copy of the ABC film of the flight, “Flight into Hell”. Should an AA reader have a copy of the video or know the whereabouts of one the museum would be pleased to hear from them. The AAM Curator, Trevor Dean, can be contacted at [email protected].

Warbird Pilot Accident Report Released

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) has released the final report on the fatal accident of well known warbird pilot, Geoff Milne. Mr Milne was killed on November 17 2007 when the Cessna 337G, VH-CHU, that he was flying crashed into the sea between Venus bay and Cape Liptrap on the Victorian coast. Mr Milne and the other three occupants of the aircraft died in the accident. Mr Milne’s body was not recovered. The report noted that Mr Milne was a VFR pilot but with little or no IFR experience.

The flight departed from Moorabbin airport and was bound for Merimbula, NSW.

The investigation found that while manoeuvring over water at low level in conditions of reduced visibility the pilot probably became spatially disorientated and inadvertently descended into the water.

Geoff Milne obtained a Private Pilots licence in 1963. Although logbook records were poor it is reported that he had some 5,600 hours. He had experience on Mustang, T-28 Trojan, Harvard and Wirraway aircraft. The report also noted that there was some evidence that he had done some agricultural flying in New Zealand. Geoff had once been a partner in an Albury based Wirraway. In the period shortly before his death he was reported to have bought a Spifire (now in New Zealand) and a Hawker Sea Fury.

Raaf Museum Wagga To Reopen

Parliamentary Secretary for defence Support, Dr Mike Kelly AM MP, announced in December that the Air Force would spend up to $65,000 completing the refurbishment of the museum building at the entrance to RAAF Wagga. The plan to re-open the heritage display at RAAF Wagga was developed through consultation between the Air Force and the Wagga Wagga City Council Dr Kelly said. In the December 2008 AA it was noted that a number of items from the Wagga museum had been sent to the RAAF Museum at Pont Cook while the Wagga building was refurbished. The building refurbishment is expected to be completed by the end of February.

In Brief

The Western Australia DC-3 company, Classic Wings, ran its last flight on 10 January. The firm was started with the view to operating the DC-3, VH-CWS, on charter flights around Perth and elsewhere as required. It is reported that the Directors chose to close down the firm as the financial task of getting an Air Operators certificate had taken longer than expected. The aircraft was imported. The machine is to be put up for sale. Meanwhile a second tour flight operation DC-3 is for sale in Melbourne.

The Curtiss P-40N, VH-MIK, of the North Queensland Warbirds made its first flight on December 9 at Mareeba, Qld. with Steve Death as the test pilot.

The remains of the first Vickers aircraft, the Vickers Monoplane No.1, are being sought in a recovery expedition to the Antarctic this year. The aircraft came to Australia in 1911 but was damaged in an air accident at Adelaide. The wingless steel tube fuselage was sent to the Antarctic for use as an air sledge. After an engine seizure the hulk was abandoned in 1913. It was last seen in 1976 part covered by snow. It is hoped that the remains are still in the same location and will be sought.

Contact Dave by email at [email protected]