Traffic

Qantas Took Delivery of A330-203 Vh-ebm Tamar Valley in Sydney on November 25 After the Aircraft Arrived From Toulouse via Singapore as Flight Qf6024. Vh-ebm is Fitted in a Domestic Configuration Featuring a New Panasonic Inflight Entertainment System, and Entered Service on December 2 When It Operated Qf575 From Sydney to Perth.

A380-842 Vh-oqe Lawrence Hargrave Was Registered to Qantas on November 25 and Was Planned for Deilvery to Sydney on December 18.

A330-842 Vh-oqf Charles Kingsford Smith Was Registered on December 1 and Was Planned for Delivery on December 28.

747-4h6 Vh-oec Was Withdrawn From Qantas Service in Los Angeles on November 7 After It Operated Qf11 From Sydney. It Was Later Ferried From Los Angeles to Victorville as Flight Qf6019 Where It Was Placed in Storage.

Vh-oec Was Previously Operated by Malaysia Airlines as 9m-mhn Before Being Delivered to Qantas in Sydney on November 17 ’98 After It Ferried in From Kuala Lumpur as Flight Qf6010. It Entered Service With Qantas on November 18 When It Operated Qf11 From Sydney to Los Angeles.

A330-202 Vh-ebk Savannah Way Was Withdrawn From Qantas Service in Sydney on November 10 After Operating Qf568/569 to and From Perth.

Later That Day Vh-ebk Was Ferried From Sydney to Manila as Qf6011 Where It Was Prepared for Delivery to Jetstar.

Vh-ebk Was Delivered to Qantas in Melbourne on August 7 ’08 After Ferrying in From Toulouse via Singapore.

767-338er Vh-oga City of Whyalla Was Withdrawn From Service in Sydney on November 19 After Operating Qf464 From Melbourne. On November 24 It Departed Sydney as Qf6019 Direct to Victorville, California, Where It Was Placed in Storage.

Vh-oga Was the First 767-300 in the Qantas Fleet, Delivered to Sydney on September 1 1988 After Ferrying in From Seattle/paine Field via Los Angeles and Honolulu as Qf7631d. It Entered Service on September 17 1988 When It Operated Qf47 From Sydney to Wellington.

737-838 Vh-vxp Ferried From Melbourne to Avalon as Qf6100 on November 4 for Repainting in the Revised Qantas Livery.

737-476 Vh-tji Departed Melbourne for Darwin and Singapore/seletar as Qf6021 on November 25 for Planned Maintenance.

Jetconnect Withdrew 737‑376 Zk-jnc From Service on November 9 After It Operated Qf125 From Brisbane to Auckland, Marking the Last Qantas Group 737-300 Passenger Flight.

Zk-jnc Ferried Out of Auckland on November 21 as Flight Qf6024 Destined for Tucson, Arizona, via Apia and Honolulu.

Zk-jnc Was Delivered to Australian Airlines as Vh-tjb Fortitude in Melbourne on December 25 1988, Ferrying in From Seattle via Kona and Nadi. Vh-tjb Entered Service With Australian on December 31 When It Was Scheduled on Flight Tn492 From Melbourne to Sydney. Vh-tjb Was Later Operated by Qantas Following the Qantas/australian Merger Before Being Transferred to Jetconnect Operations as Zk-jnc. It Was Ferried From Melbourne to Christchurch as Flight Qf6175 on July 29 ’04 Before Entering Service With Jetconnect on July 30 as Flight Qf4102 From Christchurch to Auckland.

For the Record, the First Qantas Group 737-300 Service Was Operated on August 20 1986 When 737-376 Vh-tag of Australian Airlines Flew From Melbourne to Sydney as Flight Tn472.

Jetstar Airways Has Added A330-202 Vh-ebk to Its Fleetwith the Former Qantas Aircraft (See Above) Being Registered to It on November 29.

Airline News

a Highlight This Issue is the Delivery of an A320-200 to Strategic Airlines.

Aircalin A320-232 F-ojsb Returned to Noumea From Hong Kong and Darwin on November 26 on Completion of Its Planned Maintenance.

Czech Airlines A320-214 Ok-geb Terminated Its Lease to Aircalin and Departed Noumea for Darwin and Bangkok on December 2 as Flight Csa6119.

Air New Zealand Had Retired Boeing 747-419 Zk-nbt From Service on September 7 With the Aircraft Then Being Parked at Auckland. However, on November 15 Zk-nbt Was Returned to Service When It Operated Nz123 From Auckland to Melbourne.

767-319er Zk-nci Ferried From Hong Kong Back to Auckland on November 12 After Being the Last Air New Zealand 767 to Be Retrofitted With Winglets.

Air Pacific 767-3x2er Dq-fjc, Which Had Been Out of Service Since October 4, Returned to Nadi From Hong Kong as Flight Fj3398 on November 29 After Completing a Planned Maintenance Lay-up.

Skytraders A319-115lr Vh-vhd Departed Melbourne for Christchurch on November 12. It Remained There Until November 16 When It Operated a Charter Flight to Mcmurdo/ Pegasus Field Before Returning Direct to Melbourne.

Skywest Has Announced It Will Add Fokker 50 Vh‑fsl Msn 20249 to Its Fleet in Early January.

Skywest Fokker 100 Vh‑fnn Departed Perth for Port Hedland and Seletar on November 22 for Planned Maintenance, While Fokker 50 Vh-fnb Arrived in Perth From Seletar and Denpasar on November 23 on Completion of Its Planned Maintenance.

Strategic Airlines Took Delivery of A320-212 Vh-yqa in Melbourne on November 18 After the All-white Aircraft Completed Its Ferry Flight From Chateauroux, France, via Sharjah, Colombo, Singapore and Denpasar.

Vh-yqa Msn 190 is a 1991 Production Aircraft Which Was Delivered to Lacsa of Costa Rica as N484gx That June.

Virgin Group Fleet Update

Virgin Blue Has Added Another E-190 to Its Fleet.

E-190-100igw Vh-zpo Portia Macquarie Was Delivered to Virgin Blue in Brisbane on November 23 After It Completed Its Ferry Flight From São José Dos Campos via Curacao, Brownsville, Tucson, San Jose, Lihue and Pago Pago.

737-8fe Vh-vut Yabba Dabba Blue, Which Was Registered to Virgin Blue on November 4, Was Planned for Delivery to Brisbane on December 23.

737-8fe Vh-vur Star City Entered Service on November 10 When It Operated Dj954 From Brisbane to Sydney.

737-8fe Vh-vus Chitty Chitty Broome Broome Entered Service on November 18 When It Operated Flight Dj912 From Brisbane to Sydney.

737-8fe Vh-vua’s Temporary ‘mile High Karaoke’ Titles (See December ‘09 Traffic) Were Removed in Melbourne During the Second Week of November.

Pacific Blue Commenced a Twice Weekly Service From Perth to Phuket on November 14 With 737-8fe Vh-vug Operating the Inaugural Dj4149.

V Australia Commenced a Twice Weekly Service From Brisbane to Phuket on November 22 With 777-3zger Vh-vpe Operating the Inaugural Va23.

V Australia Commenced a Twice Weekly Service From Melbourne to Los Angeles on December 1 With 777-3zger Vh-vpf Operating the Inaugural Va11, but the First Flight on the Route Was Operated by the Same Aircraft as Va12 Out of Los Angeles on November 29 and Into Melbourne on December 1.

V Australia Commenced a Weekly Service From Melbourne to Phuket on December 3 With 777-3zger Vh-vpf Operating the Inaugural Va19.

Regional Airline News

This Issue We Report the Delivery of a Saab 340b+ to Regional Express, a Grand Caravan to the Rfds/queensland, a P-750 Xstol to Central Aviation, and an Angel Aircraft 44 to Cape Air Transport, While Departing Were a Dornier 228 of Gam Air and a Beech 1900d of Vincent Aviation.

Airlines Png Added Dash 8-102 P2-mcu to Its Fleet on November 4 When the Aircraft Operated Cg100 From Port Moresby to Cairns. The Dash 8 Was Previously Operated by Associate Company Skytrans as Vh-qqj.

Cape Air Transport Took Delivery of Angel 44 N1012q at Cairns on November 30 After the Aircraft Completed Itstrans-pacific Ferry From Hayward/ California via Kona and Tarawa. The Angel 44 (Pictured Above) is a Pusher Stol Twin Designed and Built by Angel Aircraft of Orange City, Iowa, for Missionary Flying.

Central Aviation P-750 Xstol P2-bwe Departed Hamilton on November 26 on Delivery to Its Mount Hagen Base via Kerikeri, Norfolk Island, Lord Howe Island, Brisbane, Mackay, Cairns and Horn Island.

Gam Air Dornier 228-202k Vh-yjd Has Been Sold to an Operator in the Philippines and on November 26 Departed Cairns for Darwin Before Continuing the Following Day to Denpasar.

Jaars/sil Aviation, Which Took Delivery of Quest Kodiak N498kq in Port Moresby on September 24, Has Registered the Aircraft as P2-sib.

Regional Express Took Delivery of Saab 340b+ N397ae at Wagga Wagga on November 22 After the Aircraft Ferried in From Nashville via Yuma, Christmas Island, Apia, Gold Coast and Orange. The Saab Was Registered to Regional Express as Vh-zrk on November 25.

Saab 340b Vh-xrx Reportedly Has Been Withdrawn From Regional Express Service and on October 11 Was Ferried From Wagga Wagga to Townsville as Flight Zl9976.

Saab 340b Vh-jrx Reportedly Has Also Been Withdrawn From Service and on November 6 Was Ferried From Wagga Wagga to Townsville as Flight Zl9982.

Rfds/queensland Cessna 208b Vh-nqc Msn 208b- 2138 Was Delivered to Aeromil Pacific at Maroochydore on November 15 After Ferrying in From the Us via Nadi and Brisbane.

Vh-nqc and Sistership Vh-nqd Msn 208b-2139 Were Handed Over to the Rfds in Early December.

Skytrans Dash 8-102 Vh‑qqj Was Transferred to Operations With Airlines Png on November 4 After It Operated Flight Skp101 From Cairns to Port Moresby.

Dash 8-102 N828ex Was Planned for Delivery to Skytrans in Cairns in Mid December.

Vincent Aviation Has Terminated Its Lease on Beech 1900d Vh-nia and on November 18 It Ferried Out of Darwin Destined for Lanseria, South Africa, Where It Arrived on November 20 via Denpasar, Banda Aceh, Male and Nampula.

Vh-nia Was Cancelled From the Australian Register on November 24 and Then Registered to Awesome Aviation as Zs-sno.

Winrye Aviation Purchased Metro Iii Vh-eeq From Pel- Air Aviation on November 6.

Bizjet News

in This Issue We Report the Delivery of a Falcon 900ex and a Citation Mustang, Along With the Loss of a Westwind Ii. We Also Report That Three Bizjets Operating in Our Region on the Us Register Have Been Placed on Local Registers.

Falcon 900ex P2-anw Msn 218 Was Delivered to Port Moresby From Oakland and Honolulu on November 23, and Will Be Operated by the Png Government. P2-anw is a 2008 Production Aircraft Which Was Registered N606us to Dassault Falcon Jet Corporation of Teterboro, New Jersey, in August ’08.

Citation Mustang Vh‑ydz Was Registered to Pacific Real Estate (Warilla) P/l of Wollongong on November 2 and on November 4 Ferried Into Sydney/bankstown From Singapore/seletar via Denpasar, Darwin and Longreach.

Westwind Ii Vh-nga of Pel-air Aviation Was Written Off When It Sank After Successfully Ditching Off Norfolk Island on November 19 (See Newsdesk).

Learjet 35a Vh-lrx Was Registered to Astra Aerospace of Nowra, Nsw, on November 11. The Learjet Was Imported Into the Region as N49be and Delivered to Nowra on March 11 ’08.

Citation Ultra Zk-awk Msn 560-0396 Was Registered to Airwork Flight Operations of Auckland on November 20. It Was Imported Into the Region as N596vp by Aeromil Pacific and Was Delivered to Maroochydore on September 2.

Citation Sovereign Zk‑jth Msn 680-0058 Was Registered to Pacific Jets of Christchurch on November 20.

Then Registered N121tl, It Was Delivered to Pacific Jets in Auckland on August 12.

Cessna 560 Vh-vrl, Which Was Registered to Twentieth Super Paced Nominees, Was Sold to Heathgate Resources of Adelaide on November 4.

Citation Sovereign N278sv, Which is Registered to Cessna Aircraft of Wichita, Arrived at Bankstown on November 14 From Jakarta/halim, Denpasar and Darwin. The Sovereign, Which Was Operating a Sales Tour of Se Asia and Australia, Was Later Noted at Sydney, Orange, Adelaide, Melbourne/ Essendon and Perth Before Departing Brisbane for Pago Pago on November 24 on Its Return to the Us.

Dassault Aviation Falcon 2000lx F-gvfx Arrived in Brisbane From Hong Kong and Darwin on November 25 at the Start of an Australian Demo Tour. The Falcon Was Later Seen at Sydney, Melbourne/essendon, Canberra, Adelaide and Perth Before It Departed Sydney Direct to Kuala Lumpur on December 3.

Gulfstreams Galore

Gulfstream 550 N282q Registered to Gf Management of Durham, North Carolina, Arrived at Melbourne/essendon From Kona on November 2 and Departed for Singapore and Baku on November 4.

Gulfstream 550 N517qs Registered to Gtw Corporation of Orlando, Florida, Arrived at Essendon From Shanghai on November 9 Before Positioning Later That Day to Melbourne. It Later Departed for Honolulu on November 15.

Netjets Gulfstream 550 N531qs Arrived in Darwin From Honolulu on November 7 Before Departing the Same Day for Denpasar.

Gulfstream 550 N888hk Arrived in Sydney From Hong Kong on November 4 and Departed the Following Day for Hainan Island.

Gulfstream 550 Se-rdz Operated by Sfs Holdings Arrived in Melbourne From Bangkok/ Don Muang on November 10. After Overnighting It Departed for Brisbane and From There Continued to Bangkok on November 13.

Gulfstream 550 Vq-bla Operated by Indo Aviation Arrived in Perth From Port Hedland on November 4 and Departed the Following Day for Dubai.

Gulfstream V N405hg Registered to Kimberly- Clark Global Sales of Irving, Texas, Arrived in Sydney From Honolulu on November 2 Anddeparted for Jakarta/halim on November 4.

Netjets Gulfstream V N502qs Arrived in Darwin From Honolulu on November 13 and Departed the Following Day to Denpasar.

Netjets Gulfstream V N509qs Arrived in Darwin From Timika on November 15 and Returned There on November 17.

Gulfstream V B-8097 Operated by Deer Jet, Beijing, Arrived in Perth From Beijing on November 21. B-8097 is a Recent Addition to the Deer Jet Fleet Having Been Delivered in Mid October From the Us Where It Was Previously Registered N721mm. It Departed Perth for Sydney on November 25 and Sydney for Beijing on November 27.

Gulfstream V Oe-iis Operated by Avcon Jet of Vienna Transited Darwin on November 25 While en Route From Madang to Mauritius.

Metrojet Gulfstream 450 B-khk Arrived at Essendon From Hong Kong on November 2. It Remained There Until November 9 When It Departed for Melbourne/tullamarine and Hong Kong.

Gulfstream Iv N326jd Registered to 57 Aviation Services of New York Arrived in Melbourne From Saipan and Sydney on November 11 and Departed for Nadi on November 13.

Gulfstream Iv N345aa Registered to 711 Cody Inc of Tererboro, New Jersey, Arrived at Melbourne/essendon From Queenstown on November 8 and After Overnighting Departed for Nadi.

Gulfstream Iii N376pj Registered to Asjet Aviation of Wilmington, Delaware, Arrived in Cairns From Majuro on November 22 and Continued to Ayers Rock on November 25.

The Gulfstream Departed Ayers Rock for Brisbane on November 27 and Remained There Until November 29 When It Departed for Majuro.

Us Army Gulfstream Iv/ C‑20f 01-0108, Which Was Using the Callsign ‘patriot 108’, Arrived in Canberra From Pago Pago on November 18 and Remained There Until November 23 When It Returned to Pago Pago.

Overseas Bizjets

Global Express N100a Registered to Exxon Mobil Corporation of Dallas, Texas, Arrived in Melbourne From Singapore on November 15 Before Departing Melbourne for Port Moresby on November 17.

Global Express Vp-bdu Operated by the Bonidea Company Arrived in Port Hedland From Singapore/seletar on November 23 Before Continuing to Karratha and Esperance. On November 24 It Departed Esperance for Perth and Taipei.

Global Express Vt-jsb Operated by Jindal Steel and Power Arrived in Brisbane From Singapore on November 13. The Following Day It Operated a Return Trip to Emerald Before Departing for Wuhan on November 16.

Global Express Xrs Pp-vdr, Which Was Only Delivered in November, Arrived in Brisbane From Taiwan and Noumea on November 27 and After Overnighting Departed for Male.

Global 5000 G-cgfa Operated by Dynamic Sense International of Hong Kong Arrived in Sydney From Hong Kong on November 16 and Remained There Until November 18 When It Returned to Hong Kong.

Challenger 605 Oe-inn Operated by Vista Jet of Salzburg Arrived in Brisbane From Singapore on November 18.

It Departed for Singapore on November 20.

Challenger 604 A6-mbh Operated by the Empire Aviation Group of Dubai Arrived in Perth From Singapore on November 14. It Departed Perth for Adelaide on November 16 and Was Later Seen in Sydney Before Departing Brisbane for Denpasar on November 20.

Challenger 604 Vt-mgf Operated by Ssp Aviation of New Delhi Arrived in Perth From Johor Bahru on November 12 Before Returning There the Following Day.

Challenger 300 N620jf Registered to Shearwater Air of Monterey, California, Arrived in Darwin From Phuket on November 6 and After Overnighting Departed for Nadi.

Challenger 300 N825tb Registered to Db Aviation of Gypsum, Colorado, Departed Brisbane for Cairns on November 2 and Cairns for Noumea on November 7.

Learjet 36 N71pg Registered to the Phoenix Air Group of Cartersville, Georgia, Operated a Medevac Flight Into Melbourne on November 10. The Flight, Which Originated at Spokane, Was Operated via Cold Bay in Alaska, Honolulu, Majuro and Honiara. The Lear Departedmelbourne on November 11 for Honiara and Majuro.

Citation Sovereign N188tl Operated by Rainbow State of Jaha, Malaysia, Arrived in Melbourne From Denpasar on November 13. It Remained in Melbourne Until November 17 When It Departed for Denpasar.

Hawker 800xp G-laor Operated by Select Plant Hire of Dartford, Uk, Which Arrived in Sydney on October 19, Departed There for Darwin and Denpasar on November 20.

Hawker 700a G-cfbp Registered to Hawker 700 of Guernsey, Uk, Arrived in Cairns From Port Vila on November 6 Before Continuing to Sydney on November 13.

Ferry Flights

at-802 N8522m Was Ferried From the Us to Australia Recently by Srd Aviation of Albury. It Departed Olney/texas on October 31 and Arrived at Ballidu, Wa on November 9 via Santa Maria/california, Hilo, Christmas Island, Nadi, Gold Coast and Albury.

Avialsa at-802(F) Ec-igx in Company With at-802(F) Ec-jkb Arrived in Broome From Cocos Island on November 23. The Two Aircraft Had Been Ferried From Valencia, Spain, via Malta, Luxor, Muscat and Colombo, With Ec-igx on Delivery to Ag Airwork at Deniliquin and Ec-jkb Being for Kennedy Aviation at Gunnedah.

Basler Bt-67 Zs-asn Departed Ayers Rock for Ingham on November 9.

Jeju Air Dash 8-q402 Hl5255 Arrived in Cairns From Biak on November 24.

Argyle Charter Cessna 208 Vh-cxx Departed Brisbane/ Archerfield on November 2 on Delivery to Aerodynamics at Gloucester/staverton Airport in the Uk. The Ferry, Which Was Carried Out by Dbf Aviation Services of Sydney, Was Routed via Toowoomba, Broome, Cocos, Colombo, Muscat, Luxor, Malta and Valencia. Vh-cxx Was Later Cancelled From the Register on November 20 Before Being Placed on the Uk Register as G-dlaa.

Cessna 303 Zs-lmv Arrived in Darwin From Jakarta/halim on November 27.

Jabiru 230d Zk-efo in Company With Jabiru J120-c Zk-efg Departed Bundaberg for Lismore on November 11 on the First Leg of Their Delivery Flights to Euro Flight International at Tauranga, New Zealand. On November 12 the Two Aircraft Departed Lismore for Lord Howe Island, Norfolk Island and Kerikeri Where They Arrived on November 13.

Mooney 20k Vh-yrj, Which Was Registered to Bishopp Aviation of Kelvin Grove, Queensland, on September 25, Arrived in Brisbane From Nadi on November 14.

Pilatus Pc-12 N530wc Arrived at Jandakot on November 26 From Denpasar and Port Hedland.

Pa-31 Vh-hur Ferried From Guam to Horn Island on November 20 and After Overnighting Continued to Yarrawonga via Normanton, Charleville and Dubbo.

Tb-20 Trinidad Vh-pal, Which Was Registered to a Private Owner in Scarborough, Wa, on October 26, Arrived in Brisbane From Nadi on November 14.

Tb-21 Trinidad Tc Vh‑jjt, Which Was Registered to Aerodrome Management Services of East Perth on November 5, Arrived in Brisbane From Nadi on November 29.

Heavy Metal

Gulf Air A340-313x A9c‑li Arrived in Sydney From Bahrain and Kuala Lumpir on November 9. Carrying the Bahrain National Soccer Team for a World Cup Qualifying Match in New Zealand, the Airbus Continued to Wellington as Flight Gf8302 on November 12. On November 15 It Departed Wellington for Sydney and Kuala Lumpar as Flight Gf8302.

Blueline A310-325 F‑hboy Arrived in Sydney From Christchurch on November 18 as Flight Ble910. The A310 Was Operating an Aroundthe- World Passenger Charter, and Later Departed for Siem Reap, Cambodia, on November 20.

Volga Dnepr an-124 Ra‑82074 Arrived in Newcastle From Honolulu on November 9 Operating as Flight Vda1938.

After Overnighting It Departed for Brisbane and Narita as Flight Vda1939.

Kalitta Air 747-246f N707ck Arrived in Melbourne From Nadi in the Early Hours of November 14 as Flight Cks528 and Later the Same Day Departed for Hong Kong as Flight Cks9237. N707ck Operated a Second Flight Into Melbourne From Nadi as Flight Cks568 on November 22 Before Departing for Hong Kong as Flight Cks9568 on November 23.

Kalitta Air 747-209f N715ck Arrived in Melbourne From Honolulu and Nadi as Flight Cks568 on November 28 Before Departing for Ho Chi Minh City as Flight Cks9321 on November 29.

Omega Air 707-368c N707mq, Which Had Arrived at Newcastle on October 25, Departed the Country on November 7 When It Flew Out of Cairns for Honolulu as ‘omega 71’.

Raaf 737-7es/bbj Wedgetail N378bc, Which Was Using the Callsign ‘boeing 201’, Arrived at Raaf Amberley From Seattle/boeing Field via Honolulu and Pago Pago on November 9. Using the Callsign ‘asy881’, It Departed Amberley on November 12 Destined for Darwin, Penang and Dubai Where It Took Part in the Dubaiairshow. On November 23 N378bc, Again Using the Callsign ‘asy881’, Flew Back Into Amberley From Kuala Lumpar and Darwin.

Royal Air Force C-130k Hercules Xv305 Arrived in Darwin From Bandar Seri Begawan on November 16 and After Overnighting Departed for Canberra and Sydney. On November 19 It Departed Sydney for Woomera and Perth and After Overnighting Continued to Jakarta/halim.

National Airlines Dc‑8‑63cf N865f Arrived in Melbourne From Ontario, California, via Honolulu and Nadi on November 23 as Flight Mua865. After Overnighting It Departed for Nadi as Flight Mua865.

N865f Was a 1969 Production Aircraft Built on Order for Overseas National Airways of New York and Was Delivered in May of That Year.

Sikorsky Swarm

the Start of the 2009/2010 Bushfire Season Has Brought a Number of Sikorsky Built Helicopters to Southeastern Australia, and at One Stage in Mid November There Were Five S-61ns at Essendon While Six S-64 Air-cranes Were Planned to Pass Through the Airport.

Vih Helicopters S-61n Shortsky C-fqng Arrived at Essendon by Road From the Docks on November 19 and Was Later Deployed to Western Australia for Operations Out of Perth. C-fqng Was the Second S-61l Built When It Came Off the Line in 1960 and Was Initially Operated by Chicago Helicopter Airways as N301y. In December ’81 Carson Helicopters Converted It From an S-61l to an S-61n and Between February 26 ’96 and June 7 ’96 It Was Converted to a Shortsky by Helipro Corporation of Bellingham, Washington. C-fqng is Fitted With an Isolair 3800 Litre External Tank and Was Test Flown at Essendon on November 25 Before Departing the Following Morning on a Three Day, 14. 9 Hour Ferry Flight to Perth via Mildura, Port Augusta, Ceduna, Forrest and Kalgoorlie. While Based in Perth the S-61n Will Operate From the Helicopters (Australia) Hangar.

Also Arriving at Essendon From the Docks on November 19 Was Coulson Helicopters S-61n C-fclm. It Was Later Ferried to Mansfield on November 25 Where It Will Be Based for the Summer.

Coulson Helicopters S-61n C-fmay Spent the Winter in Storage at Essendon and After Being Test Flown at Essendon Was Moved to Colac for the Summer. C-fmay Carries the Fire-attack Number 347 and the Titles ‘state Aircraft Unit – Victoria’.

Cougar Helicopters S-61n C-ftig, Which Has Been at Essendon Since Terminating Its Offshore Resource Contract Out of Darwin, Will Reportedly Be Contracted for Operations From Perth as a Firebomber, While S-61n C-fxec, Which Carries Executive Transport, Coulson and Jayrow Titles, Remains at Essendon Between Contracts.

The First of Six Erickson Air-crane S-64s Arrived at Essendon on November 21 From the Melbourne Docks, These Being S-64f N178ac/739 Elvis Which is Now Based at Essendon for the Summer, and S-64f N178ac/741 Isabelle Which Ferried North to Its Base at Sydney/bankstown.

Arriving at Essendon on December 9 Were S-64f N218ac Elsie Which Will Be Locally Based, S-64e N194ac Delilah Which Will Be Based at Bankstown, S-64e N173ac Christine Which Will Be Based in the Adelaide Hills, and S-64e N154ac Georgia Peach Which Will Be Held at Essendon as a Reserve.