Warbirds

The Curtiss was planned to attend the Tyabb Airshow but following the first flight issues arose with the cooling system which will require some work before it departs home in the near future.

Interestingly enough in the same week another Precision product, Curtiss P-40M N40DF, ex A29-310/43-5508, took to the air in the USA. Owned by Comanche Fighters of Houston, Texas the aircraft was rebuilt by Precision, assembled and repainted by Ezeu Aviation. It now carries a RAAF No 450 Squadron Desert colour scheme.

Caribou dispersal

At least two of the six ex-RAAF DHC-4 Caribou transports up for disposal by tender have found new homes.

In a tender that closed last December, Defence has been trying to find new homes for Caribous A4-204, -225, -228, -231, -275 and -299. A4-204 is located at Brisbane Airport while the others are located at the Oakey Army Aviation base. As the aircraft are not flyable a requirement of the tender is that the aircraft are to be dismantled for road transport.

It is known that Caribou A4-299 has been allocated to the Evans Head Memorial Aerodrome and Heritage Aviation Association, while Caribou A4-225 has been allocated to the South Australian Aviation Museum. The museum has had to alter the plans for its new hangar display building in order to be to able to house the tall-tailed aircraft.

Who has been allocated the other four aircraft is unknown at this time.

Tyabb’s winged warriors

Held on Sunday March 13, this year’s Tyabb Airshow, titled Winged Warriors, was a veritable 100-year long history feast for aviation enthusiasts, with aircraft ranging from a Sopwith Pup to a RAAF C-17 flypast. The four-hour plus show was bolstered by support from the RAAF Museum and the Temora Aviation Museum. Aircraft from Tyabb attended functions held by both museums.

Tyabb’s Peninsula Aero Club and its many members and their aircraft were what made the display.

Highlights were Chance Vought F4U-5N Corsair VH-III, the Grumman Avenger VH-MML, the Temora Aviation Museum’s two Spitfires in the air together, and aerobatics in the Wolf Pitts by Paul Bennet Airshows.

There was a world first with a four-aircraft formation of Ryan aircraft. These comprised a Ryan ST-M, a model SCW radial engined two-seat cabin aircraft, a model PT-22 with the distinctive sound of the Kinner engine and the first public appearance of Graeme Hosking’s new Ryan ST-A Special, VH-SQD.

The Ryan ST-A Special, painted up in the markings of the Honduran Air Force, like the Corsair, was in fact with the Guatemalan air force. It has been finished as a single-seat open cockpit fighter complete with distinctive blisters on the wing upper surfaces. These would have housed Colt 7. 7mm machine guns, one each side. A unique machine. Built in 1938 it served with the Guatemalan air force and post WW2 was returned to the USA. Graeme Hosking obtained it from the USA a few years ago and has returned it to showcase condition.

All airshows are good feeding ground for ADF recruitment and the RAN attended with a Bell 429 helicopter. Many youngsters had a close-up look at the machine while a RAAF C-17 was able to make three passes of the show.

A five-ship formation comprising two Spitfires, a Mustang, a Kittyhawk and the Corsair was a highlight.

Other warbirds noted were several Winjeels, several CT-4 Airtrainers, the RAAF Museum Sopwith Pup and Nick Caudwell’s Sopwith Snipe biplanes, Temora’s Boomerang, Cessna Bird Dogs, Wirraway VH-CAC/A20-722 in possibly its last appearance before going into the Nhill Aviation Museum, a gaggle of Tiger Moths, and the sole Australian Vultee BT-13.

In all it was a great show. We await the 2018 show.

Chipmunk accident report released

The ATSB has now released the findings of its investigation into the crash of DHC-1 T Mk 10 Chipmunk near Coffs Harbour, NSW on June 29 2014.

The aircraft had entered a loop that resulted in a stall and flat spin. Recovery input was unsuccessful and the aircraft impacted terrain, with the two occupants sustaining serious, but non-fatal injuries.

The ATSB found that the pilot had not been approved to conduct loops and that the pilot did not apply and maintain the control recovery inputs appropriate for a fully-developed spin in a Chipmunk aircraft. Furthermore, the pilot was taught a spin recovery method that was not effective for recovering from such spins in that model of aircraft.

Ballarat’s air museums

Did you know that at Ballarat airport there are not one but two air museums? The Anson Air Museum is close to the entrance of the airport and houses an Anson comprising the nose of LV298 while the fuselage frame is approximately 80 per cent of LV284. The display building has many exhibits relating to the use of Ballarat by the RAAF during the war to train air gunners, navigators and maintenance staff.

After the war the Ansons had their wings cut off outboard of the engines and sold off as scrap. Many were bought by local farmers to supply nuts and bolts and electrical cable, items in short supply after the war. The Anson museum also has a number of exhibits that relate to flight training and RAAF wartime operations in Victoria.

The Ballarat Aviation Museum is the second museum at the airport. It is situated in a hangar across from the Ballarat Aero Club. Inside are a number of aircraft exhibits including a CAC Wirraway, Auster, Luscombe, Flying Flea, a mockup of the not-built AA-107 jet trainer and a large number of aircraft engines. An unusual exhibit is the display of the rocket motor from a wartime Me 163 with a painting of the aircraft on the wall behind it, giving an idea of the size of the machine.

Cessna CC-1 replica found

When Clyde Cessna built his CC-1 aircraft in 1911, little did he know what his contribution to the world of aviation was to be.

The CC-1 was first flown on August 11 1911 at Enid, Oklahoma. The aircraft, not unlike a Bleriot type machine, was the start of a long and successful line of light aircraft that continues to today.

When a big airshow was planned for Parafield in 1967 the Cessna dealer, Ross Aviation, elected to build a replica of the CC-1 to celebrate Cessna’s heritage and to show the world at large the then and now in aircraft design.

Ross Aviation employees built the replica in less than eight days. It was displayed at the Parafield airshow and then it disappeared. No one seemed to know where it went to. That is until late in 2015.

David Byrne, the vice president of the South Australian Aviation Museum was asked if the museum would be interested in an aircraft sitting in an old farm shed near Gawler. The answer was yes and in January the old aircraft, which turned out to be the Ross Aviation-built Cessna CC-1 replica, was transported to the Port Adelaide SAAM site.

The plan is to restore the replica in time and find or make a suitable engine for it.

Amazing how old aircraft can turn up after being lost for many years.

Register news

One aircraft that will not be making its way onto the Australian register is DH. 87B Hornet Moth G-ADUR. This machine was owned by John Fisher of Maryborough, Victoria. John was unfortunately killed in the crash of his UK to Australia Tiger Moth on January 27 2012 and his Old Aviators Flying Museum at Maryborough closed late last year. The Hornet Moth has been sold and has taken up its old marking, G-ADUR, to new owners CJ and PR Harvey of Old Buckenham in the UK.

DH. 60M Moth VH-UMI, c/n 1360, was added to the register on February 4 to Matthew Webber of Lochinvar, NSW. This machine is recorded as having been A7-67 with the RAAF and crashing at Laverton, Victoria on August 23 1936. Where has it been all this time? Cessna 190 VH-PEK had a change of ownership to HARS of Albion Park, NSW on February 19.

CAC CA-25 Winjeel A85-423 changed ownership from Lynton Forster to Graeme Hosking of Mt Eliza, Victoria on February 19.

Museum news

The Qantas Founders Museum has its dismantled Lockheed Constellation in storage in the Philippines now ready to ship to Australia.

Given the size of the machine various methods are being looked at to get the aircraft to QFM’s Longreach home. The QFM did look at cutting the fuselage in two for ease of transport but possible problems with reassembly and realignment at Longreach has ruled that out.

The relocation to Longreach of the Connie and its restoration and display is the current number one priority for the museum, followed by the installation of the shade sails over the current aircraft.

Meanwhile, over the road from the QFM, the Australian Stockman’s Hall of Fame has recently taken delivery of another aircraft, one that will join the Beech Queenair already hanging in the Hall of fame.

The new arrival is Alfred ‘Bomber’ Johnson’s Cessna 172G VH-PLZ. Bomber was born and raised in Queensland Channel Country where he worked in the rural industry his entire life. In 1958 he obtained his pilot’s licence and in 1966 he bought the new Cessna. He still owned the same aircraft until his passing in 2013, by which time he had flown it almost 12,000 hours.

Bomber was an outback character who was always available to help others in the bush. He flew medical supplies, mail and rations to people stranded by floods and flew people out to places where they could access the RFDS. Bomber also used the aircraft for aerial mustering. In more recent years he became the honorary caretaker of the Burke and Wills Dig Tree.

Bomber’s Cessna was flown from Nappa Merrie Station to Longreach by Randal Crowley on August 1 2015. It is soon to be displayed in the Hall of Fame, representing the invaluable work carried out by light aircraft in the Australian outback.

In brief

• The South Australian Aviation Museum, located at Port Adelaide, opened a World War 1 display on February 10. The display features engines, artefacts, propellers and a large model of a Sopwith Pup.
• The Australian National Aviation Museum at Moorabbin opened a World War 1 display in February, highlighting stories of our top aerial fighters in WW1. The display features aircraft propellers, wings, medals, engines, fabrics and more. There is even a Fokker Dr. 1 fuel tank. Is it from the Red Baron’s aircraft?

Contact Dave by email: flyer02@optusnet. com. au