Warbirds #395 | Aircraft restorations and a royal welcome

All performed with the backdrop of the iconic Sydney Harbour Bridge and Opera House, you might go so far as to say that it was a spectacle fit for a king.

HARS tackles Vampire trainer

HARS Aviation Museum’s growing offshoot in Parkes NSW, alongside a team of student volunteers from Parkes High School, is attempting to reassemble their very own de Havilland Vampire. According to the latest update, the HARS engineering team and their spirited high-school proteges travelled to RAAF Base Amberley to recover spare parts for their project, including tail sections and wheels.

In what was once a storage and holding site for HARS Albion Park, the work of legendary local volunteers and keen students has seen the site develop into a bustling regional aviation museum in its own right. Together with their student sidekicks, the Parkes team have spent countless hours building and restoring several aircraft projects, including the Grumman S-2 Tracker 842 and a Douglas C-47A Dakota. On the Vampire, the team is now getting the retrieved parts ready for some fresh paint by grit blasting the wheel hubs, re-greasing the bearings, and re-aligning the wheels to the undercarriage. Keep an eye out on their Facebook page for more frequent updates!

HFC welcomes Corsair + another NZ Mustang

The Hunter Fighter Collection (HFC) – a newly minted historic aircraft restoration and exhibition unit based at Scone, NSW – is certainly growing like gangbusters, having recently added several new planes to its curated fleet of classic fighters and historic aircraft.

Since we last updated you on HFC, they have recently welcomed the only flying WWII veteran Chance Vought F4U-1D Corsair in Australia, as well as another North American P-51D Mustang that has crossed the pond from New Zealand, into its hangars. Upon its arrival, it will join two more Mustang aircraft, making for a sizeable local fleet. Like many HFC exhibits, the Mustang is owned by Ross Pay of Pays Aviation and is currently on loan to Hunter Warbirds in Scone where it will no doubt receive the royal treatment.

Meanwhile, the Corsair, BuNo 82640, is certainly something to behold, having been carefully restored and maintained in the decades since its wartime heyday. This plane served aboard the aircraft carrier USS Intrepid with VF-10 Grim Reapers in the early months of 1945 and participated in the Battle of Okinawa. It is one of just three Corsairs currently in Australia and wears the US Navy colours. This combat plane joins the Paul Bennet Airshows fleet and will remain on display with HFC.

Gnat eyes the skies in New Zealand

Elsewhere across the Pond, Kiwi Matt Wilcock is working hard to restore his bright red Cold War era Folland Gnat XR987 to airworthy status. In a major update, Wilcock revealed that he had successfully registered the plane with the Civil Aviation Authority Of New Zealand as ZK-RAJ – for Red Arrows Jet – becoming the only Gnat in New Zealand.

Since its maiden flight in May 1964, this Gnat has served with the UK Royal Air Force Red Arrows and Yellowjacks aerobatics teams. The plane was later purchased and transferred to the USA, where it passed through hands several times. By the time Wilcock purchased XR987 in 2019, the plane was being held in Florida, USA in its original gleaming red colour, and supposedly in airworthy condition. Along with a container of spare parts, the plane was shipped across continents, touching down to make XR987 the only Gnat in New Zealand.

Thereafter, it was unfortunately quickly realised that the maintenance work to make this Gnat fit for flight again would be slightly more in-depth than initially thought, however, Wilcock and the team at Auckland-based Aero Restorations have since worked hard and are confident we will all soon see the plane back in the skies – this time Down Under.