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Airworthy Lockheed Orion on approach. (HARS Aviation Museum)
Warbirds #400 | Two restorations and a retirement
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WWII Boomerang fires up in Toowoomba
Dedicated aircraft restoration unit Combat Aircraft Constructions, alongside founder Greg Batts, has marked another key milestone in their ongoing restoration of a WWII-era CA-12 Boomerang combat monoplane. The aircraft, serial number A46-54 and registered as VH-MHB, has officially conducted its first engine run test at Toowoomba City Airport ahead of its planned return to the skies. The test was done in conjunction with independent engineering firm Aerotec in Toowoomba, after the plane was transported from Archerfield Airport, where it has been lovingly reconstructed and restored to date.
This plane, A46-54, was a home-grown Boomerang built in Melbourne by Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation, constructor number 877, and delivered to the RAAF in March 1943. Given the registration MH-B, the aircraft was operated by 83 Squadron out of the Northern Territory. The aircraft was known to have experienced several incidents during its time in combat, including the loss of its outer wings upon landing near North Pine Creek, Queensland, in 1943. The plane was repaired and moved to 84 Squadron, where it served until the end of the war. At that stage, the plane, along with many other Boomerangs and surplus aircraft, was sold to the RH Grant Trading Company for parts. Eventually, her remains were sold to Greg Batts, renowned for his work on other Boomerang restorations, who has spent the years since restoring her to her former glory. Now, after decades on the ground, the aircraft inches towards the skies once more.
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