Table of contents for Feb-Mar-Apr 2018 in Flightpath

The last airworthy de Havilland Vampire in Australia has been grounded. Judy Pay’s former Royal Rhodesian Air Force T.11 R4221 (VH-ZVZ) was dismantled and transported from its base at West Sale to Judy’s Old Aeroplane Company (OAC) at Tyabb in late 2017. After flying for the past sixteen years, an inspection of the jet’s Goblin 35 engine found a major failure that was deemed too expensive to overhaul. Having the jet based remotely at West Sale, more than 150 kilometres from the OAC facility, has also been an ongoing issue in its operation and was another consideration in the decision to ground the aircraft. The red-nosed two-seat aircraft, RRAF 119 in Rhodesian service, was one of a batch of seven imported from Zimbabwe in 1988, a consignment that was effectively…

Lockheed AP-3C Orion A9-751, delivered to the RAAF Museum on 16 November 2017, is just one part of the latest batch of retired ADF airframes to enter preservation. Following the fourteen Bell/CAC Kiowas (see Flightpath, Vol. 29, No. 2, p14), and Orion A9-753 delivered to HARS earlier in the year, the South Australian Aviation Museum received six semi-trailer loads of Orion (A9-756) components on 23 November. The fuselage and wings followed in December and reassembly of the museum’s largest exhibit began in earnest in January. The RAN officially retired its Aerospatiale AS350B Squirrel and Sikorsky S70B-2 Seahawk helicopters on 1 December. The RAAF Museum’s Squirrel, N22-001/A22-001, is rare as it served with all three ADF branches. The Australian Army Flying Museum received N22-019/A22-019 while the Australian War Memorial (AWM) added…

Rescued in 2011 by Gustavo Passano, after 35 years of sitting outside, B-25 Mitchell 44-31173 (LV-GXH) was transported to Gral Rodriguez airfield, Argentina, for restoration to airworthy status. The aircraft was delivered to the USAAF in 1944, but remained in the United States, operating from Mitchell Field, New York, and was later stored at Davis-Monthan in Arizona. It was flown to Argentina in 1961 and appears to have been used for smuggling to and from Paraguay until it was impounded and confiscated at Mar del Plata on Argentina’s Atlantic coast. From there it was then sold to a transport and photography company that operated it from the northern city of Santiago Del Estero until 1976 when it landed following an engine failure and was abandoned. Since arriving at Gral Rodriguez…

From 1 November to 14 December 2018 the skies of the Americas will be the place for adventure as the ‘Vintage Air Rally Ushuaia2USA’ takes place. For the first time, a vintage aircraft rally will link Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world, with Lakeland, Florida. According to Sam Rutherford, rally director, the aim is “to demonstrate that these very old planes can still manage these epic adventures particularly in a world where we throw things away after just a year or two”. Fifteen vintage biplanes will fly over Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, Belize, Mexico and Cuba to finish in Florida. Competition was strong with 675 teams from 73 countries sending in applications. Participation is reward enough,…

On 5 June 1944, in the hinterlands of a Pacific war whose front line had long moved on, a U.S. Army lieutenant wrote, “I could clearly see flashes of our planes’ guns and also the machine-gun tracer bullets”. The U.S. 32nd Division author penned these observations not far from Yakamul village in the Wewak area just before dawn. Almost a year earlier low-level strafers, in the form of A-20G Havocs and B-25D Mitchells, had blasted the airfields in the region. Japanese aircraft had abandoned the Wewak area in April 1944, leaving behind half-starved troops to hold the area. The job of mopping up these men on this particular day fell to the P-39N and Q-model Airacobras of the 110th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron (TRS), undertaking a ground-support role in liaison with…

When the Irish Army Air Corps Westland Lynx hovered over the hulk of Wildcat Mk.V JV482, as it lay semi-submerged in the waters of Portmore Lough (a loch or lake in Ireland) , the men below struggled in the prop-wash and spray to attach a strap to the helicopter’s lift cable. As a crewmember fed minute position corrections to the pilot, strap and cable finally came together and the Lynx took the slack to slowly lift a radial engine from the soft, silty bottom. The first survey of the wreck, with an eye to its rescue, was performed almost two years earlier on 26 December 1981. Since then, numerous visits to the wreck saw two A-frames built over the engine for its ultimate removal. To lift the engine, however, required…

The Hawker Typhoon was one of the most significant Allied fighters of W.W.II. With well over 3000 examples produced, the Typhoon excelled in the ground attack role and remained in frontline service from late 1941 until the end of hostilities in Europe. By then, however, the RAF was rapidly being reduced in size, with the Tempest Mk.V and VI already in service (and the Centaurus-powered Tempest II arriving), and the Typhoon was obsolete and all remaining active examples in Europe were scrapped. A composite example remained in RAF hands until the mid-fifties, and two examples in the Netherlands and another in a Belgian Technical School survived the cull into the early sixties, but no thought was given to preserving an example for posterity. When airframes were being collected for the…

Last year’s Duxford September airshow, organised by the Imperial War Museum, broke with the established tradition and presented a dedicated war-bird event. The programme was so packed that the flying began an hour earlier than usual. The main theme was the Battle of Britain which enabled some never before seen formations to be assembled. The show opened with six Hurricanes flying together, a sight unseen anywhere since the forties. Later, a formation of the main Fighter Command types operated during the Battle - comprising a quintet of Hurricanes (one of the six having gone unserviceable), three Mk.I Spitfires, the Blenheim and Shuttleworth's Gloster Gladiator - displayed for another first in the preservation era. Other highlights included an aerobatic tail chase by thirteen Spitfires (including a lone Seafire), the only flying…

The Beech Party started at Tullahoma, Tennessee, as the ‘Staggerwing Fly-In’ during the early seventies, and in those days sometimes over forty Staggerwings were present – these days you are lucky to get ten. In those early years they also started the Staggerwing museum, which has developed into the fabulous Beechcraft Heritage Museum, with eight Staggerwings on display, including the very first Beech aircraft ever, Beech 17R Staggerwing no 1, NC299N. It also contains earlier aircraft such as the first Travel Air 1000 and the Travel Air Mystery Ship, the famous racer which won the Thompson Trophy at the Cleveland Air Races in 1929 beating all the military aircraft. The museum has grown significantly in recent years to include all aircraft types produced by Beechcraft. Similarly, the Staggerwing fly-in grew…

The rare Comper Swift VH-UVC flew for the first time in 55 years when it lifted off from Omaka Airfield, Blenheim, New Zealand in late 2017. The event followed an extensive restoration that began when Sydney collector Roy Fox shipped the project to Jay McIntyre’s JEM Aviation at Omaka in January 2014. Roy purchased the remains of the Swift and seven spare Pobjoy engines in 1997. These had changed hands several times after the aircraft suffered an undercarriage failure and accident at Bundaberg, Queensland, in July 1962. The Comper (serial 32/10) was built in 1932 and, in its first two years, embarked on an extensive tour of Europe before it was sold and exported to Melbourne. Test pilot for JEM, Ryan Southam, said it “flew beautifully with no rigging adjustments…

The last Canadian-built Lancaster to survive in its post-war configuration finally arrived at the National Air Force Museum of Canada (NAFMC) in October 2017. It had been on outside display for 53 years. An earlier attempt to rescue the aircraft (see Flightpath Vol.26, No.4), to ensure its preservation, fell through, but eventually the NAFMC at Trenton was selected (see Flightpath Vol.28, No.3) to restore and display the Lancaster. In doing so the museum will be the only facility in the world to house restored examples of the Handley Page Halifax and Avro Lancaster. Built by Victory Aircraft Limited, KB882, one of 430 examples of the type built in Canada, arrived in the UK in March 1945. It flew twelve operations in the short time before the war against Germany ended.…

The new year started well with the first post-restoration flight of Boeing B75N1 Kaydet VH-PUD on 7 January. Owner Allan Schwarze spent nine years completely restoring the big biplane. Built in 1943 in Wichita, Kansas, the aircraft (c/n 75-7315) was placed into service with the US Navy as BuAer 07711. It was one of 1875 N2S-3 aircraft built for the USN out of a total of 10,346 examples of the Model 75 constructed between 1934 and 1945. A career as a crop-duster followed its disposal by the military before it was purchased by Willis Allen Jr, the man behind the Allen Airways Flying Museum in El Cajon, California (see Flightpath Vol. 28, No. 1 and Vol. 28, No. 2). Allen struck a deal with Jeff Trappett in 1981 to trade…

Three Lockheed Constellations made significant steps forward in their ongoing preservation during the second half of 2017. All three belong to nationally significant museums. The Qantas Founders Museum (QFM), which, after two and a half years, saw its Super Constellation (c/n 4144) delivered to Longreach, Queensland, in May 2017, has received a welcome donation of $5500 from Lufthansa Technik AG. A subsidiary of the Lufthansa Group, Lufthansa Technik is well known for its incredible, ongoing ground-up rebuild of a L-1649A Starliner, complete with modern avionics. “Lufthansa Technik has been interested and supportive of our Super Constellation Project since the aircraft’s purchase in 2014 in Manila, Philippines, and their donation will assist us in the restoration stage of this project,” said Tony Martin, QFM Chief Executive Officer. Tom Harwood, the museum’s…

While there are three Cessna T-50 Bobcats flying on the west coast of the USA, this is the only one you can hire for flight training. Andy Bibber’s Adventure Flight at Lincoln Airport in northern California, offers rides and training in this AT-17. In a ‘name the plane’ contest at the Cessna factory, the aircraft (originally known as a T-50 in civil use) was named the Bobcat, but, due to its wooden construction, earned the nickname ‘Bamboo Bomber’ that is still familiar today. Another name acquired was ‘Double-Breasted Cub’ and, derived from the UC-78 designation, occasionally the ‘Useless 78’. The U.S. Navy and Marines called it the ‘Box Kite’. The T-50 was built of wood, plywood and fabric, over a tubular steel fuselage frame, while the wing spars were constructed…

Head wounds tend to bleed profusely and this one was no exception. Sub-Lieutenant Fred Sherborne had struggled to see through the blood as he forced his ailing Wildcat V onto its belly in a field near Avignon in the south of France on 19 August 1944. He had been hit before, but this was the first time he’d had to pull off a forced landing. It had been a long war for Fred Sherborne and it was far from over. Born in Cottesloe, Western Australia, on 10 June 1920, young Sherborne enjoyed everything the coastal lifestyle of Perth and Fremantle had to offer in a time before urban sprawl had effectively made the latter a suburb of the former. A keen and talented sportsman, Fred was well known for his…

From late last century, every other year, the RAAF Museum’s staff and volunteers put on an Air Pageant at RAAF Point Cook. Starting out small, the later events, around 2010, were among the most varied and notable vintage airshows in Australia. The last Air Pageant proper was held in 2012, with the 2014 show being supplanted when the date was chosen to be the Australian Defence Force’s national airshow of the year, commemorating the first flight of an Australian military aircraft at Point Cook in 1914. Set on the anniversary and following day of 1 – 2 March 2014, this was presented as Australia’s Centenary of Military Aviation and the full resources of the military were brought to bear. After that climactic airshow, there was a decrease in resources at…

The Brooklands museum first opened in 1991, covering the history of the aviation and motor racing site. The Brook-lands race circuit was built in 1907, as the first purpose built motor racing circuit in the world. Soon after, the area inside the course became an airfield with various pioneer aircraft designers and flying schools. Aircraft manufacturing started at Brook-lands in 1908 with Edwin Alliott Verdon Roe, and approximately 18,600 aircraft were built here before manufacturing stopped in 1987. The Sopwith Aircraft Company started at Brooklands in 1912, and Vickers opened a factory in 1915. The Hawker Hurricane made its first flight in 1935, and Vickers Wellingtons and Warwicks were built here in large numbers during W.W.II. Post-war the site was bought by Vickers and they built their series of civil…

During the summer in Northern California, USA, a pancake fly-in is held on the fourth Saturday of each month at the Historic Nut Tree Airport in Vacaville. The casual but colourful event attracts 300 plus visitors – with appetites! – and as many as 75 aircraft, mainly antiques, classics, and warbirds. This airport doesn’t have a tower at this 4,700 foot (1,400 m) paved single runway, so non radio vintage aircraft are welcome. The Legends of Flight Collection (LoFC) based at the Nut Tree Airport, is a nonprofit organisation with a collection of antique, classic and warbird aircraft, all individually owned and regularly flown. Some of the aircraft in the collection are the P-51D Mustang 'Blondie', 44-72777, a Mono-coupe 90, a pair of Cessna C-165s, Ryan STA, a Waco QCF,…

The Australian Vintage Aviation Society (TAVAS) based in Caboolture, Queensland, has acquired three more aircraft. The container, carrying a Nieuport 24, Fokker Dr.I and a Henri Far-man III, was unloaded at Brisbane port on 8 January. With the Society’s 2018 Great War Flying Display to be held over the weekend of 21-22 April, Andrew Carter, one of the founders of TAVAS, wanted an expanded line-up of pioneering and W.W.I aircraft. Due to a cancellation, he decided to source some aircraft himself. The Nieuport (N333EL) was found first by fellow TAVAS founder Nathalie Gochel. Owned by Jim Record, it was regularly flown at Old Rhinebeck airshows. The Fokker is painted as Josef Jacobs’ mount and has never been registered or flown. Built by Bill Crist, it was sold to Tom Daly…

DHC-1 Chipmunk LV-NRY at Lujan, Argentina, is flying again, following a restoration that began in March 2006, at the Don Tourcato airfield in the suburbs of Buenos Aires. This is the world’s oldest Chipmunk (serial number 3!) and effectively the first pre-production aircraft off the line at the Downsview, Toronto, Canada, facility. It followed the two prototypes and first flew in January 1947. The Chipmunk was shipped to de Havilland in South America on 10 February 1947 and has remained in Argentina ever since.…

Neptune Aviation Services officially retired the last of their P2V air tankers in a ceremony at Missoula airport, Montana, on 1 October 2017. However, a week later, these respected and capable tankers were out of retirement and responding to deadly fires in California. Missoula-based Neptune Aviation stated, “Tanker 5 and Tanker 14 aircraft have been reactivated. Those P2Vs, along with BAe 146 Tankers 2 and 3, are being dispatched to the horrific blazes.” The old tankers were reactivated to support the United States Forest Service, the Federal Bureau of Land Management, and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection fighting the blazes in northern California’s wine country, centered in Napa and Sonoma counties. Accounting for numerous deaths and a tremendous loss of property, with upwards of 3.4 million hectares…

Formed in 1988, the Berlin Airlift Historical Foundation (BAHF), as the name suggests, is dedicated to preserving the memory and legacy of the great humanitarian event that followed on the heels of W.W.II. It acquired a Douglas C-54 Skymaster in late 1992 and has since toured the U.S. (and beyond) with the ‘Spirit of Freedom’. The aircraft, which saw service with the USN during the Airlift, has been converted into a flying museum and classroom with extensive displays taking up most of the interior. Less than four years after purchasing the Skymaster, the BAHF acquired the C-97 for US$125,000 on 22 April 1996. It was almost 42 years to the day since the aircraft rolled off the line in 1954 as a KC-97G tanker (serial 52-2718). After more than 22…

Construction of the first Ceres prototype, CA28-1, was complete by the middle of December 1957 and the aircraft was rolled out and displayed to the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation (CAC) workforce on the grass in front of the administration building just eleven days before Christmas. By 15 January 1958 Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) officials had inspected the aircraft to determine its eligibility for the issue of a Certificate of Type Approval. The complexity of obtaining a type certificate for a new design was already well understood by the CAC team, and this was confirmed when a long list of changes was specified by DCA, all of which needed to be rectified before the Type Approval could be granted. The flight test program was carried out under the supervision of Flight…

The Joe Drage aircraft collection was a remarkable one, arguably one of the world’s premier collections of civil aircraft from the mid Twentieth Century. Best known as ‘Drage Airworld’ at Wangaratta, Victoria, the collection on show there included contributed selections of more aircraft from Malcolm Long and the Bunn brothers. While the Bunns still retain several of their aircraft to this day, the Long and Drage collections have been dispersed to new owners. However there is no doubt that Joe Drage’s drive to collect unwanted, obsolete aircraft when he did, ensured that they survived a critical period, with the result that when Airworld was wound up, almost all of the aircraft were to find new homes. At the time of writing (December 2017) as listed in this feature, the vast…

The RAF Museum Cosford’s Michael Beetham Conservation Centre was open to the public last November to allow viewing of the progress on their current projects. The centrepiece was the ongoing restoration of Handley Page Hampden TB.Mk.I P1344. This was recovered to the UK in 1992 having force landed on the Kola Peninsula, Russia, on 4 September 1942 after an attack by German fighters when en route to a new base near Murmansk to protect Arctic convoys. The main fuselage structure is complete and the cockpit and other crew positions have been fitted out. The tailplane is also complete with just the boom between the cockpit area and tailplane to be finished to complete the fuselage. The wings will take a few more years. A former resident of the Battle of…

The Australian Antique Aeroplane Association annual meeting and fly-in was held for the first time over 13-15 October in the picturesque Clare Valley wine region in South Australia. The Clare Valley Aerodrome, located 14 kilometres north of the town, is relatively new, being officially opened in November 2014. It is ideally situated between Adelaide and the Flinders Ranges. The AAAA event drew classic and vintage aircraft, pilots and crew from afar, with virtually all states of Australia represented. Nigh on seventy aircraft visited over the three days of the event, surpassing expectations. The Clare Valley Flying Group (CVFG) made everyone feel welcome, with typical country hospitality. The weather was near perfect and the surrounding fields were still green. Pilots and crew were ferried to and from the club house to…