AUSTRALIAN VINTAGE & VETERAN AIRCRAFT - 1960s - 1

Westland Widgeon 3 VH-UHU heads a row of Tiger Moths visiting Swan Hill Victoria for an airshow in March 1965. It was
imported in 1928 and been owned by Arthur Whittaker at Boort, Victoria since 1953. Pale grey and red paint scheme.

Arthur Whittaker taxies VH-UHU on to the grass early morning at Parafield in September 1966, heading home to the family farm
in Victoria after attending the two-day National Air Show at Adelaide.

Westland Widgeon 3 VH-UKS was a restoration project owned by Don Dennis of Goolwa SA when photographed on his farm
in July 1964.  It had passed through various owners since overturning during a forced landing in a swamp on the northern NSW
coastline in 1947.   It was later repatriated to England by noted vintage restorer Ron Souch who registered it G-EUKS in 2010.

Blue and white BA Swallow VH-UUM at Parafield in August 1962, after a local flight. Owner Bob Burnett-Read is folding
back the wings so the aircraft will take up less space in the crowded Royal Aero Club of SA hangar. This 1935 built Swallow
has recently completed an immaculate airworthy rebuild at Lilydale Vic.

BA Eagle VH-UUY at Bathurst NSW in September 1965, all silver finish.  This 1935 model cabin machine with retractable
undercarriage was sadly left out in the weather at Bathurst for years and became totally derelict.

Avro Avian 1VM VH-UQE parked with wings folded at an airshow at Naracoorte SA in April 1964.

Many RAAF disposals Avro 643 Cadets went on to civil careers, some becoming cropdusters.  VH-PRU was at Ballarat Vic
in January 1964, completing a rebuild from single-seat ag machine back to original two seater, for resale. Today it resides in
Florida with the Kermit Weeks collection displayed at Fantasy of Flight, painted in its pre-war silver RAAF markings as A6-25.

Comper Gipsy Swift VH-ACG at Parafield in March 1963, while owned by Bob Burnett-Read, Adelaide and painted all red
with black and yellow trim.  This was a high performance model of the Swift, built in 1932 with a 120hp DH Gipsy III engine.
After an exciting life as G-ABWH and racing in USA as NC27K, it was sold to Australia in 1938 to become VH-ACG.



VH-ACG visiting an air show at Blyth SA in October 1963, following a repaint to silver with blue trim. This diminutive aircraft
is still flying today, owned by vintage enthusiast Rob Fox in Sydney.

Bright red Bristol M1C Fighter VH-UQI "Puck" was displayed in the main street of Minlaton SA in a memorial to town hero,
WW1 flying ace Captain Harry Butler AFC.  After the war, Butler had brought this Bristol The Red Devil back to SA, where
it was later owned by Horrie Miller of MacRobertson Miller Aviation (MMA), who in 1957 donated it for a Butler memorial.

The same Bristol as above, at a Parafield airshow in 1936, with a DH Gipsy III replacing the original Le Rhone rotary engine.
Horrie Miller later flew it from Adelaide to Perth where his airline MMA was based.                   Photo: SA Aviation Museum

Australian-designed Genairco Cabin VH-UUI, built by General Aircraft Company at Mascot in 1936. This sole survivor of the
cabin model has had the original Cirrus Hermes engine replaced by a far more practical DH Gipsy Major.  It visited an airshow
at Swan Hill Vic in March 1965, flown from Albury NSW by owner Joe Drage.  The following year Joe sold the Genairco to a
collector in USA, where it became N249G. The proceeds went towards establishing Drage's Historical Aircraft Collection.

Another Australian design was the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation CA-6 Wackett Trainer, 200 being built for RAAF at
Fishermans Bend, Melbourne. Wartime disposals Wacketts were popular civil aircraft but by the 1960s only a handful remained.
Here's VH-DGR (ex RAAF A3-129) at Mudgee NSW in September 1968, painted pale blue and white.

Mraz M1C Sokol VH-BXY at Parafield in May 1962. This Czechoslovakian-built Sokol was flown to Australia in 1949 as
HB-TAF by two Swiss men migrating to Australia.  It became VH-AXY, later VH-BXY before being retired at Parafield
because of the 1963 DCA grounding order on a range of wooden-glued construction aircraft types.

This red, white and black Stinson Reliant VH-CWM took part in the March 1964 Ansett Air Race from Brisbane to Adelaide.
Imported new in 1936, happily this big Stinson is still flying, under its original registration VH-UXL after a major restorationby
its Perth owner Kevin Bailey.



Another spectacular sight in the 1964 Ansett Air Race was Air Surveys Australia's Lockheed 12A VH-ASV in bright red and white
paint scheme. Flown by Alan Rea, the widely respected manager of Flinders Island Airlines, an associated company at Moorabbin.

Sid Marshall's retired Lockheed 10B Electra VH-ASM outside the Marshall Airways hangar at Bankstown in September 1969.
This Electra was one of three purchased new in 1937 by Ansett Airways as VH-UZO Ansertes. In September 1991 it flew again
after a mammoth restoration project by Laurie Ogle, reverting to VH-UZO. The small aircraft is a Parnall Penguin, also belonging to Sid Marshall.
 

Aeronca K VH-ACK at Moorabbin Vic in November 1967, blue with white trim.  As NC18888, this Aeronca had been used by
the 1938 US Ellsworth Antartic research mission, whose ship MV Wyatt Earp, Northrop Delta NC14267 and the Aeronca were
taken over by the Australian Government in 1939 due to the war situation.

Only two wooden construction Cessna Airmasters were imported pre-war, a C.34 and a C.37. Here's the Cessna C.34, formerly
VH-UYG but now changed to VH-KWM by owner Kevin W. Magee.  Moorabbin in May 1963, silver with blue trim.



Not many of the post-war all metal radial engined Cessna models came to Australia, mostly for New Guinea service. VH-BVD
was a 190 which had a 240hp Continental W670 engine.  Seen at Bankstown in January 1964, it had previously been owned by
Madang Air Services, then Mandated Airlines and Ansett-MAL, before joining Darwin Air Taxis in September 1962.



This Taylor J-2 Cub VH-UYM was the first of the Piper Cub family imported to Australia in April 1937. Here it is at Camden NSW
in January 1967, completing a major overhaul and repaint. It is still flying today.

Another early Piper was this 1948 model PA-11S Cub VH-AKD, which led a hard life as a floatplane fish spotter, carried on
board fishing boats, first in Fiji as VQ-FAI Tuna Scout, and later from Bega NSW, Lakes Entrance Vic and Tasmania.  Here
it is on the River Murray near Waikerie SA in November 1966 while owned by a pilot syndicate in Gippsland, Victoria just for
fun flying. Painted red and white. After several major rebuilds it is still flying, but on wheels.

Beech D17S Staggerwing VH-MJE visiting Moorabbin in June 1966, owned by veteran aviator Joe Palmer of Sydney. The
Beech was a classic aircraft befitting its owner, who began flying in 1924 and who flew a civil Mustang VH-WAS for years.

Rearwin 9000L Sportster VH-UYS was imported in 1937. It was powered by a 90hp Le Blonde 5F radial.  Photographed at Stawell,
Victoria in February 1965, where it shared the original small hangar with a Piper Pawnee. The Rearwin was painted green and white.

Ryan STM (Sports Trainer Military) were popular Australian private and club aircraft in the 1950s. They were all former RAAF
aircraft, acquired in 1942 when the Dutch shipped 37 of their Ryans to Australia, ahead of the Japanese invasion of Netherlands
East Indies (now Indonesia). These three Ryans lived on a farming property near Jerilderie NSW when rolled out in July 1967.
VH-AHC and VH-AHD were polished metal finish, while VH-CXR behind was bright red with black trim.

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