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Last Updated: Tue Mar 25 16:07:05 UTC 2014 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Centenary of Military Aviation Point Cook Airshow, March 2014 |
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Photographic
Essay APA-PE-2014-0301 by Dr Carlo Kopp, AFAIAA, SMIEEE, PEng AIRMSHL John W. Newham AC RAAF (Retd) Photographic images © 2014 John W. Newham Photographic images and caption text © 2014 Carlo Kopp |
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The Centenary of Military
Aviation airshow was held at RAAF Point Cook on the first weekend of
March, 2014. The Saturday of the 1st March was the 100th anniversary of
the first military flight in Australia, when a Bristol Boxkite first
flew from the
Point Cook airfield. The airshow, with its emphasis on historical aircraft, was a proper tribute to the many thousands of Australians who served in the RAAF, and earlier Australian military aviation formations, over the last century. High quality display flights in a range of aircraft were performed by RAAF and guest pilots, in a range of aircraft, from the RAAF Museum's 1914 Bristol Boxkite replica, through to contemporary RAAF aircraft. This photoessay depicts historical RAAF aircraft, and some allied types, through to the Vietnam War era. Bristol Boxkite photos were generously provided by AIRMSHL John W. Newham AC, RAAF (Retd). |
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Equipment Notes: |
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Bristol (British and Colonial Aeroplane Company) Boxkite [Replica] |
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RAAF Museum Bristol Boxkite
replica performing a flight early on Saturday, the 1st March, 2014, to
commemorate, a century later to the minute, the first military aircraft
flight in Australia. The pilot is SQNLDR
Steve Bekker of ARDU. Note the scarf in the slipstream (AIRMSHL
John W. Newham AC, RAAF (Retd)).
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CAC CA-16 Mk. III Wirraway |
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CA-16 Wirraway A20-722 performing
a demonstration flight. The Wirraway, based on the N.A. Harvard
trainer, was acquired as an advanced trainer for the RAAF, and due to a
desperate shortage of fighters in 1942, flown against Japanese combat
aircraft, suffering heavy losses. The aircraft continued in use both as
a trainer and light close air support aircraft.
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CAC CA-12 Boomerang |
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CAC CA-12 Boomerang A46-63 /
VH-XBL, a restored 1943 aircraft, formerly of 85 SQN. The Boomerang was
Australia's first domestic fighter design, intended as a stopgap interceptor
while more advanced fighters were procured
from Britain and the United States. The first air intercept flown by a
Boomerang against enemy aircraft was by the late Flight Lieutenant (later
Squadron Leader) Roy
Francis Goon of 85 SQN RAAF,
home based at RAAF Guildford (now Perth Airport) in Western Australia,
from RAAF Learmonth
on the Exmouth peninsula, on the 20th May, 1943, against a formation of
Japanese G4M Betty bombers flying a night bombing sortie against the US
Navy submarine refuelling tender moored at Potshot (now
Exmouth). The aircraft flown by Goon was A46-61,
serialled two below the depicted aircraft.
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P-40N-1-CU Kittyhawk IV |
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Former RNZAF lend/lease P-40N-1-CU
Kittyhawk NZ3125, now VH-ZOC restored by Allan Arthur, assigned during
WW2 to 2 OTU at Ohakea, in the colours of 112 SQN RAF P-40M-10-CU
Kittyhawk FR806 / 43-5605 GA-Q flown by Australian FLTLT Mathias in
North Africa. This is the factory olive drab / grey camouflage applied
to most USAAC aircraft during that period, rather than the sand and
dark earth desert camouflage commonly seen on 112 SQN Kittyhawks.
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USAAC Curtiss P-40F Warhawk (Merlin) |
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Curtiss P-40F-1-CU “Pee Wee”
Serial 41-14112 VH-HWK is owned and operated by Judy Pay. This is a
rare Rolls-Royce Merlin powered P-40F of which only 700 were built, and
was recovered as a wreck from Erromango, Vanuatu in 1989. The aircraft
crash landed in December, 1942, it was flown by 2nd Lt. C. B. Head Jr.,
44th Fighter Squadron, 18th Fighter Group, USAAC
based at Efaté Island.
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Lockheed A-28-LO Hudson Mk III |
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Temora
Aviation Museum Lockheed A-28-LO Hudson Mk III
A16-112 in the colours of A16-211 of 2 SQN, written off in May 1943 at
Millingimbi, Northern Territory, following a serious landing accident.
Flying its final sortie, A6-211
was one of a five aircraft package flown against Japanese assets in the
Aroe Islands, in which A16-171 was shot down by a pair of Nakajima
A6M2-N Rufe floatplane fighters. Hudsons played a vital role in
the early war years, as a maritime patrol and strike aircraft, against
maritime and land targets. A16-112
was a dual control trainer, later used as a survey aircraft.
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Consolidated PBY-6A Catalina |
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The HARS PBY-6A BuNo 4667 / VH-PBZ
is painted to represent RAAF 43 SQN A24-362 PB2B-2 OX-V “Felix” used
for combat search and rescue and minelaying, based in the Northern
Territory, in 1945. BuNo 4667 has a curious history having flown in
Latin
America, and later Spain and Portugal.
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Supermarine Spitfire HF.VIII |
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Supermarine Spitfire HF.VIII
A58-758 / MV239 operated by Temora Aviation Museum. The aircraft is in
the colours of A58-602 / RG-V / 457 SQN as flown from Morotai, Dutch
East Indies, by the late WGCDR Robert H. Gibbes, DSO, DFC & Bar,
OAM.
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CAC CA-18 Mustang Mk.21 |
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CAC CA-18 Mustang Mk.21 A68-118
VH-AGJ owned and operated by Jeff Trappett.
CAC CA-18 Mustang Mk.21 A68-105
VH-JUC owned and operated by Judy Pay and Richard Hourigan, in the
colours of P-51K-1-NT Mustang IVa KH677 / CV-P of 3 SQN, when based in
Italy, 1944.
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Gloster Meteor F.8 |
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Gloster Meteor F.8, formerly RAF
VZ467, now VH-MBX
of the Temora Aviation Museum in the colours of A77-851 / WK683
“Halestorm”, flown by Sgt George Hale of 77 SQN in Korea. A77-851 was
credited with a MiG-15 Fagot kill over North Korea.
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RRAF De Havilland Vampire T.11 |
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Former Rhodesian Air Force De
Havilland DH-115 Vampire T.11, VH-ZVZ / 15392, owned and operated by
Judy Pay, at Tyabb, Victoria. The RAAF operated the T.35 from 1 AFTS at
RAAF Pearce in Western Australia, through the 1960s.
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CAC CA-27 Avon Sabre Mk.32
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Temora Aviation Museum operated
RAAF Museum CAC CA-27 Avon Sabre Mk.32 A94-983 in the colours of 75
SQN. The aircraft was provided to the RMAF as military aid during the
1970s and flew with registration FM-1983, until it retirement, when it
was returned to Australia. The aircraft was refurbished and overhauled
by RAAF 2AD, with assistance from industry, but later made available to
the Temora Aviation Museum.
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De Havilland DHC-4 Caribou |
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The DHC-4 Caribou was a workhorse
in Vietnam, and served reliably until its retirement in 2009.
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Australian Army Cessna 180 |
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The Cessna 180 was used by the
Australian Army as an observation and liasion aircraft.
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VNAF Cessna O-1G Bird Dog |
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The Cessna O-1 was used extensively
as an observation and liasion aircraft by the Vietnamese Air Force.
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Bell UH-1B |
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RAN Historic Flight HMAS Albatross
based UH-1B N9-3104 / 898 / VH-NVV, in the colours of 723 SQN. The
UH-1B was flown by all three ADF services.
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Formation Mustang Meteor Sabre |
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Photographic
Essay APA-PE-2014-0301
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