Our June newsletter is ready to download – it’s a sad issue with obituaries of two recently lost members and an In Memoriam of the anniversary of Paul Daw’s death in the Rossair crash last year, but there’s lots of interesting updates on what’s going on at SAAM as well. Just click on the image at left to download, or go to the Newsletters tab on the home page.
SAAM’s restoration of its Cessna CC-1 replica is complete. This is a replica of Clyde Cessna’s original 1911 design built by Rossair’s chief engineer Gordon Lewis from original design drawings for the 1966 National Air Show at Parafield and Edinburgh. Rossair was the Cessna dealership at Parafield and the replica was displayed as a promotional initiative. It was dismantled sometime after the Air Show and stored in a shed on the Lewis’s Gawler property until donated by Gordon’s family to SAAM in December 2016. The aircraft has been fully restored and rigged, and a replica Anzani 3-cylinder engine installed that was purpose-built for SAAM in Hungary.
It is one of only two replicas of the original aircraft in existence: the other being displayed by Cessna in the US.
You can read more about the aircraft here: http://www.saam.org.au/cessna-cc-1-replica/
SAAM is delighted to announce that Co-founder and Chairman of Nova Systems, Jim Whalley has accepted the appointment of Patron of the South Australian Aviation Museum.
Jim, a former air force fighter pilot and test pilot with over 6,000 flying hours on more than 40 aircraft types, is a graduate of the RAF Empire Test Pilots’ School and holds an MBA from the University of Adelaide and a BSc from the University of NSW.
As an avid aviation enthusiast Jim retains a strong personal interest in aviation as a civilian pilot and flies, flight tests and displays a range of antique, warbird and experimental aircraft and helicopters in his spare time, including piloting his CAC Boomerang regularly in air shows and displays across South Australia, most recently with a flyover during 2018 ANZAC Day Remembrance Day celebrations.
Jim succeeds Hon Alexander Downer AC, our Patron of many years to whom we are very grateful – particularly for his facilitation of our acquisition of our Aermacchi MB-326H aircraft in 2004.
Jim will be welcomed aboard at our General Members’ Meeting on 16 June 2018.
Cobham Aviation Services kindly donated BAe146 forward section, comprising cockpit and three rows of seat, to SAAM and transported it to the Museum on 16 May 2018. Here is some video of the aircraft section arriving at the Museum.
WP_20180516_11_24_48_Pro from South Australian Aviation Museum on Vimeo.
The aircraft, in service as VH-NJL, was destined for scrap.
SAAM intends to refurbish it as an interactive display that visitors can sit in.
Our May newsletter is now ready to download – just click on the front-page image at left.
There’s lots of good reading as usual – the president’s update on the month’s big news issues; stories on the Cierva C.30A Autogyro, the re-formation of 24Sqn at Mallala and Rod Kopp’s experiences in a RACSA Chipmunk; restoration updates; and Jim Rogers’ and Steve Nelson’s profile of the DHC-4 Caribou. Read on!!
SAAM today (3 May 2018 ) executed a Deed of Gift with RAAF Heritage for Mirage IIID A3-115 on an “as is/where is” basis. We are very grateful to RAAF Heritage for their confidence in us.
The aircraft is presently on display at RAAF Edinburgh as pictured.
We plan to concentrate on the reassembly of Orion A9-756 before picking it up, so it will be some time before A3-115 is on display at SAAM, where it will represent the work of ARDU at Edinburgh.
We will keep you posted.
SAAM has agreed to an F-111 swap so that our existing loaned aircraft A8-134 will go to the Australian War Memorial and be replaced by A8-132, presently at RAAF Base Edinburgh.
We regard this as a win-win. The AWM gets an RF-111C aircraft that was active in the East Timor theatre, and we get an F-111C with long and distinguished South Australian provenance of weapons trials with ARDU at Edinburgh. We are also delighted to further strengthen our existing cordial and cooperative relationships with the AWM and RAAF Heritage.
We are not sure yet exactly when the exchange will take place – but it’s soon and for a short time there will be two F-111s on site while the exchange takes place. Not to be missed!! We will keep you posted.
You can download our April newsletter by clicking on the front-page image at left. This is a big issue – 21 pages – so sit back and enjoy!
Member and noted WWI historian Chas Schaedel has produced another profile in his series on South Australian airmen siblings who served in the Great War – this time the Horn brothers Kelham, Marmaduke and Spencer. You can download it by clicking on the image of Kelham Horn at left.
We have added Jim Roger’s profile of the DHC-4 Caribou – with a focus on SAAM’s aircraft on display, A4-225.
Member Steve Nelson flew the aircraft in PNG during his RAAF service and has contributed an interesting section on the terrain and weather hazards of flying there.
