Qantas offers free WiFi but with a catch (of course)

QANTAS AIRBUS A380-842 VH-OQJ (MSN 062)

From next Tuesday, Qantas will offer free high-speed Wi-Fi on selected international flights, but only while the aircraft is flying over Australia. The news is the first step toward the national carriers' goal of having an international fleet of Wi-Fi enabled aircraft by the end of 2025.

The initial selection of flights will see specific A330-200 and Boeing 737’s on nine routes providing the option of inflight Wi-Fi. Selected routes include Sydney to Singapore, Jakarta, Manila and Denpasar as well as Melbourne to Singapore and Denpasar, plus Brisbane to Singapore and Port Moresby and Perth to Singapore.

The routes have been selected because of their flight paths, which operate over Australia for more than half of the journey.

In March, Qantas CEO, Alan Joyce revealed the national carrier was aiming for a late 2025 launch of free Wi-Fi on international flights, with a number of new Wi-Fi enabled A350-1000’s due to be delivered and noted the airline wanted to ensure the service was a good as what was rolled out on domestic flights in 2017.

“Qantas’ decision makes plenty of sense when aircraft on these routes spend so much of their time over Australia and within the coverage footprint of the NBN Sky Muster satellite,” editor-in-chief, Executive Traveller, David Flynn, told the Australian.

“Flights from the east coast capitals to Singapore spend half their time in Australian airspace, and from Sydney or Melbourne to Bali that’s almost two-thirds of the journey.”

“Travellers have increasingly become accustomed to Wi-Fi on international flights, whether it’s to tackle work, watch streaming video or simply stay in touch with family and friends on the ground.”

Asiana Airlines will stop selling seats near emergency exit

ASIANA AIRLINES AIRBUS A380-841 HL-7641 (MSN 231)

Asiana Airlines has announced it will no longer sell tickets for certain emergency exit seats of its Airbus A321-200 aircraft, the airline said Sunday, following a recent incident where a passenger opened the emergency door just before it was about to land at Daegu airport in the southern part of South Korea.

The airline said in a statement that seats number 26A on 174-seat A321s and number 31A on 195-seat
models will not be sold, the seats are near the center of the plane, closest to the doors on the left-hand side of the single-aisle aircraft. This measure is a safety precaution and applies even if the flight is full," the statement said. The corresponding seat on the right-hand side is where flight attendants sit for takeoff
and landing.

A very strange action every taken by an airline to solve an odd, strange incident.

Qantas Farewells Australia's First Boeing 717

Yesterday Qantas marked an end of an era saying goodbye to it's very first Boeing 717.

QANTASLINK BOEING 717-2K9 VH-NXI (MSN 55054)

VH-NXI (Previously VH-IMP) was the first 717 registered in Australia and holds a special place in the Qantas Group's modern history. This aircraft was rolled out of the Boeing Long Beach plant in November 1999 and entered onto the Australian Aircraft Register on the 6th of April 2000, 

joining the fleet of Impulse Airlines and carrying registration VH-IMP (MSN 55054-5013).

It was powered by 2 BMW Rolls Royce RB715A-130 engines.

It operated its first revenue service on the 5th of June 2000

Following the takeover of Impulse Airlines, the 717-200 moved into the QantasLink fleet in May 2001 before joining the Jetstar fleet, operating the new airline's first flight in May 2004.

In January 2006 it was reregistered as VH-NXI and for the last sixteen years, the 717-200, named Blue Mountains after the world-heritage-listed national park in New South Wales, has flown on regional and domestic routes for QantasLink. Over two decades, it has operated more than 29,000 flights and carried more than 1.6 million passengers for Qantas and Jetstar.

Over the coming years their entire 717 fleet will be retired, with the Airbus A220-300 set to replace the outgoing jets, starting with the first delivery later this year.

This aircraft is the third Boeing 717 to leave the fleet and is due to leave Australia in mid-June before being sold to another major carrier. Qantas said that, because of the aircraft's limited range, it will have eight fuel stops on its journey to its new home in North America, including stops in the Philippines, Japan and Alaska.

All of QantasLink's twenty 717s are being replaced by 29 Airbus A220s as part of the Qantas Project Winton fleet renewal program. The first A220 is expected to arrive later this year, and then the first of 20 Airbus A321XLRs will follow in late 2024.

Qantaslink 1737 Hijacking

QANTASLINK BOEING 717-2BL VH-YQT (MSN 55179)

QantasLink Flight 1737 was an Australian domestic flight from Melbourne's-Tullamarine Airport, VIC (MEL/YMML) to Launceston Airport, TAS (LST/YMLT) and was subject to an attempted hijacking on the 29th of May 2003.

The Boeing 717 left Melbourne Airport at 2.50 p.m. on the 29th of May. Around ten minutes after take-off, as the crew prepared for the onboard meal service, David Mark Robinson, a passenger seated in Row 7, became agitated, stood up and began to make his way down the aisle. Producing two sharpened wooden stakes from his pocket, Robinson stabbed flight attendant Denise Hickson and flight purser Greg Khan in the head on his way to the cabin galley. Khan tackled Robinson to unbalance him, eventually succeeding despite repeated blows to the back of the head from Robinson's stakes. Several passengers (including a Canadian paramedic, Derek Finlay) helped restrain Robinson, holding him down and tying him up with materials found on board.

The plane immediately turned back to Melbourne, where Robinson was placed under arrest by Australian Federal Police. He was also found to be carrying aerosol cans and cigarette lighters, presumably to use as a flamethrower.

Khan and Hickson were taken to Royal Melbourne Hospital for treatment, and a passenger who received minor lacerations was treated at the airport by paramedics.

Despite numerous security improvements following the September 11, attacks, Flight 1737 lacked certain security arrangements. The door to the flightdeck had not been adapted to completely block access from the outside, and there was no sky marshal on board.

Qantas undertook a full security review following the incident and promised to secure the flightdeck doors on all of their aircraft by the 1st of November. The airline dismissed the suggestion of armed sky marshals on each flight as too expensive, and a full body search of passengers to detect wooden objects as unfeasible.

Qantas also made a training video regarding the incident; the crew involved were interviewed and this is shown during security training. Khan also speaks of how a passenger complained that the aircraft was returning to Melbourne, even though two crew members had suffered serious injuries and an attempt to hijack the aircraft had just occurred. Khan and other crew also report the amount of blood stains throughout the aircraft as a result of the injuries.

Since this incident, all Boeing 717 aircraft operated by Qantaslink have been fitted with cameras and the flight deck door is bullet proof.

Aircraft Information:

Airline: Qantaslink

Code: QF/QFA

Aircraft: Boeing 717-231

Registration: VH-VQI

Serial Number: 55095

Engines: 2 x BMW RR BR715

First Flew: 7/11/2011

Age: 21 Yrs. 6 Mts

Passenger arrested for opening plane door during flight

ASIANA AIRLINES BOEING 777-28E HL-7739 (MSN 29175)

A man has been arrested for opening a door of an Asiana Airlines flight as it was landing in South Korea. All 194 passengers survived the flight, which landed safely but with its door still open at Daegu International Airport on Friday. Some passengers fainted while others had breathing problems and were taken to hospital, local media reported.

The man in his 30s said he was feeling suffocated and wanted to get off quickly, Yonhap news agency reported. Police said the man claimed during questioning that he was stressed after losing his job.

"He is mentally struggling right now and losing his footing. We could not investigate him properly due to his state," a local police officer told reporters, adding that the man could not be asked any questions as he was not "in a normal state".

Flight OZ8124 had taken off from Jeju Island (CJU/RKPC) on Friday from runway 07 at 11.48 a.m. local time (03:48 GMT). As it was landing, around fifty minutes later on runway 13R, in Daegu (TAE/RKTN) a male passenger opened the emergency door while the plane was still 250m from ground.

A passenger's video shared on social media shows the gap in the left hand side of the plane and winds buffeting rows of seated passengers. Flight attendants had not been able to stop him because the plane was about to land, witnesses recounted to local media.

They said the man had also tried to jump out of the plane after opening the door. Passengers have described the panic on board.

"It was chaos with people close to the door appearing to faint one by one and flight attendants calling out for doctors on board through broadcasting," one 44-year-old passenger told Yonhap.

"I thought the plane was blowing up. I thought I was going to die like this," he added.

Several school age children had also been on board, on their way to a weekend sporting event. The mother of one of the students told Yonhap: "The children were shaking, crying, and frightened."


Aircraft Information:

Airline: Asian Airlines

Code: OZ/AAR

Aircraft: Airbus A321-231 

Registration: HL-8256

Serial Number: 5169

Engines: 2 x IAE V2533-A5

First Flew: 18/05/2012

Age: 11 Yrs

Remembering American Airlines flight 191

 

AMERICAN AIRLINES B787-9 N832AA (MSN 40638)

American Airlines Flight 191 was a regular scheduled passenger flight from O'Hare International Airport (ORD/KORD) in Chicago, Illinois, to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX/KLAX) in Los Angeles, California. On the 25th of May 1979, the McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10 operating this flight was taking off from runway 32R when it crashed into the ground. All 258 passengers and 13 crew on board were killed, along with two people on the ground. At 14:59 hours local time Flight 191 taxied from the gate at O'Hare Airport. The weather at the time of departure was clear, and the reported surface wind was 020° at 22 kts. At 15:02:38, the flight was cleared for takeoff. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) found that as the aircraft was beginning its takeoff rotation, engine number one (the left engine) separated from the left wing, flipping over the top of the wing and landing on the runway. As the engine separated from the aircraft, it severed hydraulic fluid lines that lock the wing's leading-edge slats in place and damaged a 3-foot (1 metre) section of the left wing's leading edge. Aerodynamic forces acting on the wing resulted in an uncommanded retraction of the outboard slats. As the aircraft began to climb, the damaged left wing – with no engine – produced far less lift than the right wing, with its slats still deployed and its engine providing full takeoff thrust. The disrupted and unbalanced aerodynamics of the aircraft caused it to roll abruptly to the left until it was partially inverted, reaching a bank angle of 112 degrees, before crashing in an open field by a trailer park near the end of the runway 50 seconds later. The engine separation was attributed to damage to the pylon structure holding the engine to the wing, caused by improper maintenance procedures used at American Airlines. (A pylon structure is a hardpoint located on an airframe designed to carry an external or internal load.) 

With 273 fatalities, it is still the deadliest aviation accident to have occurred in the United States.

Aircraft Information

Airline: American Airlines

Code: AA/AAL

Aircraft: McDonnell Douglas DC10

Registration: N110AA

Serial Number: 46510 /22

Engines: Three General Electric CF6-6D

Delivered: 25/02/1972

Age of Aircraft: 7 Years 3 months

Crew: Fatalities: 13 / Occupants: 13

Passengers: Fatalities: 258 / Occupants: 258

Airline weighs woman like baggage before her flight

In a shocking incident, a woman was allegedly asked to stand on a baggage scale to be weighed before boarding a flight in the United States, as per a report in the New York Post. 

A woman was seen facing forward and standing on what seemed to be a baggage weighing scale as an airport employee checked her weight, as per a video shared by a user Lilian on TikTok.

She added that there was uncertainty over the woman's weight when she claimed to weigh 130lbs (approximately 58 kg), however, the airline employees did not trust her. As a result, she was requested to stand on the scale used to measure baggage.

"The whole airport was trying to mind their own business as a woman is asked to step on the BAGGAGE SCALE because she claimed she was 130lbs," the woman wrote in a text caption on the video. "It's a tiny plane so they needed our weight to take off for safety reasons," she further mentioned.

The video describing the humiliating action was posted in March and since then has received 1.6 million views on TikTok and many users are questioning the airline on the prejudice against passengers who are plus size, as per the Post report.

The incident has divided the internet with many social media users speaking for the woman while others supporting the decision of the airline.

"Flying home from the Philippines and they weighed me ... I have never been so embarrassed in my life," said one user.

"Airports are out of control," commented a person.

Another user added, "This is so humiliating omg."

One viewer even said that it should be "illegal" for airlines to "even consider individual passengers' weight".

A few users gave the reason why the airline did that. "They care about weight limits on small planes because they need to have the centre weight in a certain part of the plane," commented one.

Another added, "Weight and balance is really important on small aircraft!!"

However, some people also criticised Lillian for posting the picture of the traveller being seemingly uncomfortable.

"Y'all need to stop taking pics of strangers and posting it online, it's weird and disrespectful," one person wrote. Another user added, "Taking a picture of her and posting it on the internet feels mean."

Cargolux's second emergency landing in a week

Problem with landing gears forced pilots to declare an emergency on approach to Luxembourg on Saturday, after similar incident last weekend.

A Cargolux plane made an emergency landing at Luxembourg’s Findel airport (LUX/ELLX) on Saturday after experiencing a problem with its landing gears, the second such incident involving the airline at the airport in less than a week.

The pilots raised concerns that the landing gears on the Boeing 747, arriving from Chicago (ORD/KORD), had not properly deployed and “declared an emergency” as they came into land at Findel shortly after noon on Saturday, Cargolux said in a statement.

“The pilots executed a low fly past to confirm that all gears were down. The aircraft landed safely with the emergency services on hand,” said Cargolux, which added that there were no injuries. Cargolux did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether there was any damage caused to the aircraft. The runway was closed for about 30 minutes said an eyewitness at the airport, before the plane was towed away.

It comes less than a week after another Cargolux plane was forced to make an emergency landing at the airport, also due to a problem with the aircraft’s landing gears.

The aircraft, en route to Chicago, took off from Findel on Sunday evening but was forced to return after the plane was unable to retract its landing gear after take-off. While landing, the gear detached from the aircraft, Cargolux said at the time, although there were no injuries.

Aircraft Information:

Airline: Cargolux

Code: CV/CLX

Aircraft: Boeing 747-4R7F

Registration: LX-VCB

Serial Number: 35806

Engines: 4 x GEnx-2B67

First Flew: 31st August 2011

Age: 11 Yrs 7 Mts

Rescuers in desperate search for children after Colombia plane crash

On the 1st of May a Cessna U206G travelling from Araracuara Airport (ACR/SKAC) to Jorge Enrique González Torres Airport (SJE/SKSE) with seven occupants on board was reported missing.
On the 15th May after 370 hours of searching, the wreckage of the aircraft was found in a forest.
The bodies of three occupants were found at the scene in the days after the discovery. The remaining four passenger, children, are missing.

Search and rescue teams are racing against time to try to find the four children who've been missing now for 20 days.

"We are looking for you. Do not move anymore, stay near a pipe or ravine. Make noise. Make smoke. We're going to save you. We are close. Your grandmother Fatima and family are looking for you," reads a bright pink flyer in Spanish and in the indigenous language of the children, that rescue teams have scattered across the search area, along with survival kits.

"We are going to call off (the search) when we find them," the military's special operations commander, General Pedro Sanchez, told the media in San Jose del Guaviare, where the search and rescue operations are being conducted.

However, the military forces admit that they have not found new clues since the last footprint in the basin of a river that they revealed on Saturday.

Lesly Mukutuy, 11, Soleiny Mukutuy, 9, Tien Noriel Ronoque Mukutuy, 4, and 11-month-old Cristin Neruman Ranoque were on the plane that crashed on the 1st of May along with their mother and two other adults whose bodies have already been recovered from the aircraft.

More than 100 people have been deployed to look for them in the vast jungle in the south of the country where the Cessna 206 plane crashed.

The military forces on the ground are accompanied by indigenous people who know the area.

They're hoping the forest provides food, drink and shelter and that the children, belonging to a Amazonian indigenous community, have the tools to survive until they are found.

On Saturday, 100 survival kits were dropped from the air, including water, oral serum, lighters, lollies and biscuits.

The children were accompanying their mother on their first trip outside their remote community to visit their father.

The search area is a virgin forest, where it can rain for up to 16 hours a day and where there are many poisonous snakes, boas, big cats and insects.

"It is inhospitable," explained the special forces commander, who added that the area was also dangerous as it served as a hideout for armed groups such as the main FARC dissident group.

However, the military dismisses the possibility that the dissidents have children in their possession.

"It would be absurd for some criminal group to try to interfere in this search involving not only the best of the military forces, but also the indigenous community," General Parez said.

I seriously hope they are all found alive real soon.


Aircraft Information:

Owner / Occupier: Avianline Charter

Aircraft: Cessna U206G

Registration: HK-2803

Serial Number: U20606513

Parts of this story sourced from here

Rescuers search for children after Colombia plane crash | PerthNow

Jetstar announces changes as it aims to improve operations

JETSTAR AIRBUS A321-251NEO VH-OFP (MSN 11102) 

Jetstar travellers will need to arrive at the airport a lot earlier, after the carrier announced a series of changes which it hopes will "boost punctuality and reliability".

Check-in, bag drop, and boarding gate closure times will be changed from the 23rd of May.

The new changes have been communicated to Jetstar customers by email and text message.

Domestic travellers 

Check-in and bag drop will now close 40 minutes before departure — 10 minutes earlier than previously

Boarding gates will close 20 minutes before departure— 15 minutes earlier than previously.

 
International travellers
International travellers will need to watch the clock even more closely.

Check-in and bag drop will close at least 60 minutes before international flights.
Boarding gates will close 20 minutes before domestic and international flights.

Why are these changes being made?

“We know our performance hasn’t been up to scratch, and we are working hard to boost punctuality and reliability," Jetstar's chief operating officer Matt Franzi says.

He says the changes bring them into line with other budget airlines across the world.

“To improve our performance, we’re also recruiting more airport staff, cabin crew and engineering team members and making changes to our check-in, bag drop and boarding times, to bring them in line with other low-cost carriers around the world.

“Everyone across the airline is committed to getting Jetstar to its best while delivering the lowest-possible fares so our customers can fly to more places, more often.”

What about other low-cost airline check-in times? 

Bonza: Check-in and bag drop closes 40 minutes before departure.
Easyjet: Online check-in closes 2 hours before departure and bag drop closes 60 minutes before to departure.
Ryanair: Check-in closes 40 minutes before departure and boards 20 minutes before departure.
Scoot: Check-in and bag drop closes 60 minutes before departure.

Three passengers injured on Air India flight due to turbulence

AIR INDIA BOEING 787-8 VT-ANZ (MSN 36927)

A number of passengers have been treated for injuries after landing in Sydney on a flight from India. Air India's flight AI302, which departed from Delhi (DEL/VIDP) on Tuesday and arrived in Sydney (SYD/YSSY) on Wednesday morning, experienced mid-flight turbulence en-route, leaving some on board requiring assistance.
"The flight landed safely in Sydney, but three passengers where in need of further medical assistance on arrival, none of whom required hospitalisation," an Air India spokesperson said.

"This onboard incident has been reported to the relevant authorities as a standard practice."
The aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) also commented on the incident, saying seven passengers reported minor sprains, and three were in need of further attention.


Aircraft Information:

Airline: Air India

Code: VT/AIC

Aircraft: Boeing 787-8

Registration: VT-ANY

Serial Number: 36296

Engines: 2 x GEnx-1B

First Flew: 21/06/2017

Age: 5Yrs 9 Mts

Jetstar probes boarding pass blunder that led to a five-hour delay.

JETSTAR AIRBUS A320-232 VH-VGP (MSN 4343)

Jetstar has launched an investigation into how a man was able to board a flight without a valid boarding pass, delaying it for more than five hours last week.

All passengers on flight JQ785 from the Sunshine Coast (MCY/YBSU) to Sydney (SYD/YSSY) last Tuesday, 9th of May were forced to deplane following 45 minutes on the tarmac, check in again, and pass through security a second time after the man, believed to be between age 18 and 25, boarded the A320-200 without a ticket having somehow passed unhindered through two security checks.

The man was found sitting in another passenger’s seat and told flight attendants he had left his boarding pass outside the plane. JQ785 – slated to take off at 12:15pm – was delayed by five and a half hours due to the incident, eventually departing at 5:45pm and landing in Sydney at 7:04.

In a statement, Jetstar said it is looking into how the man was allowed to board the flight despite not having a ticket.

“We have strict procedures to ensure all customers have a valid boarding pass for our flights and we have launched an urgent investigation into the situation,” the airline said.

“The individual was removed from the aircraft prior to departure and all customers were re-screened as a precaution, which resulted in the flight being delayed. We sincerely apologise to customers for the impact to their journey.” Kate McCreery-Carr, general operations manager at Sunshine Coast Airport, told media that the airport had followed all security procedures and the man had not been carrying any weapons or dangerous items.

“Airlines manage the checking and monitoring of passengers when boarding their aircraft, and Sunshine Coast Airport is liaising with Jetstar regarding the incident,” she said.

“All passengers and members of the public are required to clear airport security prior to entering the departures hall. Our process includes the screening of passengers, their belongings and explosive trace detection.”

The man was later identified through CCTV footage and is understood to be helping Queensland Police with their enquiries.



Full story sourced from here:
Jetstar probes boarding pass blunder that led to five-and-a-half-hour delay – Australian Aviation

A father traveling with his 13-year-old daughter was wrongly suspected of human trafficking

Francisco De Jesus was flying with his 13-year-old daughter from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport to Charlotte, North Carolina earlier this month on an American Airlines flight. While he was using the plane's restroom, he said flight attendants gave his daughter wings and asked if she was OK, where she was going, and who she was going to meet.

After the flight landed in Charlotte, De Jesus told reporters that airline personnel, including the airport's head of security, met them after they deplaned. He said he was told that flight attendants, who were trained to look for the signs of human trafficking, suggested to security the young girl travelling with him might be in trouble: "At that point, my heart just sank he said."

However, De Jesus said the airport security staff "saw the situation for what it was immediately" after answering a few questions and was allowed on his way.

De Jesus told reporters that he contacted American Airlines for an explanation but didn't receive a response.

"My question that I would like to have answered is "how did they get to label me as a human trafficker? I had my iPad; we were watching a movie. She had her phone. I mean, these are things that I thought a dad and a daughter traveling do," De Jesus said.

An American Airlines representative told the outlet: "Our frontline team members are trained to navigate a variety of safety issues, including recognising the potential signs of human trafficking. 

We strive to create a positive, welcoming environment for everyone who travels with us and apologise for any misunderstanding that may have occurred."

The airline still has not contacted De Jesus for an explanation, or reporters for comment.

Qantas flight turns back mid-air with reported engine failure

QANTAS BOEING 737-838 VH-VZO (MSN 34191)

A Qantas flight travelling from Cairns (CNS/YBCS) to Melbourne (MEL/YMML) was forced into a mid-flight turnback to a Queensland airport after a reported engine failure.
The aircraft was due to depart Cairns at 13.05 (local) but didn't push back until 14.13. 

The aircraft then taxied out for runway 15 and got airborne at 14.18.

15 minutes into the flight the pilots leveled off at 190 and began the first of four 10-minute holding patterns before returning to Cairns, where it landed once again on runway 15, one hour fifteen minutes after departure at 15.33.

Passengers have reported they heard a very loud bang and then the plane shook violently.

The captain came on the intercom and reported the right engine has been shut down and that they will be returning to Cairns.

Two videos have emerged of the landing, taken from the ground and inside the cabin.
In a video taken from the ground, witness Matthew Perrin films and can be heard stating that the plane’s right engine had “shut down”.

“A bit of excitement at Cairns,” he says as the plane can be seen landing in the distance.

In a second video, taken from inside the cabin, there is near silence inside the still moving plane as the person filming points the camera at the window.

The plane jostles as it lands, coming to a standstill as the passengers erupt into applause.

Landing gear detached from Cargolux jumbo during emergency landing

CARGOLUX BOEING 747-8R7F LX-VCF (MSN 35811)

On the 14th of May, a Cargolux Boeing 747-400 freighter operated flight CV6857 between Luxembourg Airport (LUX/ELLX) and Chicago O’Hare United States (ORD/KORD). 

After departing from runway 06 at 18.09 local, the aircraft was unable to retract its landing gear. The pilots climbed to 10,000 feet, then dumped fuel and headed back to Luxembourg. The aircraft landed back on 06 fifty-one minutes later at 19.00. On landing, the right body landing gear got detached from the aircraft. The 747 came to a controlled stop and was attended by emergency services.

Shortly after the incident, Cargolux released a press statement: “Cargolux would like to confirm that one of its aircraft, B747-400F bearing registration mark LX-OCV, suffered a significant landing incident at Luxembourg airport on Sunday evening.

No persons on board nor on the ground suffered any injuries. The relevant authorities have been informed of the incident. The aircraft remained on the runway and recovery efforts got underway immediately.

As the airport was forced to close, several aircraft diverted to nearby airports.

Aircraft Information:

Airline: Cargolux

Code: CV/CLX

Aircraft: Boeing 747-4R7F

Registration: LX-OCV

Serial Number: 29731

Engines: 4 x RR RB211-524H

First Flew: 25th June 1999

Age: 23 Yrs 9 Mts

HARS Aviation Museum - Shell Harbour

 A few weeks ago, when my wife and I visited Sydney for the weekend, we called down to the HARS Aviation Museum.

HARS (Historical Aircraft Restoration Society) is located on Airport Road, at Shellharbour Airport (WOL/YSHL) in Albion Park and is approximately 90 km South of Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport – and takes about one hour and twenty minutes to drive.

On the day we arrived they had a function booked for the afternoon, so instead of having all the aircraft out on display on the tarmac, they were all pushed inside the hanger, making it very hard to get descent photos. The other disappointing thing was, we were not allowed to climb on or in these aircraft.

AERMACCHI MB-326H A7-030 MSN CA30-30)

De HAVILLAND DH-82 A17-394 VH-DHV (MSN AW/TC/1)

                             De HAVILLAND T-35A VAMPIRE VH-FJW (MSN 4159)

CONVAIR VC-131D VH-TAA (MSN 228)

LOCKHEED C-121C SUPER CONSTELLATION VH-EAG (MSN 4176)

BOEING 747-438 VH-OJA (MSN 24354)

COMMONWEALTH CA-25 WINJEEL A85-435 VH-EAD (MSN A85-435) 

AERO VODOCHODY L-39C VH-IOT (MSN 332516) 

CANBERRA T4 A84-502 (MSN WT 492)

LOCKHEED AP-3C ORION VH-ORI (MSN A9-753)

                           LOCKHEED SP-2H NEPTUNE VH-LRR (MSN 726-7183)

CAC CA-27 SABRE MK 30 A94-901 (MSN CA27-1)

LOCKHEED P2V-7 NEPTUNE 

DOUGLAS C - 47B SKYTRAIN N2-90 (MSN 32883)

BOEING A75N1 STEARMAN VH-UFG (MSN 75-5236)

De HAVILLAND DHA-3 DROVER VH-DHM (MSN 5020)

LET L-200A MORAVA VH-EMV (MSN 170411)

FOKKER FV11B 3M VH-USU (REPLICA)
Original is stored in a glass hanger at Brisbane Airport

SCOTTISH AVIATION TWIN PIONEER 3 VH-SYS (MSN 586)

FOKKER F27 FRIENDSHIP VH-TQN (MSN 10385)

DOUGLAS DC 3 VH-EAE (MSN 16348)

BEECH 18 C-45 VH-ATX (MSN BA-704)

SWEARINGEN SA226 T MERLIN N224HR (MSN T-217)

WESTWIND II 1124A N990S (MSN 322)