Wings Over Illawarra 2017: Historical Aircraft Restoration Society Showcase

The Saturday flying displays on May 6th, 2017 provided plenty of action during Wings Over Illawarra 2017 at Illawarra Regional Airport in NSW and the former RAAF de Havilland Canada DHC-4 Caribou (No. 38 Squadron – A4-210) Short Take-Off and Landing (STOL) transport and Lockheed P2V-7 Neptune (No. 10 Sqn – A89-273) maritime patrol aircraft of the Historical Aircraft Restoration Society (HARS) were a big part of the opening to the show. Given the airport is the home of HARS there was also plenty to see in and around their museum hangars.

Havilland Canada DHC-4 Caribou (No. 38 Squadron – A4-210) warming up to take the Army Red Berets parachute team up to open Wings Over Illawarra 2017

Warming the engines of the HARS P2V-7 Neptune

The Neptune is ready to go

The Australian Army Red Berets open Wings Over Illawarra 2017 leaping from the Caribou

Australian Army Red Berets

HARS Museum during Wings Over Illawarra 2017 at Illawarra Regional Airport, NSW

DHC-4 Caribou

The DHC-4 Caribou was a legendary aircraft with its incredible Short Take-Off and Landing (STOL) capability that served the RAAF admirably for 45 years from 1964 to 2009 with No. 35 and 38 Squadrons, including almost 8 years of valuable service during the Vietnam War where they had the call sign “Wallaby” and were known as “Wallaby Airlines” carrying cargo and over 600,000 passengers! Of the 29 operated by the RAAF, 14 were still in use in 1992. 3 were lost in Vietnam, 2 to accidents in 1964 and 1967, and 1 to enemy mortar fire in 1970. A further 3 were lost in accidents in Papua New Guinea in 1965, 1968 and 1972, with another aircraft damaged in a heavy landing there in 2008 and believed scrapped. HARS have two examples A4-210 (flying) and A4-234 with the intention to fly both as the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Flight.

HARS Havilland Canada DHC-4 Caribou

“Wallaby Airlines”

After 45 years of RAAF service, the HARS Caribou is today part of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Flight

The long wing design provides excellent short field lift

Touchdown

The Caribou has a legendary Short Take-Off & Landing (STOL) capability

HARS DHC-4 Caribou A4-234

P2V-7 Neptune

The RAAF had a long and successful career operating the Lockheed Neptune. 12 P2V-5’s (later redesignated P-2E) were operated by No. 11 Squadron from 1951 to 1968 until replaced by the Lockheed P-3B Orion (1 P2V-5 was lost with all its crew in a tragic fire and resulting crash in 1959 near Richmond, NSW). 12 P2V-7’s (later redesignated SP-2H) were operated by No. 10 Squadron from 1962 to 1977 until replaced by the Lockheed P-3C Orion. The designers at Lockheed had a great run and the Neptune is a beautiful looking aircraft!

A beautiful machine – Lockheed P2V-7 Neptune at Wings Over Illawarra 2017

The Neptune is a joy to watch fly

Lockheed P2V-7 Neptune at Wings Over Illawarra 2017

Lockheed P2V-7 Neptune port and starboard profiles

Landing with that great backdrop!

It was exciting to not only see a big Neptune fly during the show but to also see the restoration of two more at HARS including a former French Navy P2V-7 example recovered from Tahiti (147556 operated from 1959 by French Marine Escadrille 12, it was flown to Tahiti in 1983 for storage at Papeete International Airport. It was acquired by HARS, restored to flightworthy status and flown to Australia in 1989) and another former RAAF P2V-7 (A89-281, they also have another static example, A89-272 that is going to be on display in Parkes, NSW). The French Neptune has not been flown since 2003 but HARS are working on restoring it back to flight in the near future.

HARS French Navy P2V-7 recovered from Tahiti in 1989 (147556)

HARS P2V-7 Neptune A89-281

HARS Museum

To be honest I wish I had spent more time at HARS as I didn’t really get to look in the second hangar and missed seeing aircraft in the back of it! Unfortunately the grand old airline dame of the HARS collection, the Lockheed C-121C Super Constellation “Connie” was not present as part of the show display (that I saw at least and it would have been hard to miss this big bird!).

HARS CAC CA-27 Sabre A94-901 – the first production Sabre – It is displayed in No. 76 Squadron RAAF Black Panthers Aerobatic Team livery from 1961 to 1965

HARS CAC CA-27 Sabre A94-901 post show in a twilight glow

HARS Dassault (GAMD) Mirage IIIO (A3-42) in No. 77 Squadron markings

HARS Douglas DC4 (C-54 Skymaster) & Ansett Piaggio P-166 Portofino, RAF Hawker Hunter FR-74S multi-role fighter and RAAF English Electric Canberra T.4 bomber trainer (ex RAF WT492, transferred to the RAAF in mid-1956 as A84-502)

Douglas DC-3 / C-47 HARS Museum – Wings Over Illawarra 2017

HARS de Havilland DH-115 Vampire T.35 trainers in RAAF Telstars Aerobatic Team livery (1966/67)

HARS CAC Wirraway trainer restoration project

HARS Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation CA-28 Ceres agricultural aircraft – a 1950’s/60’s development from CAC Wirraway airframes

Messerschmitt Bf 108 under rebuild at HARS – actually a French-built NORD 1002 Pingouin II, it was operated by the French Navy until 1960 and later bought and shipped to Canada by Luftwaffe Fighter Ace Franz Stigler (28 Victories) – he owned it for 16 years and had it painted in his Bf 109 JG27 livery and markings from World War Two. Stigler was famous for not shooting down a badly damaged USAAF B-17 bomber “Ye Olde Pub” in 1943. He guided it back to the sea and towards the safety of England instead!

HARS Fokker FVIIB “Southern Cross” replica restoration

HARS RAAF Boeing 707 and Qantas Boeing 747-438 (VH-OJA) “City of Canberra”

HARS De Havilland DHA-3 Drover and a T-6 Texan/Harvard in Luftwaffe markings

HARS TAA Convair VC-131D “John Forrest” & General Dynamics F-111C (A8-109)

HARS Consolidated PBY-6A Catalina under maintenance

A recently retired Lockheed AP-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft temporarily being stored by the RAAF at HARS (minus sensitive equipment).

I look forward to the day somewhere down the track where we will be able to see maybe a Neptune aircraft flying alongside the HARS Consolidated PBY-6A Catalina amphibian again. RAAF maritime patrol history will come to life in a spectacular way when that happens!