Mystery RAAF PBY

Another Australian Catalina relic worth mentioning (albeit, far from complete) is the cockpit owned by Darryl Gibbs now on display at Australia’s Museum of Flight (http://www.museum-of-flight).

This is thought to be from one of the forty-six PBY-5A’s operated by the RAAF during World War Two. At least twenty-nine of these – including this example – were later modified from amphibian to flying boat standard (by permanently removing the undercarriage) which reduced the aircraft’s operating weight by 1,500 kgs.

This cockpit was being used as a shepherd’s hut when recovered from a farm near Coleambally in New south Wales.

The only remaining identification mark is that show below (SHIP 1730) which, assuming it is a constructor’s number, does in fact correlate with a USAAF PBY serial number (which I don’t have readily to hand). Unfortunately for us, the latter is also know to have spent its entire service career in the Mediterranean Theatre of Operations!