The two 1916 Boeing & Westervelt floatplanes Mallard and Bluebill are stored in the army tunnels at North Head

There’s certainly been plenty of stories and myths about aircraft and other relics being lost and forgotten in tunnels below the Devonport fortifications (which I visited, drooling uncontrollably over a hydro-pneumatic disappearing gun emplacement in superb condition). Perhaps there’s substance enough to justify Martin Butler’s research and archaeological investigations. Check out his intriguing Tunnel Vision website (for some great pics of the Boeings if nothing else).

Doug’s Doug; General MacArthur is allocated ex KLM DC-3 PK-ALW in 1943 for personal transport. RAAF personnel christen her ‘Shiny Shiela’ and paint rude artwork on the starboard nose to avoid offending dignitaries boarding port rear.

[sorry; late with link to #42]

The Italian Job [1969]

Douglas C-74 Globemaster HP-379

some antics [Antipodean semantics]

Down ‘ere, warbirds are made of wood and sound like angry lawn mowers. The wings come off and blokes cart them around in their cars.

Someone turned up at the field with a 1:3 Fokker DVII one day.

“That’s a nice warbird” I observed.

“That’s no warbird” was the reply. “It’s First World War you silly #@&%”.

I’ve always referred to them as………

KITES

That’s the way.

Thanks Flytst. Very interesting stuff. Some observations:

Disposable catapult strops – that’s them falling into the sea after launch. The sea floor must be littered with them in training areas.

The Sea Vixen touch-and-goes make the carrier look like a shoe box. I’ve sat in a Sea Vixen. There’s no room to pass wind. No idea how full-sized blokes could fly them with such precision. Both jets land like bricks and there’s no margin for error. No wonder both aircraft suffered such high attrition rates due to accidents . . . although I have read that many Sea Vixens were lost due to fuel management issues. And ultimate respect to the observers who served in the Sea Vixen’s coal hole. What a way to earn a crust.

I will nominate 5 filums that have not yet rated a mention but have left an indelible mark on my psyche:

The Flying Irishman [1939] – starring Douglas ‘Wrong Way’ Corrigan himself and his 1929 Curtiss Robin OX-5 monoplane – the account of an early solo flight across the Atlantic – an historic document

Malta Story [1953] – poignant tale of PR Spit flights at the height of the siege with Alec Guinness – this film continues to exert a profound effect on me – I’ve visited the operations room deep inside Lascaris Bastion, where many of Jack Hawkins’ scenes were filmed, and the cliff top where Maria [Muriel Pavlow] gazes out to sea at the end of the movie – I still mist up at the mention of this film

The Bridges at Toko-Ri [1954] – thoughtful James Michener tale about F9F Panther pilot and effect of battle fatigue – stellar cast with William Holden and Grace Kelly – won the Special Effects Oscar for impressive bombing scenes

The McConnell Story [1955] – how can you go wrong with Alan Ladd and June Allyson [she produced the best tears in 50s Hollywood] mixing it with all those 40s and 50s jets?

Fail-Safe [1964] – those Vindicator bombers [B-58s] scared the trouser off me as a child of MAD [mutually assured destruction].

Dare I say it? They just don’t make filums like this any more.

DH84 Dragon

My dad took me on a flight around Blackpool Tower from St Annes when I was 6ish.

I remember a grass field – no tarmac. I distinctly recall other aircraft types parked on the grass – Chipmunks and Tiger Moths – because I got to sit in one of each.

My nostrils still flare at the thought of these machines.

My old man worked in the industry – first for Vickers and then for Rolls. I remember him telling me much later that when he was a teenager during the war, he sneaked aboard a B-17 at St Annes and souvenired a live round.

Another memory percolates – of driving to Blackpool and seeing aircraft being transported behind large lorries – probably near Preston – the shapes of Canberras and Lightnings come to mind. I’ve always known these aircraft as English Electric whatevers . . . so this must have been around 1960.