.
There is a technical report on the CA-31 available on CD on ebay from one of the many “manual” venders, the original is in the archives at the Australian National Aviation Museum, there are also simple 3-d drawings of the CA-31 in the book on the history of CAC – “From Wirraways to Hornets”

regards

Mark Pilkington

Hi Laurence / Lincoln7,
The pic I posted is in the book Lincoln at War by Mike Garbett & Brian Goulding, it appears on page 91 and is credited to Peterborough Citizen & Advertiser; M.J.Cawsey, hope this helps.

The low-flying (as in very low!) on one engine is on page 5, and looks very impressive, more so than the Lincoln that appeared at Farnborough flying only on its nose mounted Tyne engine!

Its a great book, but for those not restoring a Lincoln or particularly interested in the Avri heavy bombers this book is worth it JUST for the double page spread that greats you on the title page, my scanner cant do it justice!

Peter, yes you are right, Bill Youd’s 4-3-2-1 engine flying routine is described on page 35, shallow dive on approach with 4 engines, at 250 kts feather the two outboard props in the dive, then feather 1 over the boundary, level off at 220 kts fly past with 1 and speed dropping away to 150 kts at the far end of the runway then unfeather 3 to fly away! childs play smiles

This aircraft in the head on 1 engine beatup is listed in the photo caption as RF346 flown by New Zealander Flt Lt Alan Gibson DFM at TFU Defford in September 1949.

Interestingly that serial is only 4 aircraft down ( or up)? the production line from RF342 that also flew for a while at TFU Defford before a civilian life with Napier, a temporary retirement at Southend before leaving a very long debris trail around England as a disassembled pile of Lancaster spares before traling to us down under.

regards

Mark Pilkington

Hi – My Dad was the pilot of the Lincoln SX924 that crashed in Watson Lake. I recently found his notes in his flight log. I know very little about it. Can you tell me more?

Thanks,

Debra

Hello Debra,

I received your email via the museum and will reply later this week as I have quite an amount of information of the crash including photographs and the crash report.

Regards

Mark Pilkington

Ross,

Other than the last few of a breed, or “Wright Flyer” examples of aircraft of significant events, the best place for aircraft are in the air, and so if KSK keeps flying all the better to tell its story

But in answer to your original post of “When is an Auster Not just not an Auster” I think the thread has shown that with KSK, and I have enjoyed discovering its apparant significance, and glad to have assisted you in discovering more about it too.

The important thing is for that significance to be recorded and ideally presented with the aircraft where ever it goes, history is lost if its not shared, and otherwise it becomes “just another Auster”.

Hopefully you will acquire photos of it in PNG service and more details of its exploits.

There is probably an AHSA Member who is the walking / talking expert on PNG post war operations or Gibbes Sepik Airways specifically, and I would suggest you contact your local state branch and see what records exist?

regards

Mark Pilkington

Ross

.
The aircrafts service with Sepik is certainly worth researching, and I am reasonably confident that it is the sole surviving aircraft from their fleet.

I do recall the last Norseman in Australia was sold to Canada, 3 of Gibbes aircraft returned to Australia and were used by Col Pay for spraying, the last survivor was exported to Canada where it crashed in 1978?

You might wish to buy copies of the following books to see if the aircraft is specifically mentioned and if photos are included?

There is his autobiography “You live but once”

http://www.biblioz.com/lp25763859667.html

R.H. GIBBES. Sydney. 1994. First Edition, signed by the Author;. pages xii, 474, index, appendices A to E inclusive Profusely illustrated with b/w photographs of Bobby Gibbes wartime experiences as fighter pilot and 3 Squadron RAAF operational flying in the Western Desert (North Africa) and also photographs of aircraft and staff of Gibbes Sepik Airways, Papua New Guinea. pictorial hardcover gilt lettering on front cover and spine; mint condition new. Very scarce out-of-print. Bobby Gibbes is one of Australia’s most famous airforce fighter aces in World War 2. He subsequently went to New Guinea and founded a bush airline Gibbes Sepik Airways which flew a variety of passenger and cargo aircraft – the Auster, Norseman, Lockheed Lodestar, Junkers (one the former German Field Marshall Kesselring’s personal aircraft) – later re-engined with Wirraway engines. Gibbes established Tremearne coffee plantation in the Wahgi Valley in Central Highlands of New Guinea.

As well as a book just on his career in Sepik by James Sinclair.

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Sepik-Pilot-Sinclair-James-Patrick-/140420190703

Book Details and Description

Sinclair James Patrick

Sepik Pilot: Wing Commander Bobby Gibbes – D.S.O. – D.F.C.

Description: 189 pages. Ex-Aviation Library. Book and Jacket appear to have hardly been read and are both in Fine condition throughout. Gibbes The Sepik Pilot Started With One Tiny Auster Monoplane And Built Up A Remarkable Airline -Gibbes Sepik Airways – The Very Lifeline Of The Most Remote Of The Outstations Of New Guinea.

VH-KSK isn’t the Auster referred to as being used to start the airline, Gibbes started Sepik in December 1947 at Wewak, it later was taken over by Mandated Airlines in 1958.

Where as VH-KSK was first registered in May 1948, there are some interesting details in a CASA newsletter of 1998 below.

http://www.casa.gov.au/wcmswr/_assets/main/fsa/1998/mar/37-45.pdf

50 years ago
December 1947: Bobby and Jean Gibbes
bought their first Auster J5 VH-KSD to
transport supplies to their trade stores in
Papua New Guinea. By January 1948, Gibbes
Sepik Airlines was established. A total of ten
Austers serviced the demand for charters;
these were replaced by Norsemen to increase
cargo capacity. The airline was sold in
November 1958 to Mandated Airlines,
following an accident near Mendi which
resulted in the first death on a Gibbes Sepik
flight

VH-KSD was a J5 owned by Sepik and crashed in 1948 at Tadji.

VH-KST was a J5 also owned by Sepik that crashed in PNG in 1950, as was VH-KSS, I dont know how many other Austers from the fleet other than VH-KSK survive?

The number of aircraft in Sepik’s fleet, and pilots employed, may mean that its logbook does not show any / many flights by Gibbes himself?, so I am not sure there is a personal link of great significance, (as mentioned in the previous post his Cri Cri would be the most significant personal aircraft as he built it and flew it privately.)

However the fact that Sepik was apparantly started in 1947 using an Auster, had 10 Auster’s in the fleet, and KSK is apparantly the last surviving aircraft from the fleet, would seem to make KSK quite a significant aircraft to PNG post war aviation history. Again the proposed National Museum of PNG would be an obvious interested party to eventually acquire it and display it?.

In fact it would be interesting to see what other PNG transport aircraft still survive let alone are still flying, there is the wrecks of the Ford Trimotor and a Junkers W34 in PNG from pre-war days, those are apparantly recovered and stored for the National Museum in Port Morseby? the wreck of one of Gibbes Ju-52’s survived for many years intact but has now apparantly been burnt and scrapped?

KSK “might” have the status of the oldest complete surviving commercial PNG aircraft?, and perhaps the second oldest complete surviving PNG civil aircraft?

I.e. as in one that was based and operated there rather than a transient visitor, where as the DH60 gipsy moth at Moorabbin did two flights to PNG pre war, as did one of the surviving Westland Widgeons.

I think the oldest surviving aircraft to have been based in PNG would be Roy Fox’s Klemm Swallow that was used for missionary work pre war.

The Ed Coates collection has this picture of KSK when it was restored at Point Cook in 1988.

regards

Mark Pilkington

.

This is a topic of interest having got close to acquiring austers in the past, as well as contemplating a cub or cuby kit, so I guess I can reflect my own thought processes?

I think the price of Piper Cubs versus Austers in Australia simply reflects supply and demand.

Last time I looked at Bill Baker’s Auster book I think there was something like 50+ Austers on the Australian register and another 20+ projects, where as pre-war @2-3 j-2’s were imported to Australia and the current numbers of Cubs in Australia today is probably still under 20? with most being recent imported j-3s.

If you decide to buy an Auster / Cub the quantity and prices of those on the market will drive how much you spend, cubs are typically more expensive than austers so most buyers will buy a cheap auster.

There are few if any cub projects in Australia but still a number of auster projects so that tends to also hold down the price of flying austers, as it is seen as a low cost entry (is it really? smiles) into an auster or antique aircraft.

The cost to buy a flying cub (or project) in the USA and ship it out, pushes the local cub price up, (ie its a floor price to local sales) and even encourages the kits of Cuby’s being built locally.

ie

supply of austers large – probably meeting/exceeding demand – price is low
supply of cubs low, – probably below demand – price is high

I dont think it comes down to attractiveness of cubs over austers.

The 4 place austers dont really compete with cubs as much as with other 4 seat types, and the cirrus engines probably cause a bit of a devaluation against the easier to maintain C-65 / A-65 engines in the cubs, but even the Gipsy major may be more expensive to support than the cub’s american flat fours?

There does seem to be more interest in the Cub as an L-4 in the “warbug” market over the auster in the form of the Mk V or AOP6 , unless you focus on the wartime mark III, but that is a very small consideration in the Australian market in my opinion.

regards

Mark Pilkington

.
As I understand it from the posts above, it seems the Indian press is reporting that a police investigation into claims or disputes over ownership and export of the Me-109 is still ongoing, I dont see that as being speculation?

I note the current custodian of the airframe has released a statement concerned over the ongoing interest (speculation) in this situation with insistance paperwork proving ownership is in existance.

Obviously the existance of an ongoing police investigation doesnt prove a wrong doing, just that they have received a compliant of such which may need further investigation to resolve the existance of a crime, and even charging someone of a wrong doing doesnt prove guilt, that is the role of a court to decide.

This thread is simply following this issue, not unlike the P-82 dispute between the CAF and NMUSAF on Wix, it is reasonable to report activity, I dont think there is any need for the debate to distill into sides for or against? or to insult those questioning the situation?

I do agree the Me-109 is better off being restored than left endlessly rotting away in the backyard of an Indian College, but equally, I dont think “the end justifies the means” to change that situation, if it has indeed been removed illegally.

Such an argument could then be used to justify taking the assets of any museum/collection/private owner, who wasnt restoring an aircraft quick enough or to a flying outcome, at the whim of the gallery?

And in anycase without the retention by that College this airframe would be long gone to the scrappers as others have pointed out.

I dont think it is reasonable to expect this forum or participants to be gagged in commenting on an issue in the public domain as reported in the Indian press.

Of course it is reasonable for the current custodians of the aircraft to be considered innocent until proven guilty, and I appreciate their decision to provide some counter arguments to the quotes from the Indian press, and to confirm their view of the situation.

In the end I am sure if the compliant is being taken seriously in India the documents referred to will be investigated and lead to a decision in the case in terms of it proceeding to court or being closed.

regards

Mark Pilkington