avion & Newforest

the high wing taildragger behind the Gull VH-CCM is an American post war 4 seat touring aircraft – the Stinson Voyager which I suspect has some parentage from the 2 seat liason aircraft from WW2 the Stinson L5.

regards

Mark Pilkington

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Proctor Mark 1 VH-AUC at the Australian National Aviation Museum at Moorabbin

Other Percivals in Australia include:

D3 Gull Six G-AERD – static display – National Museum of Australia
P44 Proctor Mark 1 VH-FEP – static display – National Museum of Australia
P44 Proctor Mark 1 VH-AUC – static display – (Moorabbin as above)
P44 Proctor Mark 11 VH-AVG – static display – Central Aust Aviation Museum
P44 Proctor Mark 111 VH-BQR – static display – WestAust Heritage Centre
P44 Proctor Mark V VH-BCM – static display – Camden Museum of Aviation
EP9 VH-DAV – static display(fuse) -Lincoln Nitshke Collection

Airworthy/ under restoration
D2 Gull IV VH-UTP Flying Donald Johnston
D3 Gull Six VH-CCM Flying Ken Holdsworth
EP9 VH-DAI Flying Todd Miller
P44 Proctor Mark 1 VH-AHY project Ross Steinhouse
P44 Proctor Mark 1 VH-UXS (formerly VH-DUL) project Maurice Rolfe
Vega Gull II VH-ACA/BQA project Leigh Giles

Mark 11 Proctor VH-SCC and Mark 111 VH-AHR have apparantly left Australia for rebuild overseas

All a fitting tribute to Edgar Percival, an aussie born in Albury.

Regards

Mark Pilkington

Indeed 1913 comes before 1914; and purchase / set up has to come before use. The Pensacola refs I’ve just looked up are very coy about when the first flight from there actually occurred. Both Point Cook and Pensacola were set-up in 1913; of course Pensacola was a USN base already. The other catches are that Point Cook has continuous and military aviation on the base; some other older places had a period closed, others, like Farnborough, aren’t military airfields throughout.

All that said, any airfield pre-W.W.I that’s still going has a lot to be proud of, and is worth fighting for.

Google yields the following references for the history of aviation at Pensacola?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naval_Air_Station_Pensacola

In October 1913, Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels, appointed a board, with Capt. Chambers as chairman, to make a survey of aeronautical needs and to establish a policy to guide future development. One of the board’s most important recommendations was the establishment of an aviation training station in Pensacola.

Upon entry into World War I, Pensacola, still the only naval air station, had 38 naval aviators, 163 enlisted men trained in aviation support, and 54 fixed-wing aircraft. Two years later, by the signing of the armistice in November 1918, the air station, with 438 officers and 5,538 enlisted men, had trained 1,000 naval aviators. At war’s end, seaplanes, dirigibles, and free kite balloons were housed in steel and wooden hangars stretching a mile down the air station beach.

http://www.militarynewcomers.com/PENSACOLA/resources/05history.html

In October 1913, Secretary of the Navy, Josephus Daniels, appointed a board, with Capt. Chambers as chairman, to make a survey of aeronautical needs and to establish a policy to guide future development. One of the board’s most important recommendations was the establishment of an aviation training station in Pensacola.

The recommendation was approved and the first U.S. Naval Air Station was created in 1914 on the site of the abandoned Navy yard.

Commander H.C. Mustin became the first base commander, and all pilots and planes were ordered here for duty. A row of 10 tent hangars was set up along the sandy beach, with wooden ramps running from each tent to the water. Naval aviation consisted of 9 officers, 23 mechanics, and 8 airplanes!

http://nationalaviation.blade6.donet.com/components/content_manager_v02/view_nahf/htdocs/menu_ps.asp?NodeID=68687043&group_ID=1134656385&Parent_ID=-1

Read was born in New Hampshire in 1887 and graduated with high honors from the Naval Academy Class of 1907.

While he served in the fleet, he studied all the information that he could find on aviation. When the Navy opened its first training school at Pensacola, Florida, in 1912, Read was among the first to be selected for training. After he soloed in 1915 he was designated Naval Aviator No. 24. When he served aboard the USS Carolina, the first Navy ship provided with aircraft, Read made numerous catapult take-offs as part of his regular flight operations.

It is not clear when the first flight took place at Pensacola, and apparantly the USN was undertaking catapult, seaplane and carrier flights from 1911 onwards so there may have been flights at Pensacola before the creation of the “Air Station” but it does seem that the decision to create the Air Station occured in October 1913, and the Air Station came into being in 1914 and its first training course “solo’ed” in 1915, so it would seem Point Cook nudges “ahead by a nose” but as JDK say’s all of these pre-WW1 airfields in Australia, UK, Europe and USA are important “world heritage” especially those that retain original built heritage and havent been swallowed by urban sprawl, they all will become the “stonehedges” of the age of aviation for future generations.

EDIT***

I just found this further reference to the first flight at Pensacola occuring on 2 February 1914, apparantly then just pipping Point Cook at the post – smiles

http://72.14.253.104/search?q=cache:2eZUItlxtCgJ:www.history.navy.mil/download/pict-m2.pdf+pensacola+1914+%22first+flight%22&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=2&gl=au

Early aircraft are lined up in front of theircanvas hangars on the flight beach at theNaval Aeronautic Station, Pensacola, in March1914. It was the Navy’s first permanent airstation, established by Lt.Cdr. Henry C. Mustinin January 1914, together with a flying school.The first flight was made from the station onFebruary 2 by Lt. J.H. Towers and Ens. G. deC.Chevalier

Again, both are important pioneer aviation sites.

Regards

Mark Pilkington

Cees,

It’s a tricky one, but it’s spelt Lincoln Nitschke, and you can see his museum here…..

Lincoln Nitschke Collection

He sent me some photo’s of his amazing cockpit reproduction scaled from r/c model plans, then he did indeed stumble across the metalwork from the real thing, so promptly built himself a fuselage for that.

I’m sure our friends downunder (Battle, Stormbird etc….) will elaborate further.

Cheers….

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Lincoln has two Mosquito replica’s in his museum, the first is a cockpit section with an original “Bomber” type split windscreen (most likely from a former RAAF PR XVI) canopy on it, while he has a replica full length fuselage incorporating an original wing “centre-section” and “fighter” type flat windsceen which I believe came from 618 Sqn FBVI remains at Narromine.

He had planned to fut the “FBVI” up on its undercarriage but space in his museum has seen it remain prone on the ground.

Lincoln has “re-created” a number of aircraft displays from very poor remains including an Oxford cockpit, Anson cockpit and Anson Fuselage, battle cockpit along with the two Mossies, an excellent way to use interesting and historic components to bring alive the type for his visitors to enjoy.

regards

Mark Pilkingon

I’m also waiting with interest for Con Nive on the Wix forum to update his recovery efforts! of the Lancaster/Halifax etc found in a lake in Canada?

http://warbirdinformationexchange.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=1229&start=0&postdays=0&postorder=asc&highlight=connivetheworld

regards

Mark Pilkington

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I think it is one of a pair, ie handed, there is a clear a symetrical “step” towards the rear mounting points as seen in picture #3

The keel then continues on in reduced section towards the flaired tail where it is clearly seen to have a assymetrical “stern” seen in picture #5

Implying this is the “right handed” float of a pair? I would vote for either a 1930’s hydroplane, or a unique pair of aircraft floats.

I dont think the plywood/timber construction should be used to rule out aircraft, while most commercial floats had become aluminium by the 1930’s this could be from the late 1920’s or custom made?

Its size and length and streamlining both of hull and of top would seem to suggest it is built for speed.

regards

Mark Pilkington