Leaving Point Cook airbase conducting a low visibility cross-country flight at 11.05 am on 12 April 1942 an A25 Airspeed Oxford crashed 5 kilometres from Beech Forest. The pilot, Sergeant T.W. Penn, and two pupils, LAC R.E. Johnston and LAC J.R. Black, were killed. The airframe and engine were extensively damaged.Two pieces of crumbled aluminium metal and one piece of solid black rubber recovered from an Airspeed Oxford aeroplane.beech forest; plane crash; airspeed oxford; world war 2;

Basil George Watson was an aviation pioneer born in Bendigo 12/10/1893. The family moved to Melbourne when he was a child. In 1914 he went to England to work as an engineer for the Sopwith Aviation Company. He also took flying lessons and received his licence in 1915. He now worked as a test pilot for Sopwith but when a crash rendered him unfit for military duty, he returned to Australia in late 1915. He designed and constructed his own biplane in the back yard of his Elsternwick home. At the end of 1916 he tested his plane by flying from Point Cook to Bendigo and then to Melbourne. This included an aviation display in Bendigo. He followed this by flying to Warnambool 25/1/1916. He then set up an experimental airmail flight from Melbourne to Mount Gambier. On 28th March 1917, Watson was demonstrating aerobatics for the entertainment of AIF servicemen at Point Cook, when his plane collapsed and fell into the ocean close to shore. Unfortunately, Watson was tangled in the plane's wires and died. On hearing of his death, the bells of St Pauls in Bendigo and the Bendigo fire bell tolled.A paper detailing the life of Bendigo pilot Basil Watson, one of the first Australian pilots. 4 pages.aviation, basil watson, sopwith

photoww1, world war 1, aif, a.i.f, crash, wrecked, aeroplane, plane

Retrieved from crashed (during W.W.2) Avro Anson aircraft at Propeller Bay near Lady Julia Percy Island in 13 metres of water. Found adjacent to the remains of the engine and propeller in June 1993 by Peter Ronald. It was possibly used to adjust control cables. The plane went down on the 15th February 1944 Flight Sgt. J.H. MacLellen, Flight Sgt D.l. Baulderstone, LAC N.T. Kruck, LAC B.C. Ladyman were killed. A memorial was erected at the 'Crags' on the 14th of February 2015 . " At 0800 Anson AW878 of 2AOS took off from Mount Gambier to carry out a radius of action navigation exercise to Lady Julia Percy Island (located off the Victorian coast, midway between Portland and Warrnambool) and back to Mount Gambier. By 1230 it was overdue, and that afternoon a search was instituted. No radio messages had been received from the Anson, although it had been seen during the exercise by another aircaraft. At 1430 part of the mainplane was sighted on Lady Julia Percy Island. Subsequently a fishing boat searched in the vicinity of the island and passed through small pieces of wreckage strewn over about 3 miles. A further search uncovered wreckage which identified the plane beyond doubt, including fuel tank bay cover with AW878 penciled on it, and a Mae West which had been signed out by one of the crew. The bodies of the four crew were never located." This information comes from a report at Mt Gambier Airport where the plane was stationed.Two small pieces of metal that bring the reality of war to our shoresArtefact from crashed aircraft at Lady Julia Percy islandlocal history, transport, aviation, aircraft, lady julia percy island, j.h. maclellen, d.l. baulderstone, n.t. kruck, b.c. ladyman

This telegram was sent from the Royal Netherlands Airways, Sydney, to the manager of ABC Radio Station 2CO, Corowa, New South Wales. This telegram relates to the 1934 London to Melbourne Air Race. The telegram records the Royal Netherlands Airways' thanks to ABC Radio 2CO radio staff for their efforts in broadcasting an emergency message to the residents of Albury after the Dutch airliner ‘Uiver’ became lost at night in bad weather. As requested local radio listeners drove their cars to the Albury racecourse and illuminated an emergency landing ground using their vehicle headlights. This allowed the lost airliner to land safely.This item relates to the London to Melbourne Air Race of 1934, a significant event that shaped Australia's history as it proved travelling to and from Australia could be done within a reasonable time by air, thereby making the country less isolated. Up to that time Australia was three weeks away from Europe by steam ship. The Air Race was dreamt up by the Lord Mayor of Melbourne, Harold Smith, to commemorate the centenary of Victoria's statehood and was sponsored by the Melbourne chocolate manufacturer Sir MacPherson Robertson. The Royal Netherlands Airways entered a Douglas DC2 plane 'Uiver' - the largest aircraft in the race, and the only one to carry passengers as well as crew, to show that a commercial passenger service to Australia was possible. But in the last leg of the race, the Uiver lost its way in an electrical storm over the Riverina town of Albury. Several communication methods were used to land the plane safely, including the signalling of the word "Albury" in Morse code using the town's street lights. Local ABC Radio station 2CO also made a call for locals to light up a makeshift landing strip for the plane at the town's racecourse. The plane landed safely and the next morning with the help of the townspeople who pulled it out of the mud, took off and finished the race in second place. The story of the Uiver points to the importance of communication in its various forms: two-way and broadcast radio, Morse, and light signals. The survival of the Uiver is a reflection of the ingenuity of Australian communications and the solutions that can be found through the sharing of ideas of information. The landing of the Uiver was an important moment in Albury's social history, as residents participated in the rescue of the plane and its passengers, helping the Uiver to continue on its journey and finish second in the Race. When the Uiver crashed in the Syrian Desert in December 1934, Albury residents contributed to a memorial which honoured those who were killed. Beige paper telegram printed with black ink and overwritten with typewriter. Telegram split into sections designating details of the telegram, details of the recipient and a space for the transmitted message. A small section of paper is missing from bottom left corner."Extend to you my warmest appreciation for your most valuable / assistance rendered to Netherlands machine by continuously keeping your / wireless organisation available during a period of extremely difficult / air navigation stop I assure you that in Holland and in Java your action / is most deeply appreciated Bakker chief representative in Australia for / Royal Netherlands airways. / 6 18pm"telegrams, telegraphic messages, communications, radio, uiver, royal netherlands airways, albury, london to melbourne air race, morse code

Index, ill, p.372.non-fictionIn 1931, at the age of 21, Douglas Bader was the golden boy of the RAF. Excelling in everything he did he represented the Royal Air Force in aerobatics displays, played rugby for Harlequins, and was tipped to be the next England fly half. But one afternoon in December all his ambitions came to an abrupt end when he crashed his plane doing a particularly difficult and illegal aerobatic trick. His injuries were so bad that surgeons were forced to amputate both his legs to save his life. Douglas Bader did not fly again until the outbreak of the Second World War, where his undoubted skill in the air was enough to convince a desperate air force to give him his own squadron. The rest of his story is the stuff of legend. Flying Hurricanes in the Battle of Britain he led his squadron to kill after kill, keeping them all going with his unstoppable banter. Shot down in occupied France, his German captors had to confiscate his tin legs in order to stop him trying to escape. Bader faced it all, disability, leadership and capture, with the same charm, charisma and determination that was an inspiration to all around him. world war 1939 - aerial operations - britain, douglas bader - biography

"On 5 July 1936, locals in Melton South saw a plane emerge from behind clouds above the railway station, in heavy wind and rain. Engine roaring, the plane went into a spin and disintegrated into pieces in mid-air, before crashing to the ground near Arnold’s Creek. The pilot, young Australian aviator Jimmy Melrose, and a passenger, Alexander Campbell, were killed.Jimmy Melrose was a popular figure in international aviation, having been the youngest and only solo pilot to finish the London to Melbourne Centenary Air Race in 1934. His death, at the age of just twenty-two, caused an outpouring of sorrow. He was honoured with a state funeral two days later at St Paul’s Cathedral in Melbourne, which was attended by thousands of people. Locals Maisie Arthur, Ted Wickham and Bill Cahill gave eyewitness accounts of the accident to the authorities, and an inquest found that it was the result of structural failure and poor weather. A cairn erected by locals near the scene was reconstructed by the Melton and District Historical Society in Brookfield, opposite the Melrose Memorial Reserve, on the 40th anniversary of the crash in 1976".Regional Gazette article of a cairn erected by locals near the scene of the plane accident which involved Jimmy Melrose, and passenger, Alexander Campbelllocal significant events, landscapes of significance

A Control Joy Stick presented to Pilot Officer Eric V. Read in 1937 after it was recovered from an aircraft he was flying had crashed in the Brisbane Ranges in December 1936. Eric Read was a 21 year old RAAF pilot who was on a flight over the Bacchus Marsh region to make meteorological observations. Read's plane came down in bad weather and crashed into a heavily wooded area of the Brisbane Ranges between Staughton Vale and Mount Wallace. An extensive air and ground search was conducted and after 32 hours Read was located, alive, but badly injured and unable to get out of the cockpit of the plane. He was first located from the air and then a rescue party was able to reach him through rough country and bring him to safety. Read recovered from his injuries and many years later gifted the control stick of the aircraft he had been flying as an item for the collection of the Bacchus Marsh and District Historical Society.This item is of local historical significance as an object related to a notable aircraft accident and subsequent rescue of the pilot. It is also significant for its rarity as a surviving piece of aviation equipment from this era.Control or Joy stick mounted on a wooden base.aircraft, aircraft accidents, eric v. read

Index, ill, p.372.non-fictionIn 1931, at the age of 21, Douglas Bader was the golden boy of the RAF. Excelling in everything he did he represented the Royal Air Force in aerobatics displays, played rugby for Harlequins, and was tipped to be the next England fly half. But one afternoon in December all his ambitions came to an abrupt end when he crashed his plane doing a particularly difficult and illegal aerobatic trick. His injuries were so bad that surgeons were forced to amputate both his legs to save his life. Douglas Bader did not fly again until the outbreak of the Second World War, where his undoubted skill in the air was enough to convince a desperate air force to give him his own squadron. The rest of his story is the stuff of legend. Flying Hurricanes in the Battle of Britain he led his squadron to kill after kill, keeping them all going with his unstoppable banter. Shot down in occupied France, his German captors had to confiscate his tin legs in order to stop him trying to escape. Bader faced it all, disability, leadership and capture, with the same charm, charisma and determination that was an inspiration to all around him. world war 1939 - aerial operations - britain, douglas bader - biography

This is a paper back book with a plastic-laminated cover. There are 61 pages with diagrams, photographs, illustrations, advertisements, posters and newspaper cuttings. The cover is mainly grey and white in colour with printed material in a red insert and two photographs superimposed over the background.This book gives details on the life and work of Basil Watson (1893-1917), a pioneer aviator in Australiabasil watson, warrnambool and aviation pioneer, australian aviators

This booklet relates the life of Basil Watson. It tells in detail his early life, background, his home built aeroplane, his display flights and his tragic death and the story since. This year marks 100 years since one of Australia’s pioneering aviators, Basil Watson arrived in Warrnambool and delivered the first airmail to the town. Basil Watson was born in Bendigo in 1894. His interest in aviation which began at a young age, took him to England at the commencement of WW1 where he worked at Brookland in aviation workshops and as a test pilot. Despite crashing and suffering injuries he was not deterred. He returned to Australia and by 1916 Basil had built his own plane. He soon took to the air performing tricks and barnstorming to the delight of onlookers. His connection to Warrnambool lies with his delivery of the first airmail to the town, an event which was filled with much excitement. Basil Watson, pioneer aviator landed his 50hp home built aeroplane on the racecourse on Saturday January 27th 1917, after a flight from Point Cook. The trip of 166 miles took just under two hours, and set a record non-stop cross country flight for Australia. Watson was heartily welcomed by the Mayor, to whom he delivered three letters, the first aerial post to Warrnambool. One of the letters, from the Mayor of Melbourne Sir David Hennessy to the Mayor of Warrnambool is now in the W&DHS collection: I have much pleasure in sending you greetings by aeroplane piloted by my friend, Mr Basil Watson. I hope when the cruel war is over and victory crowns our efforts, we, over the Commonwealth, will be able to fly from one State to the other. With best wishes for the New Year. Yours truly, DV Hennessy. Basil Watson was unfortunately killed two months after his historic visit to Warrnambool. While participating in an air show at Point Cook, the plane he way flying that day crashed into the sea. This booklet tells the story of an interesting part of Warrnambool and Australia's aviation history. It has special significance as it enlightens two significant items in our local collection, namely the letter which he delivered and the seat from his aircraft.A small 29 page booklet with blue and white photograph of Basil Watson in his aeroplane. It contains a number of black and white and some colour photographs. Introduction from the author, "This small booklet recognises the short career of Basil Watson. He came to my attention when researching the French aviator Maurice Guillaux who carried the first official air mail in Australia, Melbourne to Sydney in two and a half days 16/18 July 1914..... Tom Lockley 1 June 2017. Handwritten inside front cover,"These items may be of interest to add to your material about Basil Watson. Its a pity that the 100 year anniversary of his flight was not more widely recognised but thank you for mounting some of his records. Tom Hockley."warrnambool, basil watson, first airmail flight, aviation career of basil watson