Temora Aviation Museum

[den]

The trouble with the museum is that without a tripod the photos need a flash, and don't come out very well.

Cessna 02. This plane (and its pilot) has 4000 combat hours as FAC in Viet Nam. It was owned by the USAF but flown by an RAAF pilot, hence the red kangaroo. What you can't quite see is a white sillouhette of Snoopy sitting on the 'roo and holding a rocket.


Canberra Bomber. These bombers only have a 2 man crew: Pilot and navigator/bom aimer. Starting this plane on showdays is a big crowd pleaser. It uses a one-shot gas generator to spin the engines up to 2000rpm in under a second. There is much black smoke and the crowd cheers.


One of the Cessna Dragonflies.


The sharp end of the Dragonfly.


The gun mounted in the Dragonfly coud fire up to 6000 rounds per minute.


Gloster Meteor. These were the RAAF's first jet fighters after WW2. This meteor saw service in Korea, and is the last flyable single-seater (ie not a trainer).


Ex-RAAF Vampire. Vampires replaced the Gloster Meteor as the RAAF fighter


Mk8 Spitfire. This plane was crated and ready for shipment when WW2 ended. It was sold to a civillian for 50 pounds and used as a private plane for many years. There is no sound like a V12 Merlin in a Spitfire. The name of the plane ("Grey Nurse") is painted over the fuel tank. This is why you see cockpit fires in The Battle Of Britain and other movies. Mustangs had their fuel tanks behind the cockpit.


A Saber being rebuilt to flying condition. The museum is taking its time to do this because they don't have a runway they can land the plane on. It could take off at Temora, but it can't land. The new 2km long runway is under construction.


The other dragonfly undergoing maintenance.

Comments

[jamesb]

Where I went to High School in the late 60's, we had an ex-RAAF Vampire sitting in a storage area under the science labs. The engine was sitting beside it on a cradle, and a building support column passed through the area between the tail booms, but to my untrained eye it looked relatively complete. I was amazed to see just how much of the aircraft was built out of plywood.

[kelloggs2066.livejournal.com]

Neat!

I didn't realize the RAAF Roundel had a Red Roo in it. :)
I think that's the first time I've seen the RAAF's insignia, now that I think of it.

Neat!

[jamesb]

The RNZAF (Royal New Zealand Air Force) has a Kiwi on their roundel.

[zibblsnrt.livejournal.com]

Canada's just has a maple leaf:



We Commonwealth folk need to be more creative..

[http://users.livejournal.com/killjoy_/]

You'd be amazed what you can do in terms of rigidity with cleverly built wood structures. Look at the old Mosquito.

Nevermind the fact that it must've been an unholy pain in the ass to fix any holes...