ANZAC Weekend Airshow 2024

Held at West Sale Aerodrome, Gippsland, Victoria (about two hours 45 minutes from Melbourne by car) this regional airshow has been held before and saw improvements in spectator access.  Run by the Wellington Shire council and Pace Events, the running of the airside components was a Paul Bennet Airshows event. We looked forward to seeing

AROUND AUSTRALIA IN 44 DAYS

Former acting Chief of the Air Staff, Wing Commander SJ (‘Jimmy’) Goble, and pilot, Flying Officer Ivor McIntyre, spent 44 days in 1924, following Australia’s coastline in an anti-clockwise direction in their single-engine Royal Australian Air Force Fairey III D seaplane serialled A10-3, after launching from Point Cook (Victoria).  The airmen managed to complete 93

Fleet Unit Visits Melbourne

Melbourne hosts visiting units of the Royal Australian Navy on occasion and last week welcomed the vessel HMAS Choules (fleet number L100) for a three-day visit.  Defence, specialist and mass media were invited aboard for an extended tour and the opportunity  to meet the ship’s commander and other members of the ship’s company, including “home

Tyabb Airshow 2024

The second Sunday in March proved to be a challenge for the public to attend on such a hot day, and we commend so many families for spending several hours at the airshow in many cases, also the volunteers who staffed the show and allowed it to actually go ahead, and showing their attentiveness to

BIG THINGS IN STORE

Australian War Memorial’s Treloar Technology Centre Last Saturday, 2nd September saw the Australian War Memorial’s Treloar Technology Centre (the Mitchell Annexe) open its repurposed industrial buildings to the public, allowing viewing of the “reserve collection” of airframes undergoing restoration, or stored pending future integration into the Memorial’s displays. AWM holds a large and as you

Veteran drops in on an old friend

FLTLT Karyn Markwell A VIETNAM veteran renewed acquaintances with the type of aircraft he flew during that war when he visited the RAAF Amberley Aviation Heritage Centre in early March. FLTLT (retd) Jeffrey Pedrina was treated to a personalised tour of the centre with family members in honour of his service to Australia and the

Pitch Black 2022 Photo-Essay Darwin

From our earlier coverage we move on to photographic coverage of the support aircraft types and other aircraft of interest which came into and out of Darwin (IATA Code YPDN) leading up to and during Exercise Pitch Black 2022. They are a mix of regular visitors and ad-hoc charters, military communications and freight carriers. For

HOT AND HIGH – Ex Pitch Black 2022

Aviation Report Downunder presents our summary on this important multi-national exercise in the skies over the Top End. 17 nations, including Australia, participated in Exercise Pitch Black 2022. This year over 100 aircraft and 2500 personnel from Australia, France, Germany, Canada, Indonesia, India, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, Thailand, United States, United Kingdom, Republic of

Ceremony Caps off 100 Years

Wednesday, March 30, was the date on which the Royal Australian Air Force concluded its year of centenary celebrations with a moving ceremony of dedication at RAAF Base Point Cook for the new Air Force Centenary Memorial “THEN. NOW. ALWAYS”. Dedicated to the 350,000 personnel who have served since 1921 and continue to serve Air

FAREWELL TO A ‘CLASSIC’ ERA FOR AIR COMBAT CAPABILITY

After more than 30 years of dedicated service to the Royal Australian Air Force, Australia’s fleet of McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) F/A-18A/B Classic Hornets has been farewelled, to make way for the fifth-generation Lockheed- Martin F-35A Lightning II fighter. The aircraft were from No. 75 Squadron, based at RAAF Base Tindal, near Katherine in the