Secrets of a Sydney past

This is an interesting site: http://www.airwaysmuseum.com/

And it has jogged my memory a bit with regard to Rose Bay Flying Boat Base, at Rose Bay (of course) in Sydney. I can remember visiting the base in the 60s and 70s, when Ansett ran 2 Short S25 Sandringhams (one a converted Sunderland) on trips to Lord Howe Island. Being young at the time and a bit short of cash I was hesitant to actually fly in the darn things (regrettably) but I watched them land and take off and sitting beached on wheels outside the hangar. I should have at least gone on a charter to Lake Macquarie, to the old RAAF base Rathmines, but I didn't. Oh well.

There's not much left at Rose Bay - but enough to get a feel for it. There's actually a bit more at Rathmines. Worth scouting around.

Labels: Ansett, flying boats, Rathmines, Rose Bay

It was once a common sight. Strong westerly winds drew pilots to land and take off on runway 25, rather than use the main north-south runway. In fact this strip was the main runway up until the north-south runway was extended into Botany Bay in the late 1960s. This east-west strip exposed more people to aircraft noise and its use has been subsequently curtailed. Note the TAA 727, shortly to be renamed Australian Airlines before disappearing with a merger into Qantas. The Ansett F27 also represents a brand no longer in the air.

Labels: Ansett, Qantas, runways, sydney airport, TAA

There haven't been that many accidents or incidents at Sydney but some stick in the mind. How about the Vickers Viscount tragically lost in Botany Bay?

The PAA 707 that beached itself in the mud at the southern side of the western end of the 25 runway?

The PAA 747 that did something very similar at the eastern end of that same strip, turning hard right to avoid colliding with the main southern sewer and Cook's River.

Or this DC3, VH-EDC, lost again in the bay after engine failure: "On Sunday 24 April 1994, at about 0910 EST, Douglas DC-3 aircraft VH-EDC took off from runway 16 at Sydney (Kingsford-Smith) Airport. The crew reported an engine malfunction during the initial climb and subsequently ditched the aircraft into Botany Bay. The DC-3 was on a charter flight to convey a group of college students and their band equipment from Sydney to Norfolk Island and return as part of Anzac Day celebrations on the island. All 25
occupants, including the four crew, successfully evacuated the aircraft before it sank. The investigation found that the circumstances of the accident were consistent with the left engine having suffered a substantial power loss when an inlet valve stuck in the open position. The inability of the handling pilot (co-pilot) to obtain optimum asymmetric performance from the aircraft was the culminating factor in a combination of local and organisational factors that led to this accident. Contributing factors included the overweight condition of the aircraft, an engine overhaul or maintenance error, non-adherence to operating
procedures and lack of skill of the handling pilot."

Also noteworthy was the slightly bizarre crash involving Ansett DC-3 VH-BZK and a NSWGR coal train which was (as was normal at the time) crossing runway 22... and yes, they later moved the train line as well as the runway.

Labels: aicraft accidents, Ansett, sydney airport