ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 222745
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| Date: | Wednesday 27 February 1963 |
| Time: | day |
| Type: |  de Havilland DH.89A Dragon Rapide |
| Owner/operator: | Darwin Air Taxis |
| Registration: | VH-AAG |
| MSN: | 6668 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Wolner Station, Arnhem, NT -
 Australia
|
| Phase: | Take off |
| Nature: | Cargo |
| Departure airport: | Wolner Station, Arnhem, Northern Territories |
| Darwin, Northern Territories | |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
C/no. 6668: Taken on charge as HG669 against Contract No.6/Acft/2580/C20a at 76 MU 5.11.43. Shipped to Auckland, New Zealand on the s.s "Port Huon" 1.12.43; arrived 18.1.44. Taken on charge by the RNZAF as NZ531 at Hobsonville 25.1.44. Struck off charge when Sold 5.52.
Registered as ZK-BBP 4.9.52 to Airwork (NZ) Ltd, Christchurch and C of A issued 12.12.52. Operated 24.2.53-6.1.56 by [Airwork-owned] South Island Airways, Christchurch. New Zealand. Inaugurated their service 24.2.53. Flew it’s last flight with the company 6.1.56. Chartered to Trans Island Airways by Airwork 12.3.56 to 14.5.56. Registration ZK-BBP cancelled 24.1.57 and shipped to Sydney 1.57 on the s.s."Kaitoke"
Stored crated until late 1958. Registered in Australia as VH-AAG 19.8.58 to Alpine Airways (Pty) Ltd, Cooma, NSW (C/n quoted as 6684). Re-registered 16.8.60 to Robert G [Bob] Carswell, t/a Carsair Air Service (Pty) Ltd, Mount Gravatt, Queensland; aircraft based at Archerfield, Queensland (and later Darwin, NT). Badly damaged by engine start-up fire Banyan Station Airstrip, NT 12.12.60. Pilot E. C. Osgood unhurt. Carsair replaced VH-AAG on the NT buffalo meat contract with a leased DH.84 Dragon VH-AON brought across from Archerfield, Queensland
VH-AAG rebuilt at Banyan Strip by experienced LAME Ivan Unwin who camped inside the fuselage while he worked on the aircraft through The Wet Season. By 15.2.61 Temporary repairs completed at Banyan, two wings flown in by helicopter. Repaired in the bush with replacement mainplanes; re-flown after repairs 16.2.61. Per pilot E.C.Osgood's log: last flight in VH-AAG was on 9.10.61: Darwin local Buffalo meat runs now flown in Carsair Air Services Lockheed 12A VH-ASG.
Change of ownership: Neville Bell, Darwin NT trading as Darwin Air Taxis with effect from 9.10.61. Substantially damaged when collided with a kangaroo at Wolner Station, Arnhem, NT, 27.2.63 which broke lower main spar; reportedly ferried by air back to Darwin where repairs abandoned.
Withdrawn from use and parked out in the open, Darwin Airport in March 1963. Became derelict in tropical weather. VH-AAG taken over again by Bob Carswell after Darwin Air Taxis went into liquidation. Engines, radios and parts removed at Darwin Airport, then airframe stored in backyard of Neville Bell’s house in town, Darwin. Remains donated to RAAF Leanyeh Range, near Darwin and used as target by RAAF Sabres from early 1964. Registration VH-AAG finally cancelled 21.12.64
Sources:
1. https://www.ab-ix.co.uk/pdfs/dh89.pdf
2. http://www.airhistory.org.uk/dh/p066.html
3. https://steemit.com/history/@len.george/de-havilland-dh-89-a-and-b-rapide-and-dominie-nz-555-to-nz559-1939-to-1945
4. VH-AAG with Alpine Airways 1959: http://1000aircraftphotos.com/Contributions/DanneckerBen/13072.htm
5. VH-AAG at Cootsmundra, NSW in 1959: https://www.airhistory.net/photo/125540/VH-AAG
6. http://www.goodall.com.au/australian-aviation/dh89/dh89.htm
7. http://www.adf-serials.com.au/nz-serials/nzdh89b.htm
8. http://www.edcoatescollection.com/ac1/austa/VH-AAG%283%29.html
9. http://www.kiwiaircraftimages.com/rapide.html
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 08-Mar-2019 18:50 | Dr. John Smith | Added |
| 08-Mar-2019 21:03 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Operator, Location, Nature, Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 07-Jun-2022 10:57 | Ron Averes | Updated [Location] |
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