ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 283726
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| Date: | Thursday 14 June 1945 |
| Time: | day |
| Type: | Percival D.2 Gull Four IIA |
| Owner/operator: | Joseph H. Bowden t/a Bowden Air Transport |
| Registration: | VH-UQW |
| MSN: | D.24 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | 178 Oxide Street, Broken Hill, NSW -
 Australia
|
| Phase: | Standing |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | 178 Oxide Street Broken Hill, NSW |
MSN D.24 Built at Yate by George Parnall & Co as type D.1 Gull Four I (Cirrus Hermes IV).
20.3.33: Registered G-ACAT Edgar W. Percival, London
22.3.33; British C of A 3815 issued. Ordered by Charles E. Kingsford Smith, who was Australian agent for Percival, for the 1933 Mackay Aerial Survey Expedition headed by Donald Mackay. (Mackay was a Cootamundra NSW grazier who had mounted expeditions to New Guinea, and from 1930 conducted a series of expeditions to explore remote inland areas of central Australia, previously using aircraft hired from Larkin Aircraft Supply Co, Melbourne as support aircraft.)
3.33: Packed and shipped to Australia
4.33: Struck-off British Register as sold to Australia
9.5.33: Arrived Sydney from England as cargo on the s.s 'Hobsons Bay'
11.5.33: Assembled at Mascot Aerodrome, Sydney in two days
13.5.33: Test-flown at Mascot, Sydney by Frank Neale, who had been the pilot for previous Mackay Expeditions.
18.5.33: Registered as VH-UQW Mr. Donald Mackay, Sydney, NSW
18.5.33: Australian C of A issued at Mascot. Type quoted as "D.1 Gull 4, engine 130 hp Gipsy Major"
5.33: Naming ceremony at Mascot, named Chateau Tanunda
21.5.33: Departed Mascot to commence the 1935 Mackay Aerial Expedition of central Australia, pilot Frank Neale. A DH.60 Moth was also used by the expedition.
9.7.33: Minor damage at Lake Anec, NT when the Gull nosed over on soft surface. Aircraft was moved to hard ground by packing mulga bushes under the wheels. This lake was named by a previous Mackay expedition, after the Larkin ANEC aircraft then being used.
16.7.33: The party returned to Mascot. The expedition had covered 260,000 square miles.
29.7.33: Change of ownership: Captain J. R. Patrick/James Patrick & Co Ltd/Patrick Steamers Pty Ltd, Sydney. To be used to carry personnel of this stevedoring company between Australian shipping ports. Frank Neale was retained as company pilot
18.6.34: C of A renewed at Mascot. Total time 700 hrs, only 35 hours had been flown since last overhaul
1935-37: Operated by Frank Neale on charter flying under name Neale’s Air Service Ltd, Sydney. (Letterhead used same address as Patrick Steamers)
29.5.35: C of A renewed at Mascot, operator Neale's Air Service Ltd. Total time on airframe 1,111 hours.
17.1.36: Damaged by storm at Tennant Creek, NT. The parked aircraft was lifted off the ground and dumped on its wheels a distance away. Pilot Frank Neale, Owner J.R. Patrick.
3.3.36: Repairs completed at Mascot by De Havilland Aircraft Pty Ltd.
1.5.36: CAB (Civil Aeronautics Board) Inspection report at Mascot, Sydney, NSW. Total time on airframe 1,264 hours
10.2.37: Change of ownership George E. Ryder, Rover Motors, Cessnock NSW. Based at Newcastle Aero Club, Broadmeadow airfield, Newcastle
23.5.37 CAB Inspection report at Broadmeadow. Total time on airframe 1,463 hours
9.10.37: Last flight, withdrawn from use pending sale
22.11.37: Change of ownership: Patrick G.Taylor, Sydney
6.38: Under overhaul by De Havilland Aircraft Pty Ltd at Mascot, Sydney, NSW. Had not flown since 9.10.37
18.6.38: Test-flown at Mascot, Sydney after overhaul, pilot P.G. Taylor
6.6.39: C of A renewal at Mascot, Sydney, test-flown by O. B. Hall
2.7.39: Port undercarriage and wing damaged when the aircraft struck a rut in the ground while taxiing at Coonabarabran, NSW, with two passengers aboard. Pilot H. Ross was conducting joyrides. Owned P. G. Taylor.
27.7.39: Test-flown at Mascot, Sydney after repairs by Airflite (Pty) Ltd, pilot H. G. Ross.
17.8.39: Sold to Warrego Flying School, Cunnamulla, Queensland. Before delivered it was resold by agent Charles Matheson of Archerfield, to James Beel
21.8.39: Change of ownership: James B. Beel, "Harriman Park" Station, delivered via Cunnamulla Queensland.
26.7.40: Annual C of A expired
16.8.40: C of A renewed at Archerfield, test-flown by pilot C.R. Broome. Total flying time on airframe 1,677 hours.
5.4.41: Forced landing due engine failure in a field near the town Cunnamulla Queensland, no damage. Towed on its wheels to a hangar at Cunnamulla airfield where the cause was found to be a hornets nest had caused an air blockage to the engine!
26.8.41: Annual C of A expired. James Beel wrote to Director of Civil Avaition explaining that he was unable to ferry it to Archerfield at that time due sheep shearing on his property.
24.4.42: Letter from Director General of Civil Aviation to Department of Air in response to enquiry concerning availability of civil aircraft which could be impressed for RAAF use by Western Command: "The following aircraft could reasonably be made available for use in communication flying in Western Australia - Percival Gull VH-UQW of J.Beel, Harriman Park, Cunnamulla - C. of A. has lapsed, but little work needed to make airworthy".
15.7.42: Letter from Director General of Civil Aviation to Department of Air in response to enquiry concerning availability of a civil aircraft which could be used by RAAF for an inspection on landing grounds in Western Australia on behalf of the US authorities: "In response to enquiries from U.S.A.A.F. Air Transport for fast light passenger aircraft, Percival Gull Aircraft VH-UQW, Engine Gipsy Major - Owner James Beel - Address Harriman Park, Cunnamulla - Certificate of Airworthiness lapsed from 26th August 1941". (E. J. Connellan at Alice Springs flew airfield survey work across Northern Australia for RAAF and US Army Air Force for many months in 1942. He used Beech 17 VH-UXP taken from its civil owner for the task and used his experience recognising soil types from altitude to locate areas suitable for heavy bomber airfields to be built.
25.10.43: James Beel wrote to Director of Civil Aviation: "Recently I had Mr. J. H. Bowden, chief pilot and engineer of the Flying Doctor Service, Broken Hill here to inspect my Percival Gull VH-UQW. He is keen to buy this machine." Requested approval for the sale under wartime restrictions on civil aircraft. Approved.
17.11.43: J. H. Bowden visited Director of Civil Aviation Head Office in Melbourne. He advised that he intended purchasing VH-UQW and intended to use it as a standby aircraft for the Flying Doctor Service, Broken Hill. In addition he plans to commence a regular airline service with the Gull:
- Broken Hill to Wilcannia, Tibooburra: once weekly
- Broken Hill to Adelaide: 3 times weekly
Director of Civil Aviation Director General, A. B. Corbett, hand-wrote on the memo regarding Bowden's visit: "No more airline licences will be granted at present."
29.1.44: James Beel wrote to DCA advising VH-UQW has been sold to Bowden and the deposit has been received
10.2.44: Change of ownership: Joseph H. Bowden trading as Bowden Air Transport, c/o Flying Doctor Service, Broken Hill, NSW
10.11.44: Joseph Bowden wrote to DCA using a printed letterhead "Bowden Air Transport, 178 Oxide Street, Broken Hill": requests a fuel allowance under the wartime fuel rationing restrictions to ferry UQW from Cunnamulla to Broken Hill. He will carry out an engine top overhaul and airframe inspection before departing Cunnamulla. Plans to make the delivery flight on 20.11.44.
30.11.44: Joseph Bowden wrote to DCA from Cunnamulla: fuel in drums at Cunnamulla is contaminated. He ordered replacement fuel drums from Charleville but he rejected them. He has sent samples of the fuel to DCA at Essendon for testing.
10.12.44: Joseph Bowden arrived at Cunnamulla again and carried out a wood repair to a slight crack that had developed in the centre section spar. He then had further trouble with contaminated fuel from the Cunnamulla Depot
22.12.44: Joseph Bowden signed a Certificate of Safety for VH-UQW at Cunnamulla to allow the ferry flight to Broken Hill.
1.45: VH-UQW is under overhaul at Broken Hill. Joseph Bowden ferried DH.87A Hornet Moth VH-UUW from Archerfield to Broken Hill 1.45 but he was forced to land at Orange NSW with an engine fault. Sent the Hornet Moth by rail to Broken Hill where the engine was given an overhaul.
13.2.45: Parafield DCA aircraft inspector H. S. Cheesman visited Broken Hill at the request of Joseph Bowden to inspect VH-UQW which Joseph Bowden claims he found was in poor condition when he commenced working on the airframe. Cheeseman's report stated:
- the Gull is under repair in a shed in Oxide Street used by Mr. Bowden as a workshop
- the Gull's condition "is very unsatisfactory and work to be done will need an engineer with more practical experience in woodwork than Mr. Bowden. The centre section will have to be removed from the fuselage and a new tailplane is to be built. New spars will have to be built and spliced on the root ends of both mainplanes. None of the major problems were found by Mr. Bowden when he inspected the aircraft before purchase. This is considered due to his lack of experience with this type of construction."
- at the moment Mr. Bowden is concentrating on Hornet Moth VH-UUW and the overhaul of VH-UQW has been deferred indefinitely
16.4.45: Destroyed by fire in Joseph Bowden’s workshop, 178 Oxide Street, Broken Hill. Jospeh Bowden’s Hillson Praga VH-UVP was also destroyed in the same blaze.
16.4.45: Struck-off Register
22.5.45: An internal DCA memo by inspector Cheesman stated he had recently visited Broken Hill to inspect the workshop of Bowden Air Transport at Oxide Street. Since then the Gull VH-UQW and Hillson Praga VH-UVP have been destroyed by fire in the workshop. Mr. Bowden has now left Broken Hill and moved to Temora NSW to commence an engineering business. Travelair 4000 biplane VH-UGY has been sent from Broken Hill to Temora by train after Mr. Bowden had welding of its metal airframe structure carried out by an unapproved welder in Broken Hill.
5.6.45: Joseph Bowden wrote to DCA on Bowden Air Transport letterhead, with address changed by typewriter from Broken Hill to Victoria Hotel, Temora NSW: he advises he is unable to return the Certificates of Registration and Airworthiness for VH-UQW & VH-UVP because the documents were destroyed in the fire.
Sources:
1. https://www.goodall.com.au/australian-aviation/percival-gull/percivalgull.html
2. https://air-britain.com/pdfs/archive/Archive_1991.pdf
3. https://cwsprduksumbraco.blob.core.windows.net/g-info/HistoricalLedger/G-ACAT.pdf
4. Percival D.2 Gull, VH-UQW, Australia, ca. 1935: https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-142082748/view
5. Percival D.2 Gull, VH-UQW, Melbourne - Essendon (YMEN) August 1933 to December 1935: https://www.airhistory.net/photo/139277/VH-UQW
6. http://www.edcoatescollection.com/ac1/austu/VH-UQW.html
7. http://www.airhistory.org.uk/gy/reg_VH-U1.html
8. https://www.realestate.com.au/property/178-oxide-st-broken-hill-nsw-2880
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 25-Sep-2022 20:55 | Dr. John Smith | Added |
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