ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 300969
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| Date: | Thursday 24 April 1947 |
| Time: | day |
| Type: | de Havilland DH.84 Dragon Mk III |
| Owner/operator: | Mandated Airlines Ltd |
| Registration: | VH-AYB |
| MSN: | 2065 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 3 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Huon Gulf, off Lae, Morobe -
 Papua New Guinea
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Cargo |
| Departure airport: | Lae Airport, Lae, Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea (LAE/AYNZ) |
| Salamaua, Papaua New Guinea |
03.43: Manufactured by De Havilland Aircraft Pty Ltd, Mascot Airport, Sydney NSW as part of an RAAF order for 87 aircraft.
31.03.43: 1st Flight at Mascot, Sydney, NSW.
15.04.43: Received by No 2 Aircraft Park (2 AP) at Bankstown Airport, Sydney, NSW and bought on charge as A34-76.
01.06.43: Modified W/T (Wireless Telegraphy) Equipment fitted at De Havilland Mascot Airport, Sydney.
07.06.43: Allocated to No 7 Aircraft Depot (7AD) at RAAF Station Tocumwal for modifications for use in Wireless Air Gunners Schools.
29.06.43: Received by 7 AD at RAAF Station Tocumwal
27.07.43: Allocated to 2 WAGS at RAAF Station Parkes, NSW.
16.08.43: Received by 2 WAGS at RAAF Station Parkes, NSW.
30.12.43: Allocated to 3 WAGS at Maryborough Airfield Queensland.
17.01.44: Received by 3 WAGS at Maryborough Airfield Queensland.
13.09.44: Allocated to No 5 Aircraft Depot (5 AD) at RAAF Base Wagga Wagga, NSW, for storage.
17.09.44: Received by 5 AD Care & Maintenance Unit (CMU) at RAAF Station Cootamundra NSW.
19.09.45: Survey report to Commonwealth Disposal Commission (CDC) recommended disposal.
21.02.46: Sold by CDC to W.R. Carpenter Pty Ltd O’Connell Street, Sydney, NSW for £50 pounds. RAAF Markings to be removed before issue. CDC Sales Advice No G (Vic) 263 dated 18 February 1946 refers.
09.04.46: Issued to purchaser.
21.02.47: Registered VH-AYB by Mandated Airlines Ltd, Lae, Papua New Guinea.
01.03.47: Ferried to Lae, Papua New Guinea.
20.08.47: Crashed in sea off Lae, Papua New Guinea. Mandated Airlines Ltd Captain John Rose pilot in command. Qantas Empire Airlines pilot Len McNeil who was a passenger, and gives this account in the book "Balus - The Aeroplane" in Papua New Guinea: "I had the day off and Johnny Rose was doing a trip to Kokoda and Popondetta. I'd never been there and when he offered me a seat I jumped at it. He had another passenger on board, engineer Fred Starr. We took off and headed across the Huon Gulf in the general direction of Salamaua. Then bang, the starboard engine went. I wasn't too worried, we were only a few minutes out of Lae and John was a good pilot. Then bang, the port engine cut. Must have been water in our fuel. I said to John "How are we going?” he said "Not a hope in Hades". We hit the water with a tremendous splash, right alongside the 'Tenyo Maru'. My seat belt snapped and I was hurled forward. My head went through the top of the cabin, right between the two metal spars. The hole was big enough to let me climb out as the Dragon settled in the water. I helped Fred Starr out and looked around for Johnny. There he was, still sitting in the cockpit with his head just above the water, fishing around for his camera. We persuaded him to join us on the upper wing." The three men were rescued by a local fisherman. Pilot, John Rose, and passengers Len McNeil (Qantas Empire Airlines pilot) and Fred Starr (Mandated Airlines Ltd aircraft engineer) all escaped with a few minor abrasions
30.08.47: Damaged DH.84 Dragon VH-AYB hauled to shore close to the wreck of the Japanese wartime ship 'Tenyo Maru' on the edge of Lae aerodrome. Aircraft was intact but had large fabric tears on fuselage sides.
31.08.47 Struck-off Register
Huon Gulf is a large gulf in eastern Papua New Guinea. It is bordered by Huon Peninsula in the north. Both are named after French explorer Jean-Michel Huon de Kermadec. Huon Gulf is a part of the Solomon Sea. Its northern boundary is marked by Cape Cretin, southern by Cape Longerue. The coast, which quickly increases in elevation from the beach, is bordered by the Rawlinson Range to the north and the Kuper Range to the west, which rises to about 600 metres (2,000 ft). Lae, capital of the Morobe Province, is located on the northern coast of the Gulf.
Sources:
1. https://air-britain.com/pdfs/production-lists/DH84.pdf
2. http://www.airhistory.org.uk/dh/pAus01.html
3. https://www.goodall.com.au/australian-aviation/dh84-pt2/dh84-dragon-pt2.htm
4. http://www.adf-serials.com.au/2a34.htm
5. https://www.baaa-acro.com/crash/crash-de-havilland-dh84a-dragon-lae
6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huon_Gulf
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 10-Nov-2022 17:31 | Dr. John Smith | Added |
| 25-Jun-2023 11:28 | Ron Averes | Updated |
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