ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 74160
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| Date: | Thursday 23 April 1953 |
| Time: | day |
| Type: |  De Havilland DH.82A Tiger Moth |
| Owner/operator: | Madang Air Charters Ltd |
| Registration: | VH-BXA |
| MSN: | DHA.52 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Mission Airstrip, Mount Wilhelmina, Kegsugl, New Guinea -
 Indonesia
|
| Phase: | Landing |
| Nature: | Passenger |
| Departure airport: | Madang, Papua New Guinea |
| Mount Wilhelmina, Kegsugl, New Guinea | |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
De Havilland DH.82A Tiger Moth DHA.52 (Gipsy Major #86253); built by DH Australia at Bankstown, Sydney, NSW. Taken on charge by the RAAF as A17-55 at 2 Aircraft Depot, Richmond 7.8.40. To 6 EFTS Tamworth 16.8.40 (or 16.9.40). Stalled & crashed on landing Tamworth 9.3.42: Port mainplane, interplane struts, front section fuselage and centre section strut port front damaged. To Newcastle Aero Club, Broadmeadow 23.3.42 for repairs; to 2 Aircraft Depot, Richmond 23.11.42. To 1 AOS 27.11.42; issued to 8 EFTS Narrandera 14.12.42. Damaged in forced landing Narrandera due to structural failure of engine 28.9.43; repaired and returned to service. To 11 EFTS Benalla 29.12.44; to storage reserve 25.7.45. For sale 6.12.45; to Care & Maintenance Unit Benalla 1.3.46.
Sold 2.5.46 to Captain John Glover, Albury, NSW for £354; issued 21.8.46. Re-registered VH-AXA (C of R 1133) 6.12.46 to the Reverend John Glover, Albury, NSW. It was used in New Guinea to transport the priest to the far flung limits of his Diocese. On 22.12.47, the registration VH-AXA was cancelled due to being deemed as an 'unairworthy aircraft' following a crash near Kegsugl, New Guinea (Father Joe Walachy uninjured). Re-registered VH-AXA on 17.4.48 to Catholic Mission of the Holy Ghost, Alexishafen, New Guinea after repairs/rebuild.
In 1949 the 'VH-AX*' series were deemed by DCA to be prohibited registrations and, as a consequence, this machine was re-registered VH-BXA 16.4.49 to same owner. Badly damaged when swung into bank Koge Airstrip, Highlands, New Guinea 12.5.50 after struck woman on landing; repaired and returned to service. Damaged in ground-loop on landing Madang, New Guinea 30.8.50; repaired and returned to service. Badly damaged when struck drain on landing Kegelsugl airstrip, near Chimbu, New Guinea 8.10.51; repaired and returned to service.
Written off (damaged beyond repair) 23.4.53: Aircraft crashed on approach to landing at the Mission on Mount Wilhelmina, Kegsugl, New Guinea. The mission airstrip located at an altitude of 8,497 feet was challenging for a loaded Tiger Moth. Registration VH-BXA belatedly cancelled as "withdrawn from use" in 1961
NOTE: the crash site is now (and has been since 1963) known as Puncak Trikora, a 4,730 or 4,750-metre-high (15,584 feet) mountain in the Papua province of Indonesia on New Guinea. It lies in the eastern part of the Sudirman (Nassau) Range of the Maoke Mountains.
Sources:
1. Balus - Vol 1
2. http://www.airhistory.org.uk/dh/pAus0.html
3. http://www.adf-gallery.com.au/.au/2a17a.htm
4. http://www.edcoatescollection.com/ac1/austa2/VH-AXA.html
5. https://air-britain.com/pdfs/production-lists/DH82.pdf
6. https://www.austairdata.com.au/component/rsdirectory/entry/view/11007-vh-axa-1
7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puncak_Trikora
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 01-May-2010 23:14 | Petro | Added |
| 14-Apr-2014 02:00 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Cn, Operator, Location, Country, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 09-Oct-2021 00:07 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Time, Cn, Location, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Category] |
| 09-Oct-2021 00:08 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Narrative] |
| 09-Oct-2021 00:11 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Narrative] |
| 09-Oct-2021 00:12 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Narrative] |
| 09-Oct-2021 00:19 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Narrative] |
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