Warbird Information Exchange

The NHF Project- Progress for WEEK ENDING 14 APRIL 19

Michael Hough, AM (HARS Navy Heritage Flight Project Leader)
The week ending 14 April19 has again been a quiet week, with many of our volunteer staff engaged in the preparation and paperwork leading up to HARS’ ANZAC Day flying commitments, and staff rostering for HARS’ major involvement in the big annual Air Show event; Wings Over Illawarra 2019 on Sat/Sun 04-05 May 2019.
Air Frame Activity This Week
Our main activities this week were still focused on finalising the last short term moves of the Sea Fury out of the Albatross Aviation Technology Park storage currently offered by our major sponsor Air Affairs, and on completing the paperwork on the range of approvals required from Defence, CASA and Warbirds Australia to get Tracker 844 back into the air. The main activities that have been achieved this past week are listed below.
Tracker 844
We continue to run the engines of Tracker 844 each week without any issue.

We have to pay a registration fee of $230 to have Tracker 844 registered as VH-NVX with Australian Warbirds SO- can anyone assist by sponsoring this amount as a donation to the HARS Navy Heritage Flight please? If you can please email me immediately on harsnhf@hars.org.au and thanks for your support if you can!
We are otherwise waiting for Navy/ADF approval to fly Tracker 844 from Nowra up to HARS at Albion Park Rail (and flying in Navy colours), and we are also starting to schedule future flights in support of Navy Heritage and/or historic aviation events.
As part of that process, we are currently calculating the $/hr flight costs for an appearance by Tracker 844 at a suitable historic aviation event.
Tracker 845
This airframe remains in secure storage at our major sponsor Air Affairs. There has been no planned work on this airframe this week.

Dakota C47
This airframe also remains in secure storage at our major sponsor Air Affairs. There has been no planned work on this airframe this week.

Wessex helicopters
Wessex 832 (Albion Park) and Wessex 813 (Parkes) are essentially being restored to a higher quality static display status.
Wessex 832 (Albion Park) - The replacement nose cone from HMAS Success has now been fitted. Recently power was applied to this helicopter‘s instruments to discover that most of them worked.

Sea Venom
The dismantled Sea Venom has had some work activity this week. Our HARS Sea Venom volunteer team are still tackling the task of unpacking the containers in which it arrived. This aircraft remains in the early stages of a long restoration.
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Sea Fury
Sea Fury WG.630 remains in temporary secure storage at Air Affairs. We are planning to move the airframe by road as soon as we can from Nowra to HARS Hangar 1 at Albion Park. We have now been advised that we will require additional Police escorts plus two other escort vehicles to make the move, and the estimated costs of this move have just increased considerably as a result of this decision.
Huey helicopters
Both Iroquois UH-1B Iroquois 893 and 898 remain at Air Affairs okra Airport in secure storage. HARS is continuing the paperwork processes required to change the ADF tender approvals to fly these two helicopters, and the paperwork to have them registered with CASA and Warbirds Australia. My sincere thanks to Glenn Harley who is leading the team undertaking this extensive a paperwork.
General Comments
The airframes are in a very wide range of condition, and therefore represent many challenges. HARS is, in principle, committed to the future return of selected operational airframes back to the long- term home of Naval aviation at Nowra Hill.

Edited by John Sperring

Tracker 845
This airframe remains in secure storage at our major sponsor Air Affairs. There has been no planned work on this airframe this week.

845 remains in open storage at Air Affairs, and our long- term intention is to repaint it externally, and use it as the first display aircraft on the block of land next to the FAA Museum when this is granted by EIG.

Ex-USN Bu 152334
Was marked as NH/713 prior to service with RAN.
Withdrawn 12/08/84,
Hulk at HMAS Albatross.
Sold to private owner for $200 to prevent scrapping
Located on private property near HMAS Albatross Nowra.

Yes I've been wondering what has been lost to the Australian fires. Recall a few years back a Wirraway project was lost, lots of NOS spares engines props fuselages etc etc all burnt. The Avaition community rallied and actually offered Wirraway parts to start again. I've always wondered if he did. If he has I hope the fires are not back near him again!