Phillip Is. Race Track Runways

[BULLDOG 248]

Watching the V8's last weekend on the Island reminded me of the 2 strips in the middle or the race track back in the mid 70's ish??? Anyone remember??

[Atlas Shrugged]

Don't know about that far back but I think there's an ALA there now....Newhaven or something, about 900m or slightly less.

[VH-XXX]

There's a strip on the left as you drive in about 3km after you cross the San Remo bridge (used primarily for helicopter joy flights) - probably about 6 miles from the GP track, however I think Bulldog is referring more to some strips that were actually at the GP track itself.

[Stationair8]

The racetrack airstrip used to be behind the present pit complex and ran north south with the threshold near a small dam.

The DVD about the ATCC championship in the 1970's shows a number of aircraft parked on the strip as well as arriving and departing during the meeting.

A number of the drivers used to own aircraft or get flown in for the race meetings.

The former owner of the other airstrip on the Island had some rather interseting experiences on the racetrack airstrip on windy days.

According to a well known person the main straight was used for larger twins if they were going back to Sydney etc.

[Disco Stu]

I went into the racetrack many times during the 70's and early 80's. Don't remember any length details although a Lance/Cherokee 6 with a little less than half fuel would lift 5 people back to MB. Take-off was downhill to the south and nearly always into 15+kts of headwind. The lake and the Pits have grown larger than I remember them.

I don't ever recall seeing anyone use the mainstraight as a runway but I only went there on race days. A number of drivers did fly themselves to the Island, a Black Bonanza and a White/Red C210 spring to mind.

I also had more birdstrikes there than at any other airstrip.

I can still make out the strips outlines on Google Earth.

Disco:ok:

[BULLDOG 248]

Thanks S.A, D.S and Rwy 16 for the P.M. I thought for a while some old age thing was happening to my brain??????? Come down from NSW in a C206 on several occations with a load of punters and once from the old Colac Strip when I worked in Vic. I dont remember anyone ending up in the dam but do remember a few cars and one bike going between parked A/C between the the track!!!!

[Dog One]

I remember one C172 I think, over ran the strip and overturned into the dam. It was on a race day in about 1977, a Sunday from memory. We had departed MB for DPO and being heavy passed over CWS VOR at about A055. Whilst sticky beaking at the races we noticed the 172 on short final and watched it land. We notified ML FS, although there was plenty of rescuers and equipment on site.

[tmpffisch]

Word was the operator didn't want to pay for the approach's upkeep.

http://www.pprune.org/dg-p-general-aviation-questions/383518-cws-approaches.html

[VH-XXX]

The strip isn't closing and in that other thread it was quoted:

Flew there the other day, and heard on the rumour mill that Air Services were puting the cost of re-surveying the approaches onto the operator, who was not prepared to pay the cost.


Not quite. This is simply part of the long term pre-planned gradual decommissioning of the old fashioned nav-aids although this one gets a lot of use so that does surprise me a little.

[BULLDOG 248]

Are YWE and WON still operational??? CWS was a popular spot for Nav Aid training.

Never personaly saw twins take-off on the track but do remember late one after noon taking off to the north, up hill on a hot northerly wind day and all the twin boys were waiting for the sea breeze to kick in????? I'm guessing the runways were around 700mt long.