Piper Navajo/Chieftain in Australia

[Stationair8]

The trusty old workhorse of GA, been used on Reg203/RPT, charter, night freight, air ambulance, skydiving, survey and target towing.

But I am trying to find out which was the first Navajo, Chieftain and Pressurised Navajo to come to Australia.

I am lead to believe that PA-31/350 VH-TXD was imported by Ansett General Aviation in 1975 and was sold to AirTasmania and based in Hobart to replace DC-3 MMF on RPT in Tasmania.

Likewise PA-31P BSF was imported by Bib Stillwell in 1974.

But any leads on the Navajo?

Regards
S8

[By George]

VH-IHA is a 1968 model still going strong at Caloundra, I think it's number 138 off the production line.

[zlin77]

I had always believed that VH-MCX operated by Country Air Services in Rockhampton was the first in OZ, it was Ansett General Aviations demo machine until purchased by Don Millroy in the mid seventies...however my brain cells are failing these days!

[Jamair]

Of the Nevergos still in circulation this would be the oldest in Oz -

VH CYV
Model: PA-31
Serial number: 31-18
Aircraft first registered in Australia: 06 July 1987
Year of manufacture: 1967

Got at least one flight with that one in the logbook.

While this one has been here the longest -

VH PDN
Model: PA-31
Serial number: 31-177
Aircraft first registered in Australia: 13 May 1968
Year of manufacture: 1968

And I did my PA31 endo in this one -

VH WNC
Model: PA-31
Serial number: 31-420
Aircraft first registered in Australia: 08 September 1998
Year of manufacture: 1969

When it was still VH-ZJZ

[6317alan]

My understanding that VH-WMC that was operated by the Victorian Division of the RFDS out of Wyndham WA was the last PA31-310 off the Piper production line. It was a nice aeroplane to fly!

[Brian Abraham]

Air Tas had a Chieftain some time between May 75 and May 77. No idea of rego, but fortunate enough to be given a drive from the right seat, and even a landing at Launy. Trusting soul who ever he was.

Edited to add, this web site suggests VH-TAS

Air Tasmania / Airlines of Tasmania (http://www.aviationcollection.org/Airlines%20of%20Tasmania/Artifacts/PA%20350%20Postcard/PA%20350%20Postcard.htm)

Terry Burns (ex Ansett Viscounts I think) was chief pilot, but he only flew the DC-3 I think (memory being what it is).

[glen beard]

I will stand corrected if i am wrong,but i believe VH-BEB PA31- 41 was first Navajo in Australia.Was Bib Stillwell's when he owned Civil Flying Services and a great friend of mine _ the late Alex McDonald used to fly it.Alex was W.A. manager of CFS when they were Piper distributors for Australia circa late sixties,early seventies.Ansett General Aviation were appointed national distributors early seventies and Fred Blake Piper Aircraft Sales and Cliff Brown's Piper West were dealers.I worked for Cliff as his parts manager for 15 odd years and we sold heaps to RFDS and other operators from 74ish until the 1980's. VH-BEB is still operating at JT.Great aircraft when operated in their given capacity & range

Glen Beard

[601]

PA31-350 VH-RUH - 21 December 1977.
PA31-350 VH-RUI was bought at the same time.
Does anyone know where RUI is now? It has changed registration since I knew it.

[gaunty]

Murchison Air Services

PA 31-310 RTO, RTN bought new can't remember the date but it was circa 1967/8, a low hour PDN was purchased used I think from Julia Creek station.

Joined C402A same time, this aircraft replaced C411 TDB on aerial photography contract with WA Lands and survey.

Operated from the first purpose built FBO in Australia.

[lamax]

Stationair 8, Kendell operated PA31 VH-DAP from 1971, that A/C was imported into Australia in the 1960s and operated by Delhi Allied Petroleum. Stand to be corrected on prior KD history.

[Capt Fathom]

DAP was in FNQ doing freight runs in the late 70's. It was a Navajo.

There was also an old two bladed Navajo around that time as well. Never seen a two blader before. Must have been a late 60's model, old piper paint scheme. Don't recall the rego of that one.

[DeRated]

Terry flew some night freight out of Hobart in a PA-31-310 during 1979.

I was RHS when we got airborne out of Hobart on his first trip and it was a bit hairy until he pegged the dials at about 300 ft and then it was perfect after that.

So as to his endorsement I have no idea. He did a few trips for us and certainly knew his way around Tasmania.

[gaunty]

Navajo PA31-310 first year of manufacture 1967. Short coupled pitch stability problem solved by springs and bob weight to elevator. A very nice and docile machine, but no room left or expansion of the design.

The later versions Cheiftain, Mojave and Cheyennes just got worse. Up to the point that the British CAA refused to accept the certification data for the early Cheyennes and insisted on SAS as a no go item.

The then Pres ex FAA and some others were implicated in missing certification data and allegations it was fudged.

By then it was basically all over for the original Piper company.

[glen beard]

A bit of technical info - a lot of operators were or may not be aware of regarding original PA31's - to my knowledge, it was illegal to operate Navajo's with wing lockers unless they had 3 bladed props and a change of elevator mass balance weights.i believe this was an asymetric issue because unless this configuration was fitted it created a serious control problem from the early models which did have 2 blades until the later ones which came out with standard 3 blades, if an engine out situation occurred.

Glen Beard

[AussieO2]

My records indicate:- PA31-310, VH-PDM, 31-13, registered 30.06.1967, PA31-350, VH-RDA, 31-7305032, registered 26.07.1973, PA31P, VH-BSF, 31P-58, registered 28.02.1972.

[AussieO2]

601...VH-RUI went to VH-SVN, then to VH-TWR, still on the register.

[Chief galah]

Kendell operated PA31 VH-DAP

Kendell also operated VH-CLU at the same time. I have no other details about it. The register shows it as a amateur built.

[Tony23]

The first PA-31 Navajo to be imported was VH-PDM c/n 31-13 imported by Ansett General Aviation and registered on 30/6/67. It later became VH-RTN and was later withdrawn from use. The wrecked fuselage was later used in a TV series marked as VH-PDN as the real VH-PDN was used in the flying shots.

The oldest PA-31 Navajo still registered is VH-CYV c/n 31-18 which was registered as VH-DZZ on 6/7/87 before becoming VH-CYV.

The first PA-31P Pressurised Navajo imported was VH-BSF imported by Bib Stillwell and registered on 28/2/72. It was revoked on 18/7/06.

The oldest PA-31P still registered is VH-SGA c/n 31P-7300166.

The first PA-31-350 Navajo Chieftain registered in Australia was VH-WGF 31-7305010. It was imported by Ansett General Aviation for Williams Refridgeration and it was registered on 31/10/73. It is also the oldest Chieftain still registered.

[601]

Aussie02

VH-RUI went to VH-SVN, then to VH-TWR, still on the register

Thanks

This is spooky
A Piper Chieftain was undertaking a regular public transport (RPT) flight from Lord Howe Island to Norfolk Island. Landed in fog.

Investigation: 199900604 - Piper Aircraft Corp PA-31 , VH-TWR (http://www.atsb.gov.au/publications/investigation_reports/1999/aair/aair199900604.aspx)

[Seagull V]

The following is a précis of information provided by Ken McBroom Chief pilot of Ansett GeneralAviation (AGA) from late 1966.

The first PA31-310 carried US registration. N9008Y and was ferry flown to Australia byCaptain Walter Moody of Globe Aero, Lock Haven PA, arriving in early 1967.
Naturally, Ansett General Aviation (AGA) as the Piper Distributor, wanted to get the first Navajo certified and flying on demonstration tours ASAP. Ferry tanks were removed, radio and navigation systems to suit Australia installed and inside 4 weeks, we had Australian certification. All our flyingwas done on “trade plates” without actually obtaining an actual VH number.

The first Navajohad 2 bladed props and engine handling was not easy. Vibration was noticeable,synchronisation was difficult, acceleration on take-off unimpressive and,because of the reduced ground clearance with the two long props, stone damage was a problem.


Our second Navajo was on the Lock Haven production line and it was reconfigured with 3 bladed Hartzell props and uprated Lycoming engines with slightly larger turbochargers. What a difference this made!

Piper shipped out the new 3 blade props and uprated engines for N9008Y.

Conversion was done at the Ansett engineering facility at Archerfield. When completed she was registered as VH-PDM, but much later than the first PA31-310 (VH-PNL) registered and delivered to Papuan Air Transport (PAT-Air) in Port Moresby.(VH-PNL was followed by VH-PNK for the same company.)

Allan Bligh, another former AGA stalwart, advises that;
“I think that the Prune correspondent ZLIN77 is correct and that VH-MCX, for Countryair (Don Milroy) in Rockhampton, was the first Navajo Chieftain (PA31-350) to enter service in OZ, it was quickly followed by two for the Coffs Harbour airline (Ross Davies) which, were registered VH-RDA and I thought VH-RDL. By the way the price of those Chieftains including delivery and certification was around $100,000 AUD.

[Square Bear]

Jamair

Would VH-CYV have been registered from VH-DZZ....two bladed?

[Horatio Leafblower]

By the way the price of those Chieftains including delivery and certification was around $100,000 AUD.

According to this site (http://www.rba.gov.au/calculator/annualDecimal.html), that $100,000 in 1968 would now be worth about $1,084,972.68 :eek:

[gaunty]

Horatio me old

'twas so. A bit over USD100k then probably $1M now.

Ours were delivered with 2 blades subsequently changed to 3.

MMA were still flying DC3 and the early F27. Both of which we could mix it with on the Perth NW routes. Technically we were not allowed to operate more than twice a month over an RPT route. Doing it almost daily with 3 Navajo and a C402 was a bit of a trick.

Operational control was in effect and the DCA had a room full of clerks checking out flight plans. When it got too hot we would simply ask the miners and oil and gas people to have a quiet chat to the Government or simply ignore them and plan via somewhere enroute

I can still see the mustachioed red faced old MMA Capt berating us for daring to share the same cloudspace with his airliner in IMC with only a SINGLE pilot.

The standard IFR equipment and radar were many generations in front of what they were flying.

[AussieO2]

N9008Y became VH-PDM, and PNL was reg on 06.02.1968, PNK on 01.12.1967, MCX on 13.08.1974, RDA on 26.07.1973, RDL on 15.05.1974. And VH-DZZ did go to VH-CYV on 26.11.1998.. That RFDS reg is a typo, it should be VH-MWC. VH-WGF may be the 'oldest' PA31-350 in Aust, but not the first registered.

[Desert Flower]

There was also an old two bladed Navajo around that time as well. Never seen a two blader before. Must have been a late 60's model, old piper paint scheme. Don't recall the rego of that one.

PDN was a two blader when I first saw it. Couldn't figure out what sounded different about it in the circuit compared to other Navajos until it taxied in & shut down.

DF.

[gaunty]

We bought PDN used in the late 60's too long ago to remember the exact date or whether it 2 bladers on. It joined RTO and RTN both new. i seem to recall that we eventually made them all 3 bladers as the NW strip were murder on the props.

VH-RTO (http://www.edcoatescollection.com/ac1/austmz/VH-RTO.html)

In their day they were the ducks nuts.:ok:

Last I saw RTO was a very tired fuse laying up against a fence at YMEN, dunni what happened to RTN. I see PDN still soldiers on. They were a great private owners aircraft and properly cared for probably still are, just make sure the elevator springs and bob weights are secure.

Dont know where the photos from those days are but I found RTG an Aztec on google whilst rumaging around. It was one of 25 aircraft we operated thruout WA, C411. C402, 3 x Islanders, sundry C206 and C210, Drover FDS, Aztecs, Commanche 260, coupla Super Cubs for mustering, a Twin Commanche oh and I nearly forgot the 3 Doves bought from the RNZAF Queens Flight disassembled in boxes for $15,000 the lot and reassembled by some of own engineers who had done their apprenticeship in building them in the UK. I think gentleman Duncan Cumming our Chief Pilot had actually flown them when he was in the RNZAF.

Despite the Cubs being a brilliant mustering aircraft they weren't a brilliant choice for the NW, the livestock had a sweet tooth for the esters in the fabric, which also wasn't as tolerant to scrub as ali.

VH-RTM (http://www.edcoatescollection.com/ac1/austmz/VH-RTM.html)

VH-RTG (http://www.edcoatescollection.com/ac1/austmz/VH-RTG.html)

DE HAVILLAND DROVER VH-FDS (http://www.qam.com.au/aircraft/drover-fds/VH-FDS.htm) in which Harry O'Neil gets a mention. The disadvantages of a tailwheel on a busy primary airport were demonstrated when one of the more 'adventurous" pilots tried to mate it with an airline huffer cart.

Its all too long ago, time to go pick up the grandkids from play skool.

Gotta give credit to;

Ed Coates Aircraft Photographs (http://www.edcoatescollection.com/) just found it and a great archive it is, although some of the facts might not be completely accurate, the pics are great and brought back some mostly fond and some not so memories. the Terminal in the back was built by Murchison sadly now pretty derelict after all these years.

I guess you might find one of your old darlings there.

[Arnold E]

How do you find the history of a particular call sign??:confused:

[Desert Flower]

We bought PDN used in the late 60's too long ago to remember the exact date or whether it 2 bladers on.

I first saw it in the 90's & she was a two blader then, & it wasn't until probably well into the 2000's that I saw it with a three bladed prop.

DF.

[Hot High Heavy]

VH-PDN is still in Darwin, operated by AV8 although it looks more like its being used for spares at the moment.

VH-CYV is with AV8, number 18 off the Piper line. Got a few hours in that girls and prob still flew better than some later models.

[AirlinePirate]

Arr.

CYV be sittin' mighty pretty at th' moment, what with tha' wheel clamp on an' th' maintenance release bein' held tighter than Davey Jones' Locker by the scurvy landlubbers from the Bank...

Arr.

[Volumex]

Cropped from the photo thread.
http://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-WUhiEZChUzk/Uh5xFSfl0MI/AAAAAAAAPAo/zmlL4RST4RI/w1022-h533-no/2+blade+Navajo.jpg

[By George]

In the seventies Australian Air Charters of Moorabbin had two Navajos with two bladed props. VH-RTO and VH-MBY. On the 3rd of November 1976 I had to perform a wheels up landing on the grass emergency strip due to a jammed gear door. Shut one down and levelled off the prop with the starter (not game to do it to both). So, one prop undamaged and one curled up like a banana. The undamaged one had ten hours left and the busted up one, was brand new. Story of my life, decision wise.
I liked the two blade props, and agree they were faster. Had slightly more of a growl and supposedly more vibration but it was hard to tell. MBY was subsequently fitted with three bladed props.

[mansion]

I was there that day at YMMB and saw it... nicely done!!
Got to fly MBY a few times too...

[Anthill]

Wow. ,Amy memories with some regos, here.


VH-DAP: I did my PA31 endorsement on this one. I understand that it crashed into the ocean off the coast of NSW killing 3 on board.it was doing target towing for the RAN at the time.

PDN: I worked for Bob Courtenay in the '80s and did many charters in this. Bob and Gary built up a pretty good little company. They had many regular clients such as Enrst and Whiney and Webster's. The 2 blade props run smooth if you used 2400 RPM instead of 2200-easier to synchronise too!

WGI: I flew about 50 hours in this one at Flinders Island Airlines. It never flew straight as it had been landed gear up at some stage. The last time hat I saw WGI was as a burnt wreck in a paddock just south of the RWY 32 threshold in Launy. I had popped out of the cloud at about 400' on the ILS one early morning and there she was in an area of brunt grass and surrounded by police and emergency services vehicles. 6 young men from a football club had been killed in an accident just a few hours before. It is a vision that will haunt me forever.

MCX was a clapped out heap of manure when FIA operated it, mostly to KI or on the "paper run" for the Herald and Weekly Times (EN/ML - Bendigo- Swan Hill- Mildura- Ouyen- En/ML). FIA had that contract for over 40 years. The "paper run was also done at various times using C206s, Ansons (!) and Beech 18 VHS-FIA. My primary recollection of MCX was that it stank of crayfish. Badly. Really badly.

[Desert Duck]

Late 70's I operated VH RTN PA31-310 S/N PA31-13 out of Jandakot on Reg 203 ops for Avior Airlines - had 3 bladed props then.

[hurlingham]

Many years ago a story was told that the PA31 demontration pilot was fond of showing potentil buyers how the Navajo could be barrell rolled.
Several orders were taken I was told - as long as it was not that aircraft.

[TTY]

The info on VH-TXD is incorrect, it was actually imported by the late Ray Melville of Tamworth who sold it to Tasmania . It was at the time the only Chieftain in the country with full de-ice which is what made it attractive to the Tasmanian s. I also had the pleasure of having a drive and landing from the right seat whilst it was still on the'' N'' register.

[Stationair8]

AWW, is another PA-31 been around a while.
I think it was with Flinders Island Airlines for a while in the mid 80's.
I heard the callsign on centre a few days ago.

[bob_bowne]

How many times have you told that story George? I also flew those aircraft and am still flying old Navajos occasionally on survey in my old age. One is a 2 blade version that has very few hours (logged anyway) on the airframe and was in the desert in the US for years. :ugh:

[Best Rate]

I just did a jolly around the city / bay in MEL last week in VH-RUH - A very tidy '77 model PA31-350 and still goes like a train (fast n straight!)....

Hats off to Blue Demon at YMMB for keeping her in such nice order :ok:

[the_rookie]

Lovely looking rig that one best rate. Only second to the Kelly's panther a couple of hangers over

[megle2]

RUH and RUI were unloved out on the grass at Archerfield at one stage
Seem to remember they were sold for a song when Union Air fell over

[Guptar]

Mike Jones in the US does a nice refurb on Chieftains and Navajos.

1983 PIPER NAVAJO CHIEFTAIN Piston Twin Aircraft For Sale At Controller.com (http://www.controller.com/listingsdetail/aircraft-for-sale/PIPER-NAVAJO-CHIEFTAIN/1983-PIPER-NAVAJO-CHIEFTAIN/1268613.htm?dlr=1&pcid=1000423)

[Tinstaafl]

Mike Jones does a nice job with his 'Lock & Key' aircraft. I've been flying &/or managing one here in the US for the last 6 years or so. Expensive though. This one is a low time (~2500 hrs when purchased) 1980 PA31-325 with the Colemill Panther upgrades. I really like what Colemill have done to improve the PA31 series and the Mike Jones' stuff adds a nice touch.

Mike Jones bought the Colemill STCs after Colemill were flooded.

[43Inches]

It's interesting there's not much more talk on the inter-coolers fitted as part of the lock & key mods. I heard they add quite a significant performance boost alone without the other additions such as 4 blades and winglets.

Have a few hours in RUH before its refurb, always flew straight, no VGs so a little extra speed, low basic weight, was a good little workhorse. The previous tail art made it stand out a little.

[Tinstaafl]

This one is an earlier Lock & Key so no intercoolers. It was prior to the glass panel revolution so the only flight instrument that's electronic is the HSI. No EDM either but I had the owner put in a JPI unit when I took over looking after it. Interestingly, it's factory approved for LOP. I didn't like doing that on the single point EGT & CHT it had, hence the JPI EDM-760. 170 kts @ 27-28 GPH is great.

The only other thing I added is an assigned altitude indicator I made from an electro-mechanical digit selector I bought at an electronics surplus shop. Just like the ones I'm used to from Oz!