Cyclone Tracy 1974
Thread Starter
Maj-Gen Alan Stretton AO CBE (1922 - 2012)
We record the passing of Major-General Alan Bishop Stretton AO CBE, born Melbourne 30 September 1922, passed away at Batemans Bay, NSW on 26 October 2012. Maj-Gen Stretton was Director General of the National Disasters Organisation at the time of Cyclone Tracy.
RIP
RIP
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Yes this time 40 years ago, Noel Bradford and I were in the DoNT Transport Compound on the Cnr of Bagot Road and Stuart Highway trying to find a number of Toyota Landcruisers with fuel in them so they could be used as emergency vehicles. A lot of them had not been refuelled the days before so were useless. We ended up with about 10 vehicles.
Last edited by mmciau; 26th Dec 2014 at 08:30. Reason: Correct name
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Memories
It was about this time 40 years ago two QLD LEOs knocked on my door and advised me my presence was required back at Airmovements Amberley, "immediately" and that I should get going. Thus began many weeks of frantic non-stop turning aircraft around, dealing with all sorts, throwing journalists out of the Front Office, watching a Flt Lt knock himself out on the tines of a forklift playing volley ball, ahhhhh, the memories 
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Evac Flights DRW Cyclone
Bit late here I know but!
Just to get your list up to date, I was the FO on an F27 evac, ferry to ASP out of ADL, full house + ASP/ADL ----- 68 POB
Ansett VH-FNU 29/12/1974
PIC asked me what our weight was - tongue in cheek reply 1kg under MTOW
0 wet T/O
Cheers.
Just to get your list up to date, I was the FO on an F27 evac, ferry to ASP out of ADL, full house + ASP/ADL ----- 68 POB
Ansett VH-FNU 29/12/1974
PIC asked me what our weight was - tongue in cheek reply 1kg under MTOW
0 wet T/O
Cheers.
leftfronside.
Just as well the Capt was not Capt Zero. If you told him 1 kg over, a
kg would have been found to off load.
Good old FNU, the ex French F27.
Your 68 with a few personal effects would have been ok. Ops Engineering did all the sums for 128 on the F28-1000 and 312 on the B727-200.
Prior to Tracey the AN record on the F27 was 60 school children on a local flight at ASP with Capt Cr....... K....
I did 46 between WNY and LST due to an overbooking ex KNS.
They were the days you could do what ever you liked without any problems from the company and DCA/CASA whatever they were.
I also liked flying VFR between WNY and DPO and vv well below the LSALT over water in the Viscount and later in the F27.
Just as well the Capt was not Capt Zero. If you told him 1 kg over, a
kg would have been found to off load.
Good old FNU, the ex French F27.
Your 68 with a few personal effects would have been ok. Ops Engineering did all the sums for 128 on the F28-1000 and 312 on the B727-200.
Prior to Tracey the AN record on the F27 was 60 school children on a local flight at ASP with Capt Cr....... K....
I did 46 between WNY and LST due to an overbooking ex KNS.
They were the days you could do what ever you liked without any problems from the company and DCA/CASA whatever they were.
I also liked flying VFR between WNY and DPO and vv well below the LSALT over water in the Viscount and later in the F27.
Last edited by B772; 28th Dec 2014 at 10:52. Reason: Spelling
Thread Starter
leftfrontside
Many thanks for your contribution. It's never too late and I will happily add it to the list.
One of the frustrations of this project has been the lack of documentation of the Ansett contribution to the evacuation. Any others out there?
Rgds
Many thanks for your contribution. It's never too late and I will happily add it to the list.
One of the frustrations of this project has been the lack of documentation of the Ansett contribution to the evacuation. Any others out there?
Rgds
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Pilots' wives
Hello all,
I'm a bit new to this pprune stuff, but I'm wondering if anybody here know of any pilots that were stationed in DRW at the time of Tracy?
I am looking to get the story of their wives living through the cyclone.
I'd be very grateful if anybody know how to find Arthur Reddicks family also.
Kind regards
Kathy
I'm a bit new to this pprune stuff, but I'm wondering if anybody here know of any pilots that were stationed in DRW at the time of Tracy?
I am looking to get the story of their wives living through the cyclone.
I'd be very grateful if anybody know how to find Arthur Reddicks family also.
Kind regards
Kathy
Last edited by kmx; 2nd Jan 2015 at 13:08.
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Fris B,
There's a website called "Spirits of Ansett".
While there's nothing to do with 'Tracy' on there that I'd noticed, a question on there could produce some results for you.
There's a website called "Spirits of Ansett".
While there's nothing to do with 'Tracy' on there that I'd noticed, a question on there could produce some results for you.
Thread Starter
Folks
I am receiving a few PMs with additional relief flights and while this is most appreciated, I really need a name to "validate" the claim. To avoid exposing your identity, it is preferable that you send me an email via my profile. This way I can also give credit where credit is due.
Rgds
I am receiving a few PMs with additional relief flights and while this is most appreciated, I really need a name to "validate" the claim. To avoid exposing your identity, it is preferable that you send me an email via my profile. This way I can also give credit where credit is due.
Rgds
Connair Flights to Darwin after Tracy
I have only recently found this thread, I don't often visit Prune these days. I checked my old old log book and noted that I was a first officer with Bob Forman the Captain on a Connair Heron VH-CLX that departed Alice Springs late on Christmas day dropped into Tennant Creek for Police Uniforms and equipment and arrived in Darwin just after dawn on the 26th of December.
We spent a few days evacuating indigenous people to Bathurst Island and my log book says I flew VH-CLT with Bob Bennett back to Alice Springs
There was a second heron that departed Alice about the same time, VH-CLV and it went via Katherine, they arrived in Darwin before us I believe, this was crewed by Captain Bob Bennett and FO Mark Rindfleish (later Ansett DFO and Jetstar Chief Pilot)
The RAAF tower was back in operation by the time we arrived, and most GA aircraft had already been bulldozed into a drainage ditch to clear the apron.
We spent a few days evacuating indigenous people to Bathurst Island and my log book says I flew VH-CLT with Bob Bennett back to Alice Springs
There was a second heron that departed Alice about the same time, VH-CLV and it went via Katherine, they arrived in Darwin before us I believe, this was crewed by Captain Bob Bennett and FO Mark Rindfleish (later Ansett DFO and Jetstar Chief Pilot)
The RAAF tower was back in operation by the time we arrived, and most GA aircraft had already been bulldozed into a drainage ditch to clear the apron.
I am not able to verify this, but I have a feeling Hank Van Der Maas and George Washington did some of the early Connair DC3 flights into Darwin after Tracey (not, as crew together).
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Cyclone Tracy
KMX. I was in Darwin as a DC3 Connair Captain & lived with my wife & children there when cyclone came. If you are still looking for wives to talk to she would be happy to talk to you.
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They were 2 of the DC3 pilots who flew in & out of Darwin after Tracy along with Christine Davy, David Frederiksen, John Myers, Tim Georgetti, John Hansen, Larry Olajos, Bruce MacRae, Peter Nairn, Howard Raven to name a few.
Slight thread drift I know, but I thought you would like another quote from that wonderful book “Beyond the Blue Horizon” by Guardian journalist Alexander Frater, that documented his attempt to retrace the original 1930’s Imperial Airways route from London to Brisbane in 1983. Here we have him in Darwin and talking to “Ossie” Osgood, owner of Arnhem Air Charter, on Cyclone Tracy:
“I lost one of my engineers that night- his house fell on him. When they found him he was holding his dead baby in his arms. Things were pretty bad at the airport too. All my aircraft were wrecked. One finished up on top of a Friendship and another screwed its tail through the hangar wall. After the storms the looters came. You wouldn’t credit what they stole. I walked around with a pistol in my pocket and slept on a camp bed with an M16 beside me.
Gough Whitlam declared us a national emergency and ordered that all available resources be poured into Darwin. The only thing he hadn’t reckoned on were the civil servants. I went and told them I’d lost my roof and needed some tarpaulins. But they didn’t give me tarpaulins, what they gave me were forms! Forms! It was their finest hour. Then, one sunny day long after Tracy was just a bad memory, a truck pulled up outside and the driver said “Mr Osgood, here are the tarpaulins you indented for- Can you sign here, here, here and here.””
“I lost one of my engineers that night- his house fell on him. When they found him he was holding his dead baby in his arms. Things were pretty bad at the airport too. All my aircraft were wrecked. One finished up on top of a Friendship and another screwed its tail through the hangar wall. After the storms the looters came. You wouldn’t credit what they stole. I walked around with a pistol in my pocket and slept on a camp bed with an M16 beside me.
Gough Whitlam declared us a national emergency and ordered that all available resources be poured into Darwin. The only thing he hadn’t reckoned on were the civil servants. I went and told them I’d lost my roof and needed some tarpaulins. But they didn’t give me tarpaulins, what they gave me were forms! Forms! It was their finest hour. Then, one sunny day long after Tracy was just a bad memory, a truck pulled up outside and the driver said “Mr Osgood, here are the tarpaulins you indented for- Can you sign here, here, here and here.””