The first question is, is Roy Goon in the photo below - front row second from right? I took the photo from a display at a Whyalla museum last month. I ask because my Father learnt to fly at the Whyalla Aero Club and he says that Roy was an instructor there at some stage, I would like to know what period of time Roy may have served at the club. One eminent student he may have taught was a local boy, Ian McRitchie, who went on to be shot down in a Mosquito during the famous Operation Jerico raid on the Amiens prison, maybe he's posing in the photo as well.
I see it written on the internet that Roy was based in Whyalla while flying for the Royal Flying Doctor Service in 1958. I think this is in error, Whyalla had no Flying Doctor based there, the only aircraft based locally in 1958 was an Auster registered VH-KBH belonging to Silver City Air Taxi which was available for charter and did a daily run to Port Pirie to pick up newspapers. Silver City Air Taxi did have a variety of Cessna 180 (VH_RFE, RFD, RFF) aircraft which rotated from their main base at Broken Hill to Port Augusta which did Royal Flying Doctor work. As a lad I knew most, if not all, the pilots who rotated through Whyalla and Port Augusta, Dick Dennis (CP I think), Geoff Wallace (killed in a PNG Piaggio crash, not found for some years), Ross Tilly (formed Rossair), Peter Legge (later Ansett Electra freighter), Brian Stokel (later TAA), Bob Beattie (later cropdusting Parafield - Robbys?) and a few others.
My Father Whyalla Aero Club some time during the late thirties, the club took delivery of this particular Tiger in October 1936.
If there is any book available on Roy's life I would be most interested.
I did meet Roy as he was an instructor, CFI actually, at Royal Vic when I did my Navy flight grading in October 1966, my personal instructor was Clem Atkins. Was in the control tower one day when some particularly nasty weather was passing through and the controllers were frantic because one aircraft was still airborne, they all sighed and visibly relaxed when they found it was Roy, nothing to worry about.
Thanks all.