50 yrs since first flight of VH-FMM Airtourer prototype

[triadic]

Friday 10 April will mark the 50th anniversary since the first flight of the wooden Airtourer prototype VH-FMM affectionately know then and since as Foxtrot Mickey Mouse. Some publications note the date as 12 April, but this is incorrect.

Designer Henry Millicer (along with Gordon Bennett and James Tutty) was the winner of an award sponsored by the Lord Kemsley Flying Trust & the Royal Aero Club of the UK in 1952.

The very beginning of the Sports Aircraft Association, then known as the ULAA was with that group of folk that built the prototype in a yard at Williamstown (Vic) in the years leading up to that first flight.

Flight Lt Randy Green conducted the first official flight of 20 minutes, followed by two further flights of 40min and 20min the same day.

The aircraft is owned now by the Museum of Victoria and it is understood to be on display at the Navy Museum at Nowra.

There is much history and politics in the Airtourer story and it is perhaps another sad saga in the Australian Aviation industry.

Some pictures follow:
http://i460.photobucket.com/albums/qq325/hangar6/fmm01.jpg


http://i460.photobucket.com/albums/qq325/hangar6/fmm002.jpg

http://i460.photobucket.com/albums/qq325/hangar6/VH-FMM2.jpg

Those with an ongoing interest in the Airtourer, should visit the web site of the Airtourer Association (http://www.airtourer.asn.au) for further info. There are some 90 Airtourers in Australia now and a further dozen or so in NZ and a few more in the UK.

Friday the 10th will be a significant mile stone to be remembered.

:D:D:D:D

[tail wheel]

Henry Millicer (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Millicer)

Good reading:
Water under my wings:
Modern day aviators savour a little of those glorious and heroic years of aviation's infancy by Cliff Tait

Flight of the kiwi;
Around the world solo in a tiny single-engined plane by Cliff Tait.

[VictorGolf]

Triadic, you do us Poms an injustice. There are 12 airworthy Airtourers in the UK with3 more under restoration. Great little aircraft, I love mine to bits.

[Tmbstory]

I remember the time well, there was a lot of publicity about how the Airtourer was going to take over the majority of ab initio flying training in the Bankstown area but as time went by, it did not seem to do that.

Still, as you say, it is part of the Australian flying history.

Tmb

[QNIM]

Gday
I think it was the best ab initio trainer of its day, my early recollections of beautifully balanced light controls, though under powered, it taught you not to use even the tiniest of aileron to counter a wing drop, at the stall, it would just roll on its back. I have flown the model built for Singapore with 150 hp CSU great little aerobat. The loss to NZ was definitely our loss.
Cheers Q

[tio540]

I remember the time well, there was a lot of publicity about how the Airtourer was going to take over the majority of ab initio flying training in the Bankstown area but as time went by, it did not seem to do that.




At the time Cessna and Piper dropped their prices to put Victa out of business, as it was a looming threat. The RAAF only acquired the Victa Airtrainer from New Zealand, after it went bust in Australia. Henry Millicer, bless him, must have shed many a tear over that.

The RAN A4 Skyhawks were given to New Zealand, then were/are now leased back for exercises in Australia.

Does anyone remember the Oberon Submarine fleet where parts were pinched from the submarine gate guard in a country town, to enable serviceabilty?

We have a long history of giving stuff away and then buying it back.:bored:

[Peter Fanelli]

Victor Airtourer
Not Victor, Victa, as in the lawnmower.

http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s295/bigt57/victapic.jpg

[Jabawocky]

I love the PPE in that photo......nice thong...or thongs perhaps!:uhoh:

Ooooops about to get flogged I can tell!:eek:

[Sharpie]

Yes. Flew FMM at auckland Areo Club during its demo flight around the coutry and then later was part of an AAC Air Race(?) over auckland with Piper C90's. I flew one C90 and during the briefing(?) we were told to let FMM win. It did.
:rolleyes:

[Peter Fanelli]

I didn't even notice the thongs, I was fixated on other ummmmm items in the picture

:O


Those early Victas were deadly too as the blades were covered only from the top, not the sides.

[Neptunus Rex]

If I remember correctly, the Throttle Gate on the Victa Lawnmower was exactly the same as the Elevator Trim on the Victa aeroplane. I could be wrong, Anno Domini and all that...

In 1985 or so, I did my Grade 2 Instructor's test with a Government examiner.
We took off from RAAF Edinburgh on a 40 Celsius day, in J Mac's Airtourer; both of us were well proportioned gentlemen. I had briefed 'Steep Turns' and proceeded to patter the exercise at 4,000 ft. No way! I could not maintain speed in a steep turn at 4,000 ft in those temperatures; I said so. The examiner, a recently retired Army Air Corps pilot, said "Practice" and closed the throttle. He then told me to carry out a Practice Forced Landing, which was accomplished to a convenient paddock, with a go-around from the regulatory 300 feet. I then demonstrated my 'Steep Turn' exercise at 500 feet. What an afternoon!
By the way, I passed.

Cheers,

Neppie:cool:

[BULLDOG 248]

Does anyone remember Henry Millicers plans to Re-Engine/Shape the CT4 to extend it's life as a Trainer before the PC9.

[longrass]

No.... But id just like to say, thank you so much for this thread, it has made my day, yes..... im so happy now, tommorow is the 40th anniversary of the big hangar at oakey being built, wow....

[Disco Stu]

Neppy, the Trim Lever was I believe the Height Adjustment Lever from one of the companies other products.

1985 at Edinburgh, I can only remember 2 Airtourers there at that time and neither owned by Jmac, a rego would be good.

Bulldog, I think you are refering to the "Swift". I spent many hours with HKM sitting in the mockup doing the cockpit layout and seating position. It was a tandem seater and also had the side stick.

I have many hours in Airtourers and Airtrainers and with HKM and a Black Douglas, all of which were "enjoyable".

[tio540]

A bloke told me about an Airtourer pilot at 5000', stopped the prop, flipped on it's back, glided into the circuit inverted, turned upright on final, landed deadstick. He then rolled down the runway, into the hanger and over onto the chocks.

[Peter Fanelli]

Bull(cough)****!

[tio540]

I was in the right seat.:)

[PyroTek]

tio:
A bloke told me about an Airtourer pilot at 5000', stopped the prop, flipped on it's back, glided into the circuit inverted, turned upright on final, landed deadstick. He then rolled down the runway, into the hanger and over onto the chocks.
...
:ok:PyroTek

[HarleyD]

Happy Birthday to the Victa:ok:

Many enjoyable hours in almost all models of the Airtourer/Airtrainer. Excellent trainer, but a few more neddies would be nice (without any additional weight of course). Spinning was problematic in those early variants as it took forever to get up to 4500ft then it was all over so quickly in a couple of turns. Still, you had plenty of time for reflection as you ground your way back up for another one, if you could afford it. Cost about $10 or $11 bucks an hour I think, a bit less than a coffee and danish costs these days.

Just think, that Barbie doll pushing the Victa 18 would be in her eighties by now, have shrunk in height down to about 4 foot nothing, smell like cat pee, have a hearing aid, false teeth, glasses like coke bottles and those lovely pointy bits would be at waist level, but the mower probably has been lovingly restored and working just fine.

HD

[HarleyD]

Triadic,

Are those planes in the background in the first photo Wackets? Or are they something more exotic like a BA Eagle or miles falcon or similar?

HD

[Howard Hughes]

Saw the old girl at Nowra just last weekend!:ok:

[Disco Stu]

Why not Peter Fanelli

Possible on a bitumen runway with a hangar close by.

The aircraft will slow down without the use of brakes fairly quickly but will still roll 1000 - 1200 feet, or about 800-900 on grass.

Whilst the passage of time and attrition have thinned the numbers it is the actions of national regulatory authorities and in particular that abomination called EASA that is the greatest threat to the Airtourer.

I wonder how many will still be flying in another 50 years.

[triadic]

Back to the top.... Birthday tomorrow (10th)

:ok::ok::ok: :D:D:D:D :):):)

[Centaurus]

Flight Lt Randy Green conducted the first official flight of 20 minutes, followed by two further flights of 40min and 20min the same day.

Randy Green was my instructor at RAAF Central Flying School in 1955. That was on No 14 Flying Instructor's Course on Tiger Moths, Wirraways and an hour on the brand new Winjeels. Previously he flew Meteors during the Korean war and had also many hours on Mustangs and Mosquitos. He later completed the Empire Test Pilots Course in UK.

He was a fine instructor and we kept in touch for many years until he died a couple of years ago

[Disco Stu]

Happy Birthday Fox Mickey Mouse and all the other Airtourers around the world.:D:D:D:D:D

http://www.airliners.net/open.file?id=207712&WxsIERv=VmljdGEgQWlydG91cmVyIDExNQ%3D%3D&WdsYXMg=VW50aXRsZWQ%3D&QtODMg=S3luZXRvbiBNdW5pY2lwYWwgQWlycG9ydA%3D%3D&ERDLTkt=QXVzdHJhbGlhIC0gVmljdG9yaWE%3D&ktODMp=RGVjZW1iZXIgMjIsIDIwMDE%3D&BP=0&WNEb25u=UGV0ZXIgTWlsbHNvbQ%3D%3D&xsIERvdWdsY=VkgtUlFM&MgTUQtODMgKE=VGhlIHBpbG90IGdpdmVzIG1lIGEgcG9saXRlIHdhdmUgYXM gaGUgdGF4aSB0byBydW53YXkgMTguIFRoZXkgbG9vayBsaWtlIGFsb3Qgb2Y gZnVu&YXMgTUQtODMgKERD=MjE5&NEb25uZWxs=MjAwMS0xMi0yMg%3D%3D&ODJ9dvCE=&O89Dcjdg=&static=yes&size=L

[AIRTAM]

In discussing the 50th Anniversary of the first flight of the Victa Airtourer, mention should be made that on 11 November 1958, East-West Airlines announced they had purchased the manufacturing rights to the aircraft and would commence building them at their Tamworth base. A new company would be formed to undertake the construction and it was planned to build 12 in the first batch once Certification had been achieved. In early January 1959, enthusiastic announcements were made by the EWA General Manager, Captain Archie Smith about the manufacturing plans for the aircraft including the employment of 22 tradesmen to work on it's construction.

The Airtourer prototype arrived in Tamworth on 2 August 1959 where it commenced local flying but shortly afterwards, on the 22 August, the Airtourer suffered an engine failure and force landed in a local Tamworth paddock where it was substantially damaged. This mishap appeared to end East-West's interest in the aircraft and little was heard of it again in East-West circles.