Balus Facebook Page

[Balus - PNG Aviation]

If anyone is interested in looking at vintage photographs and video in Papua New Guinea, then have a look here.

You will not find the video footage anywhere else.

The early pioneers flying junkers etc around Papua New Guinea in the 30's

Hope you like the material.

Please move this to the correct forum if I have posted in the incorrect place.

https://www.facebook.com/PNGBalus

https://www.facebook.com/PNGBalus/photos_albums

If you have any aviation photos taking in Papua New Guinea, please post them here.

Cheers

Shags

[alisoncc]

Here's a couple that might be of interest taken in 1971. Malarial Tours BN2A.

http://users.on.net/~alisoncc/tpng2.jpg

A SPAC Cherokee PA28 at Tapini
http://users.on.net/~alisoncc/tpng5.jpg

PS. Book of handwritten words would indicate it was ZH-PPT - 3rd solo nav exercise.

[Allan Lupton]

Great fun!
When we were defining what became the BAe 146 we thought ANG was going to be a good prospect and in the early 1980s we took one there to demonstrate.
My sense of history said we should visit Lae City and we did - the first jet aeroplane to go there and probably the last! No jet fuel there of course but we'd only got to go back to Moresby so not a problem, even with the Lae runway shortened by placing a row of concrete blocks across it.

[tail wheel]

When we were defining what became the BAe 146 we thought ANG was going to be a good prospect and in the early 1980s we took one there to demonstrate.

I believe I rode on one of the demo flights, although I thought it was Goroka - Port Moresby? May be mistaken.....

...visit Lae City and we did - the first jet aeroplane to go there and probably the last!

Not quite. A number of jets operated into the old Lae town airport, ranging from a Cessna Citation to the Fokker F28.

Something of historical interest in that photo. BN2 Islander VH-ATZ won it's class in the London to Sydney Air Race, I think around 1968? In that photo it still wears it's race number "72". Below the registration, white letters on a blue back ground, is an announcement to the effect that aircraft won the London to Sydney Air Race.

[Allan Lupton]

Quote Tail Wheel:
I believe I rode on one of the demo flights, although I thought it was Goroka - Port Moresby? May be mistaken.....

Yes, we also did Moresby-Goroka-Moresby and if we could post photos here directly I'd post one of our aeroplane at Goroka with me talking to Buck Buchanan, Hugo Berghauser and Matthew Bendumb.

[alisoncc]

Something of historical interest in that photo. BN2 Islander VH-ATZ won it's class in the London to Sydney Air Race, I think around 1968? In that photo it still wears it's race number "72".

IIRC Alpha Tango Zulu's trip out wasn't considered anything out of the ordinary. The long-range fuel tanks down the middle of the fuselage were someting else again. (Not a typo). Remember helping to pull out empty ones after a delivery/ferry flight from the UK in 1970. It would have been a magic trip.

[tail wheel]

Allan.

You can post photos here via a hosting site. PM me for details or email the photo and I'll post it for you.

It was Sir Ranald Dennis Buchanan, Dennis or "Junior" to all and sundry. Junior died of leukaemia on 28 August 2001 aged 68.

Dennis Buchanan (http://www.muswellbrook.org.au/halloffame/print/65.asp?cat=65&picture=65)

I remember Hugo (later Sir Hugo - titles come cheap!) and his waxed moustache and Mathew Bendumb (later Sir Mathew) who was in reality quite dumb. Mathew was briefly the Minister for Transport and Member for Bullolo Open Electorate. Junior and I had more than a few problems with Bendumb and the relationship became extremely strained. Indeed, I think Bendumb may have tried to have me turfed out of PNG.

Junior received a Knighthood to add to his MBE and Bendumb also received a Knighthood announced in The London Gazette of Friday, 28th December 1990. Bendumb died some years ago and his son and daughter both have political aspirations but can't seem to keep out of prison.

I was with Junior on that flight Goroka - Moresby.

I now think I remember meeting and talking to you? I still have the 146 tie and tie pin you gave me. I lived in PNG for twenty years.

Small world, eh?

[Allan Lupton]

Yes I know about hosting sites which I can't be bothered with and I even tried "dropbox" which failed to work. I'll try it here:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/1o1kzi0bluoo2t7/gorokas.JPG and it doesn't work.
If Bendumb tried to get you turfed out of PNG you must have achieved the ideal which was to be PNG in PNG as the diplomats put it.
I expect we talked as I feel I spoke to more or less everyone who flew with us - I'm not sure I can remember names after 31 years and I may have got 'em wrong as I seem to have with Buchanan, but I blame Norm Graef who was our man on the spot.
Some time before we had a 146 to demonstrate, our Chief Ops man, John Wilson, who had been co-pilot on the maiden flight of the DH106 Comet in 1949 came to see what I was letting the company in for. I think we went (in ANG F28s) to Mt Hagen and Madang as well as Goroka and Lae City where he and I agreed that the runway was long enough at a pinch for our Iron Bird, without moving the concrete blocks.
We also went to Manus Island, the airfield surface of which was reported to be a bit dodgy. While John and the aircrew were doing important things in the terminal shack, I set off on foot to take a few photos of the runway surface: I had just started when a large local in a pick-up truck came roaring up and asked me what I was doing. I explained who I was and what I was up to, as he had a couple of shotguns on the seat next to him and the man with the gun is always right.
“O.K., hop in, and I'll take you to the other end – it's far worse than this.” He turned out to be the airport manager and was hoping that an adverse report would help him get his runway upgraded.

I'm rambling . . .

Yes, small world, but the former aviation people never quite let go.

[tail wheel]

Norm Graef. I knew Norm when he worked for Dennis "Biscuit Ears" Douglas at Aerial Tours/Douglas Airways.

Manus is now the rather controversial temporary home to some 3,000 illegal immigrants from Australia.

[alisoncc]

I knew Norm when he worked for Dennis "Biscuit Ears" Douglas at Aerial ToursAerial Electronics PLC was a subsidiary of Aerial Tours that carried out avionics work. Their workshops were located underneath DD's house. Used to call around there quite often forty odd years ago. I think Ray Shaw was AT's Ch Eng at the time.

[tail wheel]

Here is Allan's photo of the BAe 146 demonstrator in Goroka, PNG:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v315/Woomera/PPRuNe/goroka_zps4087000a.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/Woomera/media/PPRuNe/goroka_zps4087000a.jpg.html)

I flew Goroka to Port Moresby on that aircraft and Allan kindly gave me a BAE146 tie, although I may have given him a Talair tie??

I can identify Mathew Bendumb who was Minister for Transport at the time and Hugo Berghauser who was also Minister for something or perhaps on the Board of Air Niugini but I can't pick the guy who is back on (there is a very vague chance it may be me??)

P.S. Had another look, nope, I'm sure it was not me!

[Allan Lupton]

Thanks for posting that, tail wheel!
Exchange of ties reminds me of swapping cuff-links with an ANG F28 Captain which reduced us both to helpless laughter as neither of us had even seen a long-sleeved shirt for years. Still got my ANG cuff-links.
Elsewhere on this site there's this photo of our aeroplane at Lae City:
http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r68/sabrejet/146lae2s.jpg