IPEC Aviation C-47/DC-3
 

Any Pprunes know how many DC-3/ C-47’s IPEC Aviation operated, and what routes did they use them on?

IPEC was formed in 1976 to operate the bass strait freight service linking Essendon Airport with Launceston.
The Interstate Parcel Express Company did most of their flying to Tassie. They acquired Fleet Air Services of Tasmania in 1977
they had a DC-3 VH-EWE and they painted it in the yellow top colour scheme. In 76 they already had 3 Argosys VH-BBA, IPA, IPB.
Then the DC-9s followed VH-IPF, IPC.
I remember in 76 Essendon had quite a variety of DC-3 operators. IPEC, BBA, Set Air, Forrestair, Paradac, Masling.
BBA Brain & Brown was the oldest airline started in 1949-1979.
That as much I can throw towards your question.

That takes us back aways to the days of Phil, Terry, et al. Wonderful times.

Is Barry Bell still around these days. I think he was a prime mover behind the Antique movement?

I managed to hitch a ride on a night freight run to Tulla in the early 80's and was allowed to see the flight deck of the Argosy that was on the ramp. What an experience! Certainly helped motivate me to keep spending the dollars to keep flying.

How long did Alan Frank spend with Ipec on the Argosy, guess he is long past now. First knew him in his Associated Airlines days when flying the Heron.

Thank god I passed on that one.

In the early 80s we used to operate through Adelaide about the same time in the evening as the IPEC Argosy departed. I don't think I've ever heard a more efficient converter of kerosene into noise!

The Argosy = 4 dog whistles that created constant noise with variable fuel flow !

Wasn't it known as the ArgoSlug?

Whistling Wheelbarrow

A couple of memories.

Many years ago as a F.S.O working the airspace between YMML and YPAD in the summer months, in the late afternoon/early evening ATC would call on the hotline intercom "details without notice IPA" etc as the Argosys weren't able to climb into CTA or remain there when the temps got quite high.

Had many beers with Jack Mcdonald at the cockpit bar at Essendon airport. One evening a group of us were having a couple of cleansing ales when Jack walked in after a training session during his DC9 conversion. "'The book says on RWY 26 i can get to just before V1, abort and not run of the end of the runway onto the Tulla freeway. F...ing bull****" or words to that effect.

Saw Jack flying at the Caboolture airshow in a Bristol bi plane ( i think.) a couple of years ago. I think the announcer said Jack was 88 at the time.

Cheers Hoss.

Another tale relating to Jack's DC9 endorsement ... he was having a problem here and there (apparently the TAA box was somewhere between dreadful and atrocious - I never had a drive of it so I can only relate second hand tales). Then came the standby power/instruments work .. Jack came into IPEC after that session with a grin from ear to ear ... "Mate, it flies just like a real aeroplane". Thereafter, it was plain sailing for good chap.

Jack turned 90 this year and has had a hip replacement carried out. He's still in fine form although a bit challenged by the results of the op.

The Argosy only climbed due to the curvature of the earth.

The Argosy first segment was a bit of an issue taking off from runway 34 at YMML. However it provoked my interest in performance that thanks to John Tullamarine has been very beneficial to my career in aviation.

It was a bit parochial to some extent, I guess, but operational management took the view that IPEC would keep the AFM first segment not worse than the runway slope for the old Queen of the Skies. The idea was that this approach would maintain a level of risk similar to that pertaining for a level runway. On occasion, that resulted in a dollar penalty but corporate risk assessment accepted that as being appropriate. MEL34, being a regular runway, was one of the concerns we had which led to the operational management decision.

The Argosy was a bit unusual in that the first segment went on and on for a bit and the concern was that there was no need to risk an encounter of the close kind in the event of an early failure and, say, a bit of turbulence to make things untidy (turbulence being a close cousin to MEL34) .... I'd need to pull out an AFM from the bottom drawer of the dungeon to check but, as I recall, the first segment generally approximated something in the order of half a mile. We did a number of things which were a little more conservative than what might have been adopted by other operators.

Good to see you are still in the game, Dick. Trust life is treating you well as we all get older and older ....

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Those were the Days .

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