The Home of Photos in Dunnunda! Mk I
Could I possibly be the only one who had the pleasure of doing the mail run in MEP AND AWS?
DF.
Join Date: Jun 2008
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Base Pilot's home airport Nusatupe
Terry Holt (The Yank) meeting the Metro at Munda
The Metro and South Pacific Air Race aircraft at Munda
Wendy and Terry Holt's 'Go Finish' Send-off in the 'Special Kai Room' in Chinatown, before they went back to Seattle.
Other pilots were all Metro pilots at some stage-
from L. - Dangerfield's g/f, Stuart, Wendy and Terry, Bruce, his wife, Peter, his wife, Peter, Jasper.
Terry Holt (The Yank) meeting the Metro at Munda
The Metro and South Pacific Air Race aircraft at Munda
Wendy and Terry Holt's 'Go Finish' Send-off in the 'Special Kai Room' in Chinatown, before they went back to Seattle.
Other pilots were all Metro pilots at some stage-
from L. - Dangerfield's g/f, Stuart, Wendy and Terry, Bruce, his wife, Peter, his wife, Peter, Jasper.
Last edited by frigatebird; 18th Feb 2010 at 21:18.
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OK FB, just so you don't feel alone, here are some oldies from PNG that might get a few folk wondering....
Must pay a credit to the photographer a Captain from Virgin Blue, I hope he does not mind me sharing them!
Pallazzo de Talair ..........
And this one should keep Forkie, Chuck and the other Bo lovers happy
And one last one for all the Bongo Van lovers out there.....You know who you are
So how is that Frigatebird? You have now exhausted my collection almost.....and its not really my collection.
J
Must pay a credit to the photographer a Captain from Virgin Blue, I hope he does not mind me sharing them!
Pallazzo de Talair ..........
And this one should keep Forkie, Chuck and the other Bo lovers happy
And one last one for all the Bongo Van lovers out there.....You know who you are
So how is that Frigatebird? You have now exhausted my collection almost.....and its not really my collection.
J
I ferried one of the ex-Panga Airways Islanders from Goroka to Brisbane once, but I think it was P2-PAC (became P2-ISO I think). 28 years ago, but I still have the ringing in my ears!
A loooooooong way at 130 knots.
A loooooooong way at 130 knots.
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O.K. Jaba, I take your point. Maybe my old red tinted ones don't hold as much interest for others as crisp digital photos, so can keep them off, I was no expert photographer anyway - they only bring up memories for me anyway.. was putting up some that I thought would be of general interest of an era past. One poster, Hempy, replied positively with suggestions.
I usually find any photo of an aircraft interesting, especially if there is some background given with it.
I usually find any photo of an aircraft interesting, especially if there is some background given with it.
Last edited by frigatebird; 5th Apr 2010 at 12:19.
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FB
What is your reason for being crabby at me?.....I am loving your old pictures.
You said..............
So I thought......you needed some company...you know ....Lets all join in on the old PNG pics! So they were the only ones I had and thought you might actually know some folk in them! Was just sharing!
I think you have mistaken me and taken my post the wrong way............so no hard feelings mate!
Get back to your scanner and send some more!
My problem is I have nothing new to add.....only flying was up your way last Wednesday.........and it was all white!
J
What is your reason for being crabby at me?.....I am loving your old pictures.
You said..............
Well, if nobody else will, I'll put up another couple..
I think you have mistaken me and taken my post the wrong way............so no hard feelings mate!
Get back to your scanner and send some more!
My problem is I have nothing new to add.....only flying was up your way last Wednesday.........and it was all white!
J
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Aaawwwhh, O.K. then, maybe I fired up quickly..
The Cook and the Foreman at the construction camp at Cape Flattery, when we were flying the boilermakers, fitters and riggers, morning and afternoon to and from Cooktown in '86 in Titans and Navajos with Sunbird..
the mosquitos at Cooktown airport when we were refuelling on dark for the next days early morning start were humungeous..
The Cook and the Foreman at the construction camp at Cape Flattery, when we were flying the boilermakers, fitters and riggers, morning and afternoon to and from Cooktown in '86 in Titans and Navajos with Sunbird..
the mosquitos at Cooktown airport when we were refuelling on dark for the next days early morning start were humungeous..
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So ya like 'em old... here's some.
Hell Jabba that TAL mess looks like the Moresby Stol mess in 1969.
Who tidied ya room?
Now what would the OH&S old dears think of this.
Funny thing... he's still alive and going strong.
I have a bunch of DVDs of Pre and post war PNG aviation photos and movies from 1033 to 1977 sitting here waiting to go into a post pack. If you want them PM me.
Sixties
Hell Jabba that TAL mess looks like the Moresby Stol mess in 1969.
Who tidied ya room?
Now what would the OH&S old dears think of this.
Funny thing... he's still alive and going strong.
I have a bunch of DVDs of Pre and post war PNG aviation photos and movies from 1033 to 1977 sitting here waiting to go into a post pack. If you want them PM me.
Sixties
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Frigatebird & sixtiesrelic,you guys are fan-flaming-tastic!!
Many of us have been following your pictorial histories for a long time & the memories are the best.
Somehow,the old faded photos seem to add to the nostalgia.
Please,find & post more....and anyone else who have got shoe boxes full of old piccys,get them up for the enjoyment of hundreds of fellow aviators.
Many of us have been following your pictorial histories for a long time & the memories are the best.
Somehow,the old faded photos seem to add to the nostalgia.
Please,find & post more....and anyone else who have got shoe boxes full of old piccys,get them up for the enjoyment of hundreds of fellow aviators.
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Metro capable PNG strips
Frigatebird,
Having grown up and flown in PNG I wonder if you would be prepared to guess how many strips the Metro could safely and legally fly into and out of in PNG? I am talking about the real law not the law according to Junior.
Groggy
Having grown up and flown in PNG I wonder if you would be prepared to guess how many strips the Metro could safely and legally fly into and out of in PNG? I am talking about the real law not the law according to Junior.
Groggy
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Even Junior didn't want it, but it came down to either pay 2 million U.S. and get it with a spare engine, or half a million and get nothing.. Horses for Courses really, we were the driver meat in the sandwich who had to try and make it work when it arrived. Even Milesey was sent down to lend a hand.... We were getting a better run out of ours, because of the long sectors, than Bushies were, operating theirs on short hops up and down the Queensland coast at the time. It flew mainly Honiara - Munda - Kieta (320 miles)-return, daily, sometimes twice daily to connect with Air Pacific's BAC 111 then 737-200 to and from Brisbane (cheaper for the copper miners than going over though Moresby and down to Brisbane with Air Niugini), also gave a connection to Vanuatu and Fiji (and N.Z.) on those days, and twice weekly Honiara - Santo -Vila (about 700 miles) -return, as well as Charters to Brisbane, Nadi and Nauru, which were mainly at night because the aircraft was committed to its regular schedule during daylight hours. With an Islander based at Gizo to feed Western traffic to it both ways as well, that helped keep the loads up. When it was out of service for a year in '85, we operated a Bandit sent down, but it didn't carry any more pax than the Metro over those routes, was slower, cruised lower, and didn't have the good autopilot or Omega for S.P. work. Mind you, the strips used were all longer ones, International Airports of Entry, the only grass strip used by the Metro sometimes was Kira Kira. I like Bandits, have plenty of time on them, and can understand how they did so well. Of the four types evaluated for the first turbine, KingAir, Twin Otter, Bandeirante and Metro before selection, they would all have been compromised in some way by the route requirement for number of seats, Stol versus Speed/Range, unpressurised versus pressurised, etc. No, I couldn't see a Metro 2 being used to the same places in P.N.G. as the Bandit was so successfully, for so long. (Perhaps with the optional JATO Rocket installed in the tail, and it and the Water/Meth used for every takeoff at altitude.. just joking.. 
)Comes back to what you're given, and the environment you operate in. Always got plenty of stick from our brothers over the border because we were operating a one-off in the organisation.. But the ordinary drivers had no say in the selection,..
Metro 2 at Kieta, with PNG Customs, Immigration and Quarantine officers, and refuellers.
)Comes back to what you're given, and the environment you operate in. Always got plenty of stick from our brothers over the border because we were operating a one-off in the organisation.. But the ordinary drivers had no say in the selection,..Metro 2 at Kieta, with PNG Customs, Immigration and Quarantine officers, and refuellers.
Last edited by frigatebird; 23rd Feb 2010 at 12:55.
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Posted since I know at least one Prooner laments opportunities missed. From an acquaintance who purchased the aircraft circa 1960s for US$1,000 and flew it for a brief time before the dreaded "D" intervened, requiring mandatory division of assets. Now resides in the US Navy museum, Pensacola.
