If you dont mind me asking, what happend to Humphrey Maltman? I did my aero endorsement at FTA and he seemed like a real character.

RIP Barry, tragic loss, it never fails to stun me that so often it is the most experienced chaps that we lose. Col Pay, now Barry...

G'day Denning, Humphrey died in June of this year from pancreatic cancer. Search the forum under "Another Final Flight".

As someone else has already said, the Archerfield flying scene is very much poorer for experience and characters with the passing of Barry and Humphrey; they are sorely missed.

Suddenly AF seems a very different place.....

I did a rating renewal and some Pitts aeros with a checkride with Barry, while I was flying out of AF with jetCraft.

RIP Barry.

RIP Barry, my condolences to his family, and that of his passenger.

AF isn't going to be the same....

Barry was a top bloke A man who lived life to the limit and beyond.
On ya Barry. Cheers and say hi to our friends waiting for you there. I'm sure they'll have a chair and a drink waiting for you.

See you there

RIP Baz.............. VH-AEA VH-SUV...............those were the days

Aus':sad:

RIP Barry. I have fond memories of getting my tail dragger endorsement on the Tiger Moth with him.

Barry was extraordinary in skill & ability as a pilot. I did a number of twin endos with him and tailwheel in the tiger moth too. Indeed AF will not be the same without him.

I remember attending an airshow in Rockhampton with him about 13 years ago where, due weather, some of the other exhibtors/performers that were booked were unable to attend. So Barry filled in, first in the tiger moth, out of that into the Yak, out of the Yak into the Harvard, and then into the Mig. Then he did it allagain that afternoon. The endurance of the man was something on that day.

I was lucky enough to ride home to BNE in the Mig 15 with him the next day. While preparing for the flight, I asked him what happens if we have an engine failure ... his response was, without hesitation, "we die".

There will be many airshows/fly-ins that will notice his absence - like Raglan (Old Station) etc.

Farewell Barry - RIP.

Dear Fellow Aviators,

I would like to thank you all for the kind words you have had to say about Barry and the family. I know that he will sorely be missed by all of us here at Archerfield and especially the Hempels crew. Barry was many great things to many, many people and the sympathy and condolences flooding through the phones are just further proof. We have stood down yesterday and today as a mark of respect for Barry and the passenger on board and will re-open as usual from the end of the week. Although it will be very hard for us emotionally, we will carry on operating into the future without our namesake. I would like to say that we are all still in shock and disbelief over what happened and I can say that it is only just starting to sink in now that the wreckage has been found. Once again thank you for the kind words…


Mike Lawrence
Chief Pilot
Hempels Aviation

We are all thinking of you Mike, and the rest of the crew at Hempels. It is truly a loss for Australian Aviation. Good luck with everything and condolences to all involved.

Mins

Barry wasn't flying when I did some of my training at Hempel's, but I remember that if he was in the building, you were never in any doubt about his presence! A tremendous character with inspiring enthusiasm for all things aviation-related. A terribly sad loss.

He was a champion.A great loss to us all.Wont be much fun without seeing his face around there anymore..Any news on funeral dates?WILL MISS YA BAZ.....................

RIP Baz

It was a pleasure to know and fly with you. You will be incredibly missed.

hempel's Passenger
 

I have total sympathy for the Family of the Gentleman who was in the aircraft for his Birthday ride.

God Bless Him,

W4

Now someone with an ounce of intelligence would have just left it at that.:ugh:

Much Ado

Like countless others, I did a few endorsements etc with Barry. I looked up to him as a no nonsense type instructor, which was perfect when learning to handle aircraft such as the C185 & Pitts etc.

A story I once heard was that, after an impressive display in a Pitts at an airshow, a punter noticed Hempel's landing was a bit wobbly. The punter, on talking to Hempel, mentioned the great display but queried the rather rough landing. Barry pointed out that a cable of some description (was it trim or elevator?) had come off the stick or whatever and he managed to grab the cable somewhere down under the seat or similar and then land, and of course, make no fuss at all about it! May or may not be true, but, when I heard it, I didn't question it, I merely thought, "That sounds like him!"

This is a thread remembering a human being that contributed much to aviation.

Wombat 4 take a hint.

condolences to the families of all concerned

Sincerest condolences to those who were close to Barry.

Question to Mike Lawrence:-

Is there going to be a memorial service for Barry Hempel & are the public invited to attend?

I would personally like to come & pay my final respects to Barry & get some closure, not sure if anybody else feels the same way I do but we are all grieving over the loss of Barry in our own ways.

Any details would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers,

Julian