I thought doctors assessed the need fpr a medical evacuation. Do you fellows have medical degrees?

Capt Wal
yes mainly on the PC's at the moment as we have new arrivals and they start out on the PC's then after 3 to 4 months go on to the B200.
New Eba starting soon so that should be interesting.
cheers

Airmed I gather yr comfy with the PC12? I know when they where setting up the tender here in ML for the 2000 start date the idea of SE planes was thrown out the window by the Ambulance union as in they said their members wouldn't want to fly in a SE plane 24/7. I know the PC12 shtis on the B200 in most area's bar one!;) There's nothign else made new that can do the task other than the B200 & at $8 mill a 'pop' set up as an aeromed craft their not cheap!

All the best with yr EBA 'Airmed', it's getting interesting ozzy wide money wise. Would be nice to be paid more for doing a lot more than most drivers esspecially SP ops. Best job under the sun, HH knows only too well that where else can you sleep during yr shift?:ok:

'Milk' yeah I too wonder what happened to Mr Bell, a mystery for sure. How many planes I wonder he imported over the years?

'bushy' no pilot has any formal med training, we do pick a lot of general knowledge however. We don't make the med decisions at all but we are kept in the loop as the pilot obvioulsy has the final say as to whether the task can be completed safely.
You will find that most RFDS pilots have at some time or other refused to carry a person on the grounds of safety. Drunk & abusive patients whom haven't be tubed (mechanicl breathing assistance) are the worst.



CW

Hi there again Capt.
I applied for a job at your section several times but with no answer from the head guy, I think I know the reasons.
back to ymmb it is sad to drive down there now and just see what is gone from the place, but I suppose this progress of some sort.

'air med' Pm me when you can, it's not what you know it's who you know in this industry!:ok:.

If you think YMMB has changed, come see YMEN sometime, I still remember when it was an airport !:bored: We've been "out-Foxed" !



CW

YMMB - Harry Hawker
 

So what did the guy use the two Twin Bonanza's VH-CLN/M for charter work or freight?
They used to sound magic going out of YMMB on a cold day, nothing like copious amounts of avgas being converted into noise!

I know the pilot that used to fly the twin Bonanza's, they used to use them for charter.

tnxs 'fantome', appreciated


CW

When was 35C/17C closed and converted into the taxiway?

No kidding, really?

:E

Who was the guy that used to go and do the air sampling for the CSIRO down south of King Island in the Cessna C310?

It took me a moment to realise why that is funny PF :D

CLM/N were operated by Bassair, a King Island based operator. They also had, at various times, a C172, a C210, a C336, a C310, a Dove and the Twin Bonanzas (both ex Connellans' in the Alice. All aircraft were available for general charter but their mainstay work was flying fresh fruit and veges into KI and flying live crays and abalone to the Melbourne fish markets on almost a daily basis.

Bulldog, I flew at PAS in the 115's, remember Bill's day by day stories.
Apart from the Moorabbin facility he had a few toys, one being a Ryan with a transverse 4 in it which masked the rudder, but that's another story.

He certainly had some connection with Tyabb, but I think he may have been just storing the Ryan etc there because it would only appear at the MB workshop now and then

Remember one ATC strike, where MB was operating as a non controlled aerodrome. Operations were only allowed between first and last light. Traffic info was given by ML FSU. Departed just before last light, and noticed an aircrafts lights coming towards the field. Learnt later that it was a Seneca 1, which arrived after last light having cancelled sarwatch on last light supposely at YMMB. Arrived a good 15 mins after last light and in the landing flew it on nose wheel first, fairly heavy, which caused the nose wheel to collapse. The fire service turned out, but there was no fire or injuries, and as the passengers and pilot disembarked, a Departmental vehicle pulled up and a tall Yorkshire man got out, asked who the pilot was, and then introduced himself, "Hello, my name is Fred Fox, Senior Examiner of Airman, we need to have a talk!!!!!". Fred had stood out the front of the Briefing Office and watched the approach.

On the Sen Comms course in 82, Tony Roberts showed pics of his first Robertson Stol 185, tail-up and sinking, taken from the freighter it ditched alongside halfway between the mainland and Hawaii. The ferry tank hadn't fed when selected. Believe he got his second tricked-out one delivered later O.K.

And who could forget the meteoric Pete Smith and the mobile run ups

wallsofchina......I dont remember the Ryan. What year would that of been??? Go ahead the stories though.
justapplhere.......Your right on there...I had forgotten him. Was the great Fred Fox the first of a couple of FOI's to pass away around that time???

Bulldog, it was 1969/70 when the Ryan appeared. He'd restored it, but with a
Continental (I think) engine. It had a polished aluminium skin.

I remember him chuckling one day after an inspector came out (Can't remember whether it was DCA/DOT etc) for a Certificate of Airworthiness flight test.

He said when the guy got back on the ground he wanted to fight Bill. He'd put it in a spin and couldn't get out. He said Bill was lucky he didn't just bail out and leave it to drop.

Bill had done it before, but hadn't told him the engine masked the rudder and the only way to get out was a burst of full throttle.

Wallsofchina.....I saw a Ryan at Tyabb 15-20 years ago??? Would that be the same one. I lived in Geelong many years ago and an old guy from down there owned a couple of them after the war. A bit before my time, but my dad still remembers them being flown out of the Belmont Common Airport.

I worked for Bill Surh in '71 and if I remember correctly he fitted the Ryan with an anti-spin chute for a while. I think it had an external cable down the side of the fuselage. Bill was quite a character and loved the odd-ball aeroplanes, RC-3 Seabee, DO-27, and the cargo version of the Fletcher the FU-24A. I flew the Seabee and the Fletcher for him, interesting days. The Fletcher was a single seater and I just got in it and flew away. Later we learnt we needed a letter in writing from Freddie Fox to do that, I received my appproval after flying it for a month! Fred found out and gave me a right bollocking over the phone and said, "he would be watching me". As a very young bloke at the time I was scared stiff of him. Now it just makes me laugh.

By George, I flew with Russell Collins, good instructor. Was he still there when you were?

Yes Bill was a devil - Roadrunner to Freddie Fox's Coyote - those really were the days.

Bulldog, if the Ryan at Tyabb has cylinders out in the breeze, that was probably it.

Wallsofchina, I cannot remember a Rus Collins but having said that the name rings a bell. I worked with John Flemming and Mal Cox, both doing my Instructor Rating. John was killed flying a night charter out of Dubbo and Mal went to Ansett. Both the Fletchers, VH-EOF and EOG were converted to crop-dusters and our Ag cousins promptly wrecked both of them, one being fatal. I don't know what happened to the Seabee, very odd aeroplane, had a Franklin engine of 290hp and a ground adjustable prop. Dual ignition but only one mag, the other side a car coil. 80kt climb, 80kt cruise and you guessed it, 80kt descent. Two hand pumps on the floor, one for gear, one for flaps, a real trap for players. The Fletcher had no floor, just a seat on a cross beam. If you dropped your pen it was gone forever! We also used a C172 for the 3DB beach patrol, VH-KWN. Phil Sutton found a group of sharks off Mud Island and in all the excitment during a steep turn at low level, stalled it and they got a closer look at the sharks by joining them. Both the radio announcer and Phil survived but KWN is now part of the seabed. I loved working for Bill, never a dull moment. Now I just sit for 12 hours watching an auto-pilot, but I am growing older.

Remember the time the Tassie Piaggio took off on 22(?) with a full load of freight. The noise complaint phone calls continued all day.

By George....If I recall right, the C172 0ff Mud Island made the Aviation Safety Diggest....Pictures of the sharks and all:D

Stationair8:

I had my first flying lesson at RVAC in Feb 1987, with Wayne Chapel. :ok:

Also did my theory at Ron's. Amazing reading this thread - how changed it all must be, I haven't been there since about 1998. :(

No mention yet of Wardy's Cafe? Wardy and free-lance charter pilot Paul Hurst "Thirsty Hursty" drinking each other under the table each night. Or Hursty filling "hoots" hooten's car to the roof with horse manure after being undercut of a free-lance job?

Ah, John Ward, aka 'Wardie', knew him well and a top bloke. He was Debbs boyfriend, Ansetts first girl pilot, for a while. Shame it didn't work, liked them both as a pair. John hated a beer and I have many hazy memories of the charter circuit during the early seventies. He use to fly the Twin Commanche VH-MED that we all called the 'Flying Tampoon'. Are we allowed to say that these days? Probally not. I remember a charter to the races where we sat up all night at Swan Hill 'solving the worlds problems'. How I flew back the next day is one of lifes great mysteries. I was flying a 402 borrowed from Nicolas Skyways, cross hired from Rob Moss another top bloke. Funny really, looking back, all we wanted was the Airlines and now with a year to go to retirement all I want is the good old GA days.

When Schutts were the Cessna dealers for Victoria and Tasmania did they sell both new single and multi Cessna's?

Dog 1, Forrestair had Piaggio's on charter and freight work and Bob Hussey had the ex - DCA one VH-CAC at Bairnsdale until it was destroyed at Bankstown by a stolen aircraft.

Anyone remember the DeHavilland day at YMMB in 1987?

S8

The "piggy" VH-CAC was the ex Hussey aircraft operated by a company in Devonport. The firies always watched the departures with interest, in case it over ran on a rejected take off. Some one had to save the new then colour TV sets!

The Piaggio VH-CAC finished up working out of Tennant Creek.

The aircraft was destroyed at Bankstown when a Tobago crashed into it on take-off at night time.

When did Nicholas Skyways stop operating?

Memories
 

I can remember,

1/ The no hands circuits in VH- KIR (smallest A/C on the field),
2/ Strong northerly winds and attempting to landing within the length of the piano keys,
3/ The change of circuit direction in GAAP operations - total Kaos,
4/ The grumpy old refueler at Tysons,
5/ The flat spinning Tomahawks,
6/ One Tomahawk that came back form Tooradin on a truck, excellent engine after T/O take over by the instructor. The A/C owner also owned a Chinese Restaurant and wasn't too impressed, taxation lerk lost.
7/ Doing practice forced field landings to zot feet, and narrowly missing the sheep.
8/ Afternoon gaunts to Philip Island for a dip and T/O before sun set?????
:):):)

I am not sure when Nicholas finished up, mid eighties at a guess. They had the Air Ambulance contract in the sixties using two B50's ( Twin Bonanzas). In 1970 one of them collided with a Bell 47 over the Moorabbin Town Hall. Peter Stone was the pilot and I think the helicopter pilot was a Brian Cruckshank, sadly all killed. They lost the contract in '71 to Executives at EN. During the seventies they had a traffic patrol using a 172 and Horse-Race charters using two 310's and a 402. They would quite often cross-hire pilots and I flew a few trips for them. Rob Moss and his off-sider 'Jack' were terrific blokes, very dry and great to work for. One strange job they had was counting the number of people fishing around the Bairnsdale Lake District for the Fisheries and Wildlife Department. All very low level and legal. I did it for them once, great fun, even found a couple of lovers in the sand dunes, not counted of course as they were not fishing. Very amusing.

Does anyone remember the tall ships events in the summer of 87-88. I did several charters out of MB as the ships entered the heads. It was the busiest I'd ever seen the place, Later when the ships sailed for Hobart we also did several charters following them down via FLI and the east coast of Tassie. No GPS's in those days, just usinf bearings off Won, Fli and Esl, and whoever found the fleet would radio the other aircraftwith their approximate position. I've still got some good photos somewhere

.ahhh "Checkboard" so that's who filled 'hoot's car with horse poo....................heard that story a few times back in the 80's. Knowing the guy the poo was put to good use:} Karma !:ok:
One evening down at PID with the Jap tourists good old 'hoot' flew in after we all had landed ex EN some time before. We pilots often walked down to the beach to kill time. When we got back to Sandy's old hanger at PID from that walk a certain pilot had parked is plane in such a way that none of us could get past him when the Japs came back to fly home. So we pushed with much effort his plane back into the scrub & promptly departed wishing we could have all seen the look on his face when he got back to launch which was always after we had........phew!:ok:


Wmk2

Story goes, while Hirsty was (half cut) sweating and cursing with a coat hanger trying to open the door, the security van cruises up. Out pops the security guy, and asks what is going on - Hirsty whips out his ASIC, big notes himself to the security as a PILOT and explains about losing his keys.

Security guy, suitably impressed, opens the car door for him, and drives off ... :ok:

What was the callsign's of the Nicholas Skyways Baron and C402c?

One aircraft was NSK and was the other NKS?

Remember the mass departure of the aircraft for the newspaper runs about 4pm each week day afternoon?

NSK is stil on a Baron. Last I know it was owned by the Flt Av boys. Very nice machine too :ok: