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CONTACT
The official newsletter of THE AUSTRALIAN VINTAGE AVIATION SOCIETY
Issue 11
September 2014
www.tavas.com.au
I
had the rare privilege of catching up with TAVAS
member Bert Fillipi, whose magnificent Sopwith
Pup reproduction graced many pages of our
second newsletter - and he allowed me to fly his
original Sky Scout, built by Bernard H Pietenpol
himself, in 1932.
In this issue I cover in some detail the history of
Pietenpol and his magnificent two seater design
which revolutionised home built aviation. The single
seat Sky Scout was Bernard’s 2nd successful design.
Editor: Andrew Carter
Therefore it is imperative that we stay the course,
and do whatever is required to ensure we make our
aircraft as accurately as possible and get them in
front of as many people as possible, to educate them
about this most incredible time in aviation history.
For this clarity of insight, I thank both Mr Bernard
Pietenpol and Mr Bert Fillipi. Both of them have
shared so much and inspired so many – I hope
through TAVAS, I can do the same.
To be sitting in the cockpit of an original machine,
behind a puttering model A Ford engine, with steam
venting out the steam pipe, experiencing what flight
was like over 80 years ago, was a truly enthralling
experience, every bit as exciting as first going solo.
I have the utmost respect for Mr Pietenpol and what
he achieved in his lifetime, but even more so after
having flown his own personal built machine.
What impressed me even more, was Bert’s attitude
to the entire thing. He has an impressive collection
of authentic vintage aeroplanes and was once asked
what it was like ‘owning’ such magnificent aircraft,
to which he replied – “I do not own them. I am
simply looking after them for the next generation”.
Those words so completely encapsulated his attitude
and his sense of purpose and helped me see clearer,
exactly what TAVAS aims to do and why.
There is far more time, money and effort expended
to get aircraft built as authentically as possible, then
just building a replica. At times I have been tempted
to cut a corner or two for expediency, but never
have, knowing that maintaining authenticity would
be worth it in the end.
Bert’s words resonated with me then (and still do
now) as I realise these aircraft are not ‘ours’ but a
time capsule, an educational tool, a thing of wonder,
excitement and intrigue, for future generations.
CONTACT – Issue 11
Yours truly in the original, 1932 built, Sky Scout
The first of the Australian WW1 Centenary events
began in August, at Scarborough, with the Redcliffe
RSL commemorating the very first shots fired by
Australians in the Great War. TAVAS was part of that
commemoration and will be part of many more over
the next 4 years. Full details on page 9.
On the last page of this issue are details of our
special members’ event that will be held later this
year. We do hope to see you there.
IN THIS ISSUE
The history of the Pietenpol Aircamper
The Pietenpol Aircamper in Australia
TAVAS at the QAM Weekend event
Centenary Commemorations begin
100 Years ago – War starts in Europe
100 Years ago – Australians at war
Christmas with the Gnomes
www.tavas.com.au
Pg 2
Pg 4
Pg 6
Pg 7
Pg 8
Pg 10
Pg 12
Page 1
THE PIETENPOL AIRCAMPER
The Pietenpol story is a fascinating one. The design is
86 years old this year and apart from lengthening
the engine mount slightly to accommodate today’s
lighter engines, the design remains unchanged since
1928.
It has been powered by more than 50 different types
of engines - more than any other aircraft in the 110
years of aviation history.
I cover it in some detail here as it is a significant
aircraft in its own right, but also it fits in with the
time period TAVAS covers (the first 25 years of
aviation). Its wing airfoil is a slightly modified WW1
section, and the method of construction is similar to
many WW1 types.
In fact, many people who intend to build a WW1
aircraft have ‘cut their teeth’ by building an
Aircamper first, to learn the skills required to build a
Great War type. There are quite a few of these
currently flying in Australia and more under
construction.
Also, it holds special interest for me. I have been
fascinated by the designer and his aircraft for more
than 30 years now. I was lucky enough to purchase a
flying example 5 years ago and still fly it today. It was
that aircraft that started me on my journey with
owning and flying vintage aircraft, and in part led to
the formation of TAVAS.
The Piet's story began in the hamlet of Cherry Grove,
in southeast Minnesota, near Iowa. In 1919, with
little more than an eighth grade education and an
innate talent for mechanics, Bernard H Pietenpol
opened an auto repair shop in his father's barn. He
soon developed a reputation for being able to fix
anything, from farm equipment to motorcycles.
Along the way, he discovered airplanes. He
experimented with constructing a series of biplanes
by working with materials purchased from
lumberyards and hardware stores, including
unbleached muslin, which he used to cover the
fuselage and control surfaces.
Since he couldn't afford to buy an aircraft engine for
his first biplane — a rather shaky, hardly airworthy
contraption — he decided to power the aircraft with
an engine from a Ford Model T automobile.
CONTACT – Issue 11
Pietenpol took a few flying lessons in a Curtiss JN-4D,
the World War I-era biplane, and even bought one
when they were sold off as military surplus, but he
never liked it, and soon got rid of it.
The next aircraft that Pietenpol built was a singleplace, high-wing monoplane - the Heath Parasol, a
small single seat kitplane, powered by a motorcycle
engine that was popular at the time. Not overly
impressed with this, Bernard began designing his
own aircraft in 1927 and started building it in 1928.
By May 1929, Pietenpol had completed his version
of a high-wing monoplane, with two cockpits. He
was able to do this because of the engine he
obtained.
In late 1927, the Model A Ford, with its 40horsepower engine, had arrived. Pietenpol replaced
the Ford engine's heavy battery, distributor, and
generator with a magneto, and the exhaust manifold
with short, straight stacks. He mounted the engine
backward, attaching the prop to the forward-facing
flywheel, and the radiator aft, where it stuck up
prominently just ahead of the front cockpit.
The aviation editor of Modern Mechanics and
Inventions wrote in 1929 that it was not likely that
an automobile engine would ever power an aircraft.
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Page 2
So Pietenpol taught his friend, Don Finke, to fly (in
one day) and then they flew two of the new "twoplace" machines up to Minneapolis on April 14,
1930, to prove him wrong. The editor, Westy
Farmer, was won over, and the magazine printed
drawings and photographs that publicized the new
airplane.
Pietenpol died in 1984, at the age of 83. Today, his
garage workshop is listed in the National Register of
Historic Places. The hangar he built in Cherry Grove
has been dismantled and reconstructed next to the
EAA's museum, which has two of his Air Campers in
its collection.
The EAA has dubbed Bernard H Pietenpol the father
of home built aviation. He was the first to make it
accessible, affordable and easy for the common man
to build and fly. He was the first to successfully
convert an auto engine to aviation use. Many people
taught themselves how to fly in his design – that’s
how strong and stable a platform he had created.
In the early 1930’s when Beechcraft and Cessna
aircraft cost $10,000 each, you could have a
Pietenpol flying for less than $500. Even today, it is
cheaper to build a fully flying Pietenpol than it is to
buy a new small car.
The model A Ford engine fitted to a Pietenpol, with
the half width radiator standing up in full view.
The magazine dubbed the aircraft the "Air Camper"
and the name stuck. A few years later, Pietenpol
introduced the single-place Sky Scout, but the Air
Camper has remained the overwhelming favourite of
builders. Modern Mechanics published a set of Air
Camper plans in 1932 in its annual Flying and Glider
Manual.
Back in Cherry Grove, an 18-year-old friend of
Pietenpol's, Orrin Hoopman, drafted a second set of
plans for the Air Camper in 1934. Pietenpol began
selling them—along with instructions on how to
convert the Model A engine—for $7.50 a set.
Today, builders can order the very same plans for
$100 from Pietenpol's son Don, who says there
continues to be a slow but steady demand.
Additionally, the store in the Experimental Aircraft
Association's museum at Oshkosh, Wisconsin, sells a
reprint of the 1932 Flying and Glider Manual for
$6.95.
Bernard Pietenpol spent the rest of his life in Cherry
Grove. With the onset of World War II, the demand
for Pietenpol kits and plans plummeted. He gave up
trying to make money on his aircraft designs and
opened a television and radio repair shop. He
continued building his own airplanes until 1970, and
flew until he was 80. Pietenpol builders continued to
make pilgrimages to Cherry Grove to seek his
counsel.
CONTACT – Issue 11
Pietenpol's legacy is an elegant little aircraft that
anyone with diligence and modest skills can build
with ordinary tools and readily available materials. In
fact, that's the only way you can get one, unless you
buy one from someone who has already done the
work.
For more than 80 years, people have been
constructing Piets in barns, hangars, garages,
basements, workshops, and living rooms—anywhere
they could find space to lay out a jig for the fuselage
framework and hang a one-piece wing. (Pietenpol
built his first airplanes in an abandoned Lutheran
church).
No two Pietenpols anywhere in the world are exactly
alike. And there is no one truly original Pietenpol.
Bernard built 23 of them over his lifetime, each of
them different and powered by different engines
and he openly encouraged others to do the same.
The hangar Pietenpol built in Cherry Grove which
was dismantled and reconstructed next to the EAA's
museum, with one of his two Air Campers on display.
www.tavas.com.au
Page 3
PIETENPOLS IN AUSTRALIA.
I’m not sure when the first Pietenpol was built in this
country. Possibly sometime in the 1930’s, although I
can find no record of it. Heath Parasols and Corben
baby Ace’s had certainly been built and flown here in
the early 1930’s. The Ford factory in Geelong,
Victoria, was making Model A’s as early as 1928, so
the engines were certainly available.
In the late 1950’s American John Grega thought he
could improve the Pietenpol design (many claim the
original is still the best). By 1963, he had built a
slightly modified Aircamper, which is known as a
Grega GN-1. Although to the untrained eye this looks
identical to a Pientenpol, the enthusiast will tell you
it is not. Yet, many of the Pientenpols built in
Australia during the 1970’s and 1980’s were GN-1’s
I saw my first Aircampers (GN-1’s) at Mangalore
airshow in 1983. Ironically both those Victorian
based aircraft now reside in Queensland – one at
Kingaroy and the other on the Sunshine Coast.
A passenger flying in the TAVAS Aircamper gets a
true appreciation of exposure to the elements, the
difficulty communicating between the pilot and the
observer, and the lack of manoeuvrability compared
to fighter aircraft which we demonstrate using the
Fokker Triplane to chase it down.
Also at Caboolture there was an all yellow GN-1,
which has now found a new home in Victoria. TAVAS
member Dave Claes has a V8 powered Aircamper – it
uses a Leyland P76 car engine!
On my recent visit to Serpentine airfield (south of
Perth), there were 2 hangared there, as well as a Sky
Scout – the single seat version of the Aircamper. This
one was actually built by Bernard Pietenpol himself
and is owned by Bert Phillipi who owns the most
authentic Sopwith Pup as detailed in newsletter
number 2.
Many other authentic Pietenpol Aircampers and GN1’s have been built in Australia and are flying in
every state.
I purchased a proper plan built Pietenpol Aircamper,
in 2009 and flew it from Emu Park, just east of
Rockhampton in QLD, to Somersby NSW. It took me
2 hours to fly there from Sydney on a commercial
flight and almost 11 hours to fly it back! The total
trip distance was 623 nm. Not far in a proper touring
aircraft, but in a Piet, it is quite a journey I can assure
you. That aircraft now resides with the rest of the
TAVAS collection at Caboolture QLD.
GN-1 example that was at Caboolture, now in
Victoria, powered by a Continental O-200 engine.
Originally registered VH-KIL, this GN-1 was one of the
first two types I saw in Mangalore in 1983. It now
resides in Kingaroy. Continental O-200 powered
The authentic Aircamper operated by TAVAS
TAVAS uses the Piet as an intro to open cockpit
flying for those who haven’t experienced it before
and to demonstrate the environment and challenges
the airmen of WW1 had to overcome. The Piet
performs at the same speeds and rate of climb as
many of the early WW1 aircraft, especially the
observation types.
CONTACT – Issue 11
The other GN-1 I saw at Mangalore 30 years ago. It
now resides on the Sunshine Coast. O-200 powered.
www.tavas.com.au
Page 4
Corvair powered example in Far North QLD
A garish looking example from Camden, that
was for sale – at an incredibly cheap price
Peter Johnson built and flew this one, then sold it.
Simon McCormack In Tasmania has a very authentic
looking, early built Aircamper with a model A engine.
Above and Below: TAVAS member Scott Dawson is
constructing a very accurate example in Tamworth,
NSW. He will be using the 6 cylinder Corvair engine
for power and a slightly modified airfoil for the wing.
Graham Hewitts authentic Aircamper flying in WA.
Bert Fillippi in his original Sky Scout, actually built by
Bernard Pietenpol in 1932, with Grahame Hewitts
aircamper below – at Serpentine Airfield.
CONTACT – Issue 11
www.tavas.com.au
Page 5
QUEENSLAND AIR MUSEUM WEEKEND
On the July 5th, I flew the Triplane from Caboolture,
north to Caloundra, for the QAM open cockpit
weekend.
QAM is a completely static museum - none of the
aircraft are operational and most are too large to
even be moved. In today’s day and age, that should
be a major liability.
However, realizing that limitation, the team there
have created a successful open cockpit weekend
each year. This gives people a rare chance to actually
sit in the cockpit of many unique aircraft. The
museum also conducts engine runs on the day.
This has proved to be a most successful concept that
continues to attract bigger crowds each year.
This year was the first time they had opened up the
flight line to allow people to view a range of historic
and modern, operational aircraft.
TAVAS was invited to fly in with the Fokker Dr.I and
set up a display. The Saturday morning provided
magnificent weather and I departed Caboolture
early for the 15 minute flight north. Nathalie drove
ahead with all of the tables, chairs and display
stands - and was waiting to marshal me in on my
arrival.
We had pictures of it flying on our banners and
promotional material and would point to that when
someone asked us if it flew. Several times the people
would look at the picture and say “oh that’s just
been photoshoped”. Some of those who accepted it
did fly, abused me claiming I had to be a “F*#%ing
idiot to fly that thing!” So generally speaking, dealing
with the public was an interesting experience.
Overall the event was very professionally organised
and incredibly well run. All of the ground staff we
met on the day were extremely helpful and nothing
was too much of a problem for them.
We can learn a lot from the way QAM promoted and
ran the event. They have offered to assist us in any
future events we may hold and we are grateful for
that.
Huge thanks to Dave White and Rhianna Patrick for
their assistance on the day. Also to QAM President
Cameron Elmes and Event Co-ordinator James Wing
and all the very professional, courteous and helpful
volunteers for their incredible effort in making such
a successful weekend for all involved.
We were placed in prime position, amongst some
other great vintage aircraft – Two immaculate
Tigermoths and a very impressive Boeing Stearman.
The crowd coming through over two days were very
enthusiastic about the Triplane and we had a lot of
questions and a lot of incredible comments. The one
most people had trouble grasping was that it
actually flies. Even when we explained to people
that we had flown it in for the event, they would still
ask us – “so does it fly?”
CONTACT – Issue 11
The TAVAS Triplane departing late on the Sunday
afternoon. Below, taxi out past the Stearman to
depart for home. Both pictures by David White of
Canvaswings.com.au
www.tavas.com.au
Page 6
CENTENARY COMMEMORATIONS BEGIN
August 5th 2014 marked 100 years since Australia
first fired a shot in the in the Great War (see 100
years ago article on page 10 of this newsletter).
To commemorate that event, the Redcliffe RSL held
a special commemorative event at Jamieson Park,
just north of Redcliffe.
A huge thanks to members, Gordon Robinson, and
Chris Wilson for their assistance on the day setting
up and dismantling the Eindecker and manning the
display stand and answering the great many
questions people asked throughout the day.
A lot of planning and effort had been put into this
event and they had a great turnout of period reenactors, military equipment, bands and a display of
the aircraft used in the war, provided by TAVAS.
The event was very well attended by official guests,
local leaders, politicians and school children. An
official march was conducted at 2pm which then led
to the formal ceremony and speeches held at 2:15.
The static display, just offset from the
main parade and ceremony area.
At 1.30 I conducted a fly over in the Fokker Triplane,
just off the coast of the park where the event was
held. I then flew back to Caboolture and drove back
to Jamieson Park, where fellow TAVAS members
were manning the display, with Eindecker attracting
much attention.
The Eindecker attracted a lot of attention on the day
The Eindecker arriving at Jamieson Park
TAVAS co-founder Nathalie Gochel had her first
appearance on television with channel 7 news
interviewing her about who really did shoot down
the Red Baron.
An Eindecker and two Camels
The E.III at the end of the day, as the sun was setting.
CONTACT – Issue 11
www.tavas.com.au
Page 7
100 YEARS AGO – THE GREAT WAR BEGINS
Following from last issues newsletter, after the
assassination of the Austrian Archduke Franz
Ferdinand on 28th June 1914.
It took an entire month of intense political and
diplomatic manoeuvring between Austria-Hungary,
Germany, Russia, France and Britain, before any
large scale action was taken. What this meant
however was once the first major action was
underway, a series of unstoppable events would
unfold in record breaking time, thrusting most of the
developed world into full scale war.
On July 5th,Kaiser William II promised German
support for Austria against Serbia. He firmly believed
his first cousin King Edward VII would not intervene
in a mainland European conflict.
23rd July, Austria presents an ultimatum to the
Serbians, a series of ten demands that were
intentionally made unacceptable to provoke a war
with Serbia. Two days later, Serbia orders
mobilization.
26th July, as Russia is an ally of Serbia, Austria begins
mobilization on the Russian border.
Austria-Hungary’s decision to declare war on Serbia
on the 28th July 1914 was predictable and in many
ways supported, but many nations couldn’t allow it
to affect Serbias independence. So 3 days later,
Russia announces full mobilization of its armed
forces.
On August 1st Germany official declared war on
Russia. August 3rd Germany declared war on France
and informed neutral Belgium it would be regarded
as hostile if it did not allow free passage of German
troops to invade France. Belgium did not allow it, so
Germany declared war on them and as they crossed
through Belgium, intending to encircle Paris and
knock France out of the war, within 6 weeks.
As a result of the invasion of Belgium, Britain
declared war on Germany on August 4th. Australia
and New Zealand immediately follow suit. On August
6th Serbia declared war on Germany.
On September 6th, the tiny British Expeditionary
Force (BEF) and a French army, mounted a wellexecuted fighting withdrawal to the river Marne, just
north of Paris where they unleashed a strong
CONTACT – Issue 11
counter attack. As a result, the Germans retreated to
high ground and began to dig trenches. These
formed the genesis of the Western Front – a 700 km
long line of fortifications that would largely remain
unbroken for the next 4 years.
Aircraft at the time were frail, underpowered,
unarmed and unreliable. Initially they were not seen
for the full potential they would eventually bring to
war.
Aviation Strength of the Major Powers at the start of
WW1 was only –
Austria-Hungary
Germany
France
Russia
United Kingdom
79
232
162
244
113
It is Interesting to note Russia had the largest
number of aircraft entering the war (mainly French
and German designs built under licence), however
these were soon destroyed and Russian industry was
unable to replace in sufficient quantity or quality.
France possessed the widest range of flying
machines as a result of having been the first
European nation to take to aviation. The French
government (unlike pretty much all others) actively
assisted and encouraged this through generous
financial backing. This was in large part because the
French Army were the first to appreciate the military
potential for aircraft.
However, none of the aircraft in service when the
war began, were officially intended for fighting.
Considering the earliest application was simply for
observation and reporting, this is understandable.
However, those needs changed very quickly and
after much trial and tribulation, the advent of
modern aerial warfare began.
On 13th of August 1914 the Royal Flying Corp sent a
squadron of their aircraft across the English Channel,
from Dover, to Amiens in France. The channel
crossing had only been accomplished for the first
time, 5 years earlier by Louis Bleriot.
The first of 60 British Airman to land in France was Lt
Hubert Harvey-Kelly, in a BE-2 biplane from No 2
Squadron, Royal Flying Corps.
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Page 8
So it was inevitable that Aircrews would look for
ways to deprive the enemy of their airborne
advantage. Pilots improvised by taking pistols, rifles,
grenades, metal spikes and even bricks, aloft.
My favourite is Russian Ace, Aleksandr Kozakov who
took to throwing a grappling hook on a long length
of wire, with the intention of ripping apart the
lightweight structure of his opponent’s machine.
Hubert Harvey-Kelly leaning against the haystack,
after landing in France – the first RFC pilot to do so.
On the 26th of August 1914, Harvey-Kelly gained the
first ever confirmed British victory in air-to-air
combat despite flying an unarmed aircraft. By
manoeuvring as if to hit the German Taube 2, other
aggressive flying and using his pistol he forced the
aircraft to the ground, then having chased off the
crew he set fire to their plane and took off.
Unfortunately, the two aircraft became entwined
and Kozakov then attempted ramming his enemy in
order to pull free. They both plummeted, until barely
200 feet from the ground, they disentangled and
neither was killed. The German was taken prisoner
and Kozakov went on to become Imperial Russia’s
highest scoring Ace, using rather more conventional
methods.
The first recorded success (although not as a kill) of
the use of rifles in aircraft was on the 25th August
when 2nd Lt Christopher William Wilson and Lt
Cuthbert Rabagliati were sent aloft when a lone
German aeroplane approached their aerodrome.
The two machines approached each other and
circled, coming within feet of colliding. Rabagliati
fired a hundred rounds from his .303 service rifle
without success. Then, he reported afterwards, “to
my intense joy, I saw the German pilot fall forward
on his joystick and the machine tipped up and went
down”. The German machine landed safely near a
column of troops coming south.
The Etrich Taube observation aircraft used
by the Germans in the early days of the war.
With the Army troops on all sides digging into
trenches and holding their position, the perceived
advantages of modern weapons and tactics proved
largely ineffective, as did the use of Calvary for
reconnaissance.
In the very early weeks of the war, the aircraft took
prime importance in this role. Pilots also proved
adept at directing artillery fire against enemy targets
obscured behind terrain.
So although unarmed themselves, aircraft appeared
to have offensive potential. Of course observer
aircraft on both sides of the line removed the
potential for undetected movement and hence the
element of surprise, so desperately needed in a
decisive battle, no longer existed.
CONTACT – Issue 11
In 1914, aerial warfare was very much in its infancy,
but with the stalemate on the ground, flying corps
on both sides of the lines started to grow rapidly.
Techniques, tactics, weapons and equipment,
communication, engines and airframes would
advance rapidly and forever change the face of war
and take aviation from the fledgling little frail
contraption to a modern proven means of
transportation and as an essential weapon in any
war.
Over the course of the war, production would ramp
up dramatically, with almost 188,000 aircraft and
over 230,000 aero engines being produced by many
nations. Many of those aircraft and their pilots,
becoming casualties of this ghastly War.
More details in the newsletters to come.
www.tavas.com.au
Page 9
100 YEARS AGO – AUSTRALIA GOES TO WAR
Australia entered World War One as a united
population. Many of Australia’s 5 million people had
a strong bond with the United Kingdom and once
the UK entered World War One it seemed almost
natural that Australia would do the same. Political
leaders in Australia vied with each other to appear
the most patriotic to the cause. Liberal leader Joseph
Cook said:
“Whatever happens, Australia is part of the Empire
right to the full. When the Empire is at war, so is
Australia at war. All our resources are in the Empire
and for the preservation and security of the Empire.”
to supply the Pacific Squadron of the Imperial
German Navy. So too did the Australian Navy.
Lieutenant-Colonel Sandford at Fort Queenscliff gave
an order to Lieutenant C Morris, the then Fire
Commander at Fort Nepean, to "stop her or sink
her". After the Pfalz ignored signals to halt, John
Purdue, a sergeant with the army's Royal Australian
Garrison Artillery, was ordered to fire on the Pfalz to
stop it escaping Port Phillip Bay into the open sea.
From his gun emplacement, and with support from
his team, he blasted a shell across its bow at
12:45pm.
Labour leader Andrew Fisher stated: “Should the
worst happen, after everything has been done that
honour will permit, Australia will stand behind the
mother country to help and defend her to the last
man and our last shilling.”
The Governor-General cabled London that there was
“indescribable enthusiasm” for the war and “entire
unanimity throughout Australia.”
Fisher and the Labour Party won a general election
just on the outbreak of World War One and made
the decision to send our troops (and eventually the
Australian Flying Corp) overseas.
The Gun emplacement at Fort Nepean
where the infamous shot was fired.
The Pfalz then turned around and the crew was
arrested at Portsea. The ship was halted and
detained, making this not just the first shot fired by a
Commonwealth nation in World War I, but the first
capture of a German asset.
After the Pfalz was captured, it was refitted as a
troop ship for the Royal Australian Navy under the
name of HMT Boorara.
Military recruiting in Melbourne, VIC, in late 1914
The first shot fired by the British Empire in World
War I was not on the battlefields of Europe - it came
from a windswept fort south of Melbourne, half a
world away.
On 5th August 1914, within a few hours of being
notified that war had been declared, the German
ship SS Pfalz attempted to escape from Port Phillip.
On board the ship was 200 tonnes of coal. Captain
Kuhlken knew this precious fuel would be needed
CONTACT – Issue 11
www.tavas.com.au
The SS Pfalz after she was captured &
operated by the RAN as HMT Booara
Page 10
Some reports claim this incident was the very first
shot fired in WW1. It wasn’t. Many claim this was
the first shot fired by the allies during WW1, but that
honour belongs to a Frenchman on 2nd August. A
larger exchange of fire was initiated by the Belgian
army (an ally) defending the German crossing of the
Meuse River between 10am and 1am on 4th August.
So the best that can be claimed is that this was the
first shot fired by any nation of the Commonwealth
in WW1. Regardless, it is an interesting part of our
history.
The first hostile action of the Australian military
overseas occurred on September 11th 1914 when 25
Australian Naval reservists from the Australian Naval
and Military Expeditionary Force (ANMEF) stormed
ashore at a place called Bita Paka, south of Rabaul.
Of the 6 to die during this our first overseas action,
the first, and hence the first Australian to die during
WW1 in combat, was Able Seaman John Courtney a
29-year-old navy sailor. He was killed by a sniper.
At the time war broke out, the newly formed
Australian Flying Corp (AFC) consisted of a total of
just 5 aircraft, 2 instructors and 4 students.
The training of those students didn’t begin until a
few weeks after war had been declared. Those
students wouldn’t even complete basic flying
training until late November that year, at which time
the students went back to the units from which they
had come. There were simply no Australian
squadrons for them to fly with, or any intention of
ever forming any.
Regardless, one BE2a aircraft had been shipped to
Rabaul in September for the raid at Bita Paka, but
the battle was all over before the aircraft could be
unpacked from its crate.
So given the chaotic events unfolding in Europe,
from Australia’s point of view, it initially appeared
that aircraft in general, yet alone the AFC would not
play any part in it.
Members of the ANMEF before embarkation
That, of course, was to change drastically over the
coming 4 years with Australia fielding eight and a
half squadrons overseas, and sending over 500
airmen to fly over Britain, the Middle East and the
Western Front.
Of those Australians, 57 became aces, one a Victoria
Cross recipient, 40 received the Distinguished Flying
Cross, including two three-time recipients who were
among just four British and dominion pilots to be so
honoured during the war.
How that all came about will be revealed in
subsequent editions of ‘100 year ago’ in these newsletters over the coming years.
Within a few hours six of them were dead and the
German wireless communication station, 8km inland
was in Australian control, with dozens of prisoners of
war.
CONTACT – Issue 11
The training aircraft in service with the AFC at the
beginning of e Word War One. From left to right, the
Depredussin, BE2a and Bristol Boxkite
www.tavas.com.au
Page 11
CHRISTMAS WITH THE GNOMES
Last year’s member event was a great way to get
everyone together and be part of what we are doing.
We had people come from as far away as Perth and
now it’s time to do it again.
We want to celebrate an early Christmas with you
all, show you all that has been happening with the
collection and to reveal the two Gnomes - one of
which is an original 1918 engine!
Engineer Dave Walsh will use one engine on the day
and cover the internals and describe the workings in
detail. The other engine will be attached to one of
our Fokker aircraft and operating on the day.
Weather conditions permitting, it will fly.
With only 6 operational rotary engines operating
anywhere in Australia, this is your only chance to see
two of them up close and personal in such a detailed
and informative way. You will also get to see the
progress made on the TAVAS fleet since our Meet
The Fokkers event last year. You will get to see the
world’s only reproduction of the unique 1909
Johnson Monoplane as well as some more modern
aircraft.
This event will be catered. For that reason and for
insurance purposes, we require exact numbers for
the day. If you wish to attend you will need to RSVP
no later than Friday 7th November 2014. If you do
not register by that date, you will be unable to
attend the event at the venue – I do not have any
control over this, it is dictated by very strict
insurance requirements.
We hope you can join us for this unique event.
Where:
Hangar 106, Caboolture Airfield, McNaught Rd
Caboolture, QLD
When:
Saturday 6th December 2014 at 10:30am sharp
Cost:
TAVAS member plus one – free.
Additional guest of TAVAS member -$20 each
RSVP:
It is vitally important if you are coming that you
RSVP before 7th November 2014 including the names
of any additional people you are bringing. Send
details to [email protected]
For TAVAS members, entry is completely free and
you can bring one other person with you, for free.
For any other guests you bring with you, there will
be a $20 surcharge per person, to cover the costs of
catering and additional insurance.
This will be a French themed event (as they are
French engines, albeit fitted to German aircraft).
Therefore, the catering will consist of French onion
soup; French breads with cheeses and paté; Quiche
and Chocolate mousse. Drinks served will be French
wine, soft drinks and bottled water.
That’s it for this issue. Next issue due out at the end of December. We really look forward to seeing many of you at
our Christmas event. Until then, build light and strong and fly safe.
CONTACT – Issue 11
www.tavas.com.au
Page 12