|
DATE
|
ACTION
|
|
18FEB24
|
Added
a new page on How
Lionel Van Praag Earned His George Medal. Thanks to Warren
Ide for his assistance with this page.
|
|
16FEB24
|
Added
a new page on Adastra's
administration buildings. Thanks to Warren Ide for his assistance
with this page.
|
|
14FEB24
|
Added
three images (X2, X3 &
X4) of Adastra staff from "The Hut" in Tenth Street
Mascot. Thanks to Jan Power (nee Frewin) for these images.
|
|
27NOV23
|
The
page on Hudson Hatchbacks has been moved to The Lockheed
File and the coverage greatly expanded. This page describes
the use of eight RAAF Hudsons as air ambulances. Two of these
aircraft went on to serve Adastra as VH-AGG and VH-AGO. Go to
Hudson
Ambulances on The Lockheed File.
|
|
18NOV23
|
Updated
the page for Beech Queen Air VH-CTE
and added two images thanks to David Eyre AAWA.
|
|
30OCT23
|
Added
further details of flights by the two ex-RAAF Mosquitoes
that were operated in Australia by Sepal and crewed by Max Garroway,
Ken Rowlands and Kevin Pavlich, all of whom later joined Adastra.
|
|
17JUN23
|
Added
another image of
Cessna 185A VH-AGE on its back at Collendina thanks to Greg
Thom.
|
|
06JUN23
|
Added
three recent images of DC-3 VH-AGU thanks to Phil Vabre.
Image 1  Image
2 Image
3
|
|
16MAY23
|
Added
an image of Dragon
VH-AGC in Queensland Airplanters markings. Thanks to Ivan Wilson
and Andy Anderson.
|
|
08MAY23
|
Added
a recent image of the
cockpit of DC-3 VH-AGU thanks to Phil Vabre.
|
|
08FEB23
|
Added
a photograph of Hudson
VH-AGO which suggests that the white tail was introduced circa
June/July 1955. Thanks to Ron Beckett.
|
|
31JAN23
|
Added
a new page listing types of aerial
cameras.
|
|
25JAN23
|
Added
several images of three Adastra film
canisters that turned up in an antique shop in 2023. Thanks
to Debra Ray-Thompson.
|
|
17JAN23
|
Added
a magnificent air-to-air image
of Canso CF-GKI (later VH-AGB) thanks to Doug Morrison.
|
|
17JAN23
|
Added
an image of Anson W2591
thanks to Dave Vincent. This aircraft later became the short-lived
VH-BGO which was previously not illustrated.
|
|
01JAN23
|
Added
a Slideshow to the aircraft pages and the Photo Albums. You
can now scroll through the images without having to return to
the table of thumbnails. However, if you want to read the captions
you will need to click on the relevant thumbnail.
Aircraft Pages
Photo Albums
|
|
19OCT22
|
Added
an image of Mosquito
VH-WWS thanks to Eric Allen.
|
|
21SEP22
|
Added
three images of Hudson VH-SMO thanks to Eric Allen.
Image 1
Image 2 Image
3
|
|
21SEP22
|
Added
four images of Hudson VH-AGX thanks to Eric Allen.
Image 1
Image 2
Image 3
Image 4
|
|
21SEP22
|
Added
two images of Hudson VH-AGS thanks to Eric Allen.
Image 1
Image 2
|
|
21SEP22
|
Added
an image of Hudson
VH-AGE thanks to Eric Allen.
|
|
21SEP22
|
Added
three images of Hudson VH-EWR thanks to Eric Allen.
Image 1
Image 2 Image
3
|
|
07AUG22
|
Added
two images of Hudson VH-AGO thanks to Eric Allen.
Image 1
Image 2
|
|
07AUG22
|
Added
three images of Hudson VH-SMM thanks to Eric Allen.
Image 1
Image 2 Image
3
|
|
07AUG22
|
Added
three images of Hudson VH-EWS thanks to Eric Allen.
Image 1
Image 2 Image
3
|
|
07AUG22
|
Added
an image of Hudson
VH-EWE thanks to Eric Allen.
|
|
07AUG22
|
Added
an image of Hudson
VH-EWB thanks to Eric Allen.
|
|
15JUN22
|
With
the emergence of a photo of Gipsy Moth VH-UOR
there is now a dedicated page for this aeroplane. The page for
Gipsy Moth VH-UOQ has
also been expanded.
|
|
21MAY22
|
It
has emerged that the photographs taken by a PIX photographer
on 2 March 1960 did appear in print, but in the sister magazine
PEOPLE on 11 May 1960. Thanks to Doug Morrison who discovered
a photocopy of the article.
|
|
19APR22
|
Added
an image of Hudson
VH-AGJ in the orange livery thanks to Peter Gates.
|
|
09APR22
|
Today
your Webmaster received an email from New Caledonia requesting
Adastra to tender for a survey! It is pleasing to note that
the company's reputation refuses to die. It's not unusual to
receive one or two similar requests each year.
|
|
05JAN22
|
Added
an image of Dragonfly
G-AEDT (formerly VH-AAD) at Mount Isa in DEC63 thanks to Ben
Dannecker.
|
|
04JAN22
|
Updated
the captions to images 29 and 32 from PIX
magazine thanks to Warren Ide who appears in image 29.
|
|
14DEC21
|
Added
a selection of images taken at the Adastra office and hangar
on 2 March 1960 by a photographer from PIX
magazine . The images are held by the State Library of New
South Wales.
|
|
05NOV21
|
Added
an image of the Doppler
antenna on DC-3 VH-AGU thanks to Geoff Goodall.
|
|
15AUG21
|
The
Temora Aviation Museum recently discovered some graffiti inside
the starboard fuel tank of the former VH-AGS. Image
|
|
29JUN21
|
Added
a fine selection of Hudson images thanks to Alan Flett. To view
the images please go to the update table at the foot of each
page.
VH-AGE
VH-AGJ
VH-AGP
VH-AGS
VH-AGX
VH-SMO
|
|
29JUN21
|
Added
an image of Owen McKenzie-Smith
to Album 2.
|
|
02APR21
|
Added
an image of the Featherington-Kite
artwork that adorned the nose of Hudson VH-AGS in June 1970.
The artwork was by Peter Shute and the photograph was taken
by Brian Costello. Sadly we also record that Brian Costello
passed away on 29 March 2021. We thank his son Mike for the
photo.
|
|
06JAN21
|
It
has just emerged that when Adastra's first Hudson, VH-AGG,
entered service, it did so in a natural metal colour scheme.
It is likely that when this website was created seventeen years
ago, none of the surviving Adastrians had seen this livery.
|
|
06SEP20
|
Added
a link to download the Adastra Aerial Surveys font
as recreated by Peter Shute.
|
|
07FEB20
|
Added
four Hudson images thanks to Peter Gates.
VH-AGS freshly painted
in the orange livery.
VH-AGX freshly painted
in the orange livery.
VH-AGX damaged fuselage
at Point Cook.
VH-AGP and VH-AGS
stored at Tamworth.
|
|
23NOV19
|
Added
a biography of Jock Head.
Thanks to Laurie McLean.
|
|
18OCT19
|
Added
a page on the Follett
sisters.
Added press reports
on the founding of Adastra.
Updated the company history
with more biographical detail on the Folletts.
Thanks to Laurie McLean.
|
|
07MAY19
|
Added
a selection of Hudson images thanks to Eric Allen. Please refer
to the update table at the foot of each page.
VH-AGS
VH-AGX
VH-AGJ
|
|
22DEC18
|
Added
three images thanks to Ben Dannecker.
VH-BPT
VH-EWR
VH-AGX
|
|
13AUG18
|
Added
an image of Waco YKS-6
VH-UYD in the Northern Territory sometime prior to 31DEC41.
It would seem that the aircraft was involved in surveying the
route of the Stuart Highway from Adelaide to Darwin. Thanks
to Doug Morrison.
|
|
30MAY18
|
Added
Adastra Operational Reports on three aeromagnetic surveys thanks
to Doug Morrison.
Roma 1960 VH-AGB
Narran River
and Bollon 1962 VH-BLF, VH-AGS, VH-AGE
Offshore
Sydney-Newcastle 1966 VH-AGU
|
|
25MAY18
|
Added
a new page on Aeromagnetic
Surveys in NSW 1954 - 1966. Thanks to Doug Morrison.
|
|
24FEB18
|
Added
a new page on the Bonaparte
Gulf / Timor Sea surveys of 1963 and 1965 thanks to Doug
Morrison.
|
|
08JAN18
|
Added
an image of Anson VH-AGG
at Nhill circa 1947 thanks to Mike Kingwell and Geoff Goodall.
Added
an Adastra photo of Dragonfly
VH-AAD at Ballarat in 1946 thanks to Geoff Goodall.
|
|
05JAN18
|
We
begin the new year with a significant addition to the site. Deb
Duckmanton, whose father Harry Morrell was a camera operator on
the Dragonfly and Ansons, has donated his log book and photo collection
to the South Australian Aviation Museum. Nigel Daw at the SAAM
immediately recognised the value of this material and he duly
forwarded copies to us. All of this material has now been added
to this site.
Harry Morrell's Log
Book 6 November 1945 to 19 December 1951
Harry Morrell's Photo Collection
(Album #2 - See 12 images on Rows V and W)
All of Harry's flights have been incorporated into the histories
of the following aircraft:
Dragonfly VH-AAD
Anson VH-AGO
Anson VH-AVT
Anson VH-BKZ
If you don't have time to look at all of this, don't miss this
beautiful photograph.
Thank you Deb and Nigel. |
|
05JAN18
|
Added
a link to the Alamy website which has an archive
of Adastra aerial photos from circa 1937. The images are all
obliques of Sydney, Canberra, Wollongong and environs. The Alamy
site is a commercial operation which is unrelated to the Adastra
website. Please note that this link is presented solely as a service
to readers of the Adastra website. |
|
30OCT17
|
Added
an image of Waco YKS-6
VH-UYD in Papuan Air Transport markings. Thanks to Cliff Jackson
and Roger McDonald. |
|
13AUG17
|
Added
a document listing the service
record of Adastra co-founder Bunny Hammond. This document
is sourced from the website of
the Australian Society of World War One Aero Historians. Thanks
to Warren Ide for sourcing the document. |
|
27JUN17
|
Added
a series of images of Hudson VH-AGJ
which is displayed at the Royal Air Force Museum at Hendon. Thanks
to Curator, Andy Simpson for facilitating access to the interior
of the aircraft.
Added a new page on the Sepal
notice that was carried on Adastra aircraft. |
|
15JUN17
|
Added
detailed notes on the 1953
survey of Papua which was flown by Canso CF-GKI, later VH-AGB.
Thanks to Doug Morrison. |
|
14MAY17
|
Added
seven images from the Ted McKenzie collection thanks to his
son Paul.
Prince
G-AMLW
Prince G-AMLW
Prince VH-AGF
Prince VH-AGF
Hudson VH-AGX
Hudson VH-AGX Can
anyone identify the young lad in the photo?
Hudson VH-SMO
|
|
05NOV16
|
Added
a photograph of Hangar 13
at Mascot. Thanks to Dave Prossor and Bob Livingstone. |
|
28SEP16
|
Added
a new page on the unveiling of a memorial to those lost in Hudson
VH-AGE. The memorial was dedicated on 24 September 2016, the 50th
anniversary of the crash. Hudson
VH-AGE Memorial |
|
08JUL16
|
Added
an interesting image
of Cessna 185A VH-AGE after overturning at Collendina, NSW in
January 1976. Nothing is known of the incident so if any reader
can advise it will be appreciated. |
|
16JUN16
|
Warren
Ide has contributed five new images to Album
#2. Images U2 to U6 refer. Thanks Warren. |
|
07MAY16
|
Engineer
Nev Williams has provided a biography
of his time with Adastra. Thanks Nev. |
|
02MAR16
|
Added
an interesting image
of a very shabby Hudson VH-AGJ as it appeared on arrival at Prestwick,
Scotland in May 1973. |
|
31JAN16
|
All
the Hudson history pages
and images have been refreshed. |
|
18NOV15
|
Warren
Ide has found an online audio
interview with Bunny Hammond. Thanks Warren. |
|
25AUG15
|
Added
the following new images:
Waco VH-UYD
Eagle VH-UUY
Eagle VH-UTG
B.K. L.25c VH-USH |
|
19AUG15
|
Adastra's
Legacy for the 21st Century. The Wollongong City Council has published
recent aerial photography of the city overlaid on Adastra photography
from 1948 and 1951. By moving a "Spy Glass" over Adastra's
black and white 1948 photography you can see the same location
in colour as it appeared 66 years later in 2014. It's very well
done and well worth a look. http://arcg.is/1DJ3nAV |
|
19AUG15
|
Warren
Ide has provided 9 additional names for the Personnel
List. This takes the total to 345. Thanks Warren. |
|
17MAY15
|
Completely
revised the page on Raydist thanks
to Trevor Sheffield. The new page includes many photos of Raydist
expeditions to the Gulf of Carpentaria in 1964 and to W.A. in
1965. Thanks Trevor. |
|
30APR15
|
Added
five images of de Havilland Moth VH-UOQ
which once belonged to Adastra. The photos were taken in Toowoomba
circa 1938/39 by Frank Joel whose son Murray kindly made the available. |
|
29APR15
|
Added
an image of Ted McKenzie at the controls of Catalina
VH-AGB and an image of Ted flying a DC-3
believed to be Adastra's VH-AGU. Thanks to Ted's son Paul McKenzie
for supplying these wonderful pictures. |
|
14FEB15
|
Added
an excellent photo of Adastra's
Hangar 15 circa 1948.
Added a photo of Waco
YKS-6 VH-UYD.
Thanks to Robert Montgomery. |
|
13FEB15
|
Of
a more melancholy nature are six new images of the wreckage of
Hudson VH-AGO at Horn
Island. These images are also from the collection of Scotty (David)
Wilson. |
|
13FEB15
|
Thanks
to Greg Wilson for six new images which appear at the foot of
the page in Album #2 as S6 and
T1 to T5. These images are from the collection of Greg's father,
Scotty (David) Wilson, who was an engineer with Adastra. There
are several unidentified people in these images. Included is a
genuine ADASTRAPHOTO of Ayers Rock. |
|
13FEB15
|
Thanks to Warren Ide for adding to the identities of the people
in this image. |
|
11DEC14
|
The
Hudson Hatchback page
on Hudson air ambulances has been greatly expanded thanks to the
assistance of David Vincent. |
|
29APR14
|
Added
a scan of an early Adastra
brochure promoting the airline, the flying school, aerial
photography and aircraft sales! Thanks to Roger McDonald. |
|
28APR14
|
Added three
new images to Album #2 thanks to Rosemary Peters, whose father
Cec Mohr worked for Adastra from 1953 to 1973.
Image
1 Can any reader identify the people in this image?
Image 2
Image 3
|
|
29SEP13
|
Added
a new page on the memorial to the crash of Ansett-ANA Viscount
VH-RMI. Adastra employee Harold Bagot was a passenger on the
aircraft. Thanks to Greg Weir for the images. |
|
11SEP13
|
Added
an image of Adastra's first
two aircraft outside Hangar 8 at Mascot. This photo was probably
taken around the time that the company opened for business in
August 1930. The photo comes from the Fairfax Archives via Eddie
Coates. |
|
27APR13
|
Added
an account of the WWI exploits of Adastra co-founder Bunny Hammond.
This article is reproduced with the kind permission of the Australian
Society of World War One Aero Historians. The article
was sourced by Warren Ide. |
|
02MAR13
|
DC-3
VH-AGU has been repainted to represent a Vietnam era AC-47 gunship.
Thanks to Gordon Reid who took this image
at the Australian International Airshow at Avalon yesterday! |
|
16NOV12
|
Thanks
to this image from
Ken Watson, the page on Aerodist
has been completely revised to reflect the correct locations of
the antennae. |
|
06NOV12
|
Peter
Cuthbertson advises that his father Tom Cuthbertson passed away
on 1 November 2012 aged 89. |
|
06NOV12
|
We
record the passing of Maurie Miller
on 4 November 2012. |
|
02SEP12
|
Added
an air-to-air image of
CSIRO Anson VH-WMA. Thanks to Geoff Goodall. |
|
02SEP12
|
Added
an image of Hudson VH-SMO
at Essendon in February 1964. Photographer was Barney Deatrick.
Thanks to Geoff Goodall. |
|
01SEP12
|
Added
an image of Mascot Aerodrome
said to be taken circa 1939 but it may have been taken at the
same time as a similar 1940 image which is already on the website.
This new image is much larger and therefore yields more detail.
The image was taken by the noted photographer John Harrison and
this copy comes from the Ben Dannecker Collection. |
|
10AUG12
|
Fox
Moth VH-UOU now has
its own page in the same format as the other aircraft pages. Also
added an image of the aircraft outside Adastra's Hangar 8 at Mascot
from the Civil Aviation Historical Society Collection via Ken
Watson. |
|
25JUL12
|
We
record the passing of Dennis Heussner on 6 July 2012. See Update
#101 on this page for
an obituary. |
|
29JUN12
|
We
have just learned that Ted McKenzie passed away on 22 May 2012
at the age of 92. |
|
26JUN12
|
We
have added a special tribute page for Mike
Wood who passed away on 8 February. |
|
26JUN12
|
Alex
Whitworth has contributed a fascinating piece of Adastriana, the
story of The Well-travelled
Dice Shaker. |
|
26FEB12
|
On
a happier note, we have been contacted by Reiner Treder from Frankfurt,
Germany. Reiner has built a 1:8 scale flying model of the Lockheed
Hudson and he has chosen to model it on Adastra's VH-AGS. Read
the full story:
Adastra Hudson VH-AGS
Flies Again |
|
24FEB12
|
We
have been advised that Mike Wood passed away on 8 February. Mike
was one of the last remaining custodians of the Adastra corporate
memory and his contributions to this website will be greatly missed.
A tribute to Mike will be published on this website as soon as
possible. |
|
12OCT11
|
Added
a remarkable series of Adastra
aerial photographs from the collection of Madeline and Warren
Ide. Madeline was a photographic processor and printer with Adastra
from 1966 until 1976 while Warren was a photogrammetrist with
Adastra from 1956 until 1976. The majority of the photographs
appear to have been taken to document the diversion of the Cooks
River but the added bonus is that they also record the development
of Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport from 1947 to 1975. Thanks to
Madeline and Warren for sharing these photographs. |
|
24AUG11
|
Sadly,
Wal Bowles passed away in Nambucca Heads, NSW on 22 August 2011.
Wal contributed many wonderful
stories to the website. He will be sadly missed. |
|
07AUG11
|
Added
two images of the cloud seeding equipment on the CSIRO Anson VH-WMA
thanks to Barry Colledge. This aircraft was later acquired by
Adastra for spares. |
|
03FEB11
|
Although
they were never Adastra aircraft, I have added pages for the Bureau
of Mineral Resources DC-3s VH-BUR
and VH-MIN. Having earlier
made an exception for DC-3 VH-DAS, it follows that it is appropriate
to include these two aircraft, if only to remove any confusion
that they were Adastra aircraft. As "real" survey aeroplanes
their story deserves to be told. This is more so as Doug Morrison
has contributed a wealth of information on the surveys conducted
by these aircraft.
Doug Morrison has been through the Bureau of Mineral Resources
Project Index and extracted all references to Adastra. This document
can be viewed as a PDF. |
|
08AUG10
|
Added
a very rare colour photo of Hudson VH-AGX
with red registration and cowling embellishments and a target
towing winch fitted. |
|
21MAY10
|
Jim
Page has contacted us from the Gold Coast. Jim was already on
the list as an apprentice engineer but he has updated his years
of service. Jim has also identified the formerly unidentified
engineer in this photo as Tim
Barrel. |
|
29MAR10
|
Thanks
to Ian Mackenzie for supplying these two photos from the collection
of his Father, Daryl Mackenzie.
Waco YKS-6 VH-UYD
DH-83 Fox Moth VH-UQU |
|
28FEB10
|
The
history of Hudson VH-SMM/AGJ
has been expanded significantly thanks to Andrew Simpson, a Curator
and historian from the Royal Air Force Museum in the UK where
the aeroplane is now on display. Many will have wondered why the
aeroplane has not been restored to its full military configuration.
As it is currently displayed, the interior of the aeroplane is
virtually a time capsule of its days with Adastra. The Webmaster
put the question to the RAF Museum who have responded as follows:
Detailed consideration was given to returning
the aircraft to full military status, but the extent of airframe
modification this would involve precluded it at the time. Much
of the nose forward of the cockpit windscreen would need to be
replaced, and a new turret ring fitted in the rear fuselage -
so for the foreseeable future she will be remaining 'as is'.
(Richard Simpson, Keeper of Aircraft, RAF Museum)
The RAF Museum have been advised that in the event that they should
one day decide to fully restore the Hudson, there would be considerable
interest in having any removed items of Adastra equipment repatriated
to Australia for preservation. This has been noted on the aircraft
file.
Also added to the history of VH-SMM are several references from
Max Garroway for which we thank Doug Morrison. |
|
29DEC09
|
Thanks
to John Ellerton for supplying
his bio. |
|
12OCT09
|
Thanks
to Abe Baker, we now know a lot more about what was going on in
this photo. |
|
26MAY09
|
Thanks
to Doug Morrison I have added a page on Lyell
- E.Z. Explorations contracts in Tasmania in 1957. |
|
03MAY09
|
The
housekeeping continues. I believe that all of the Adastriana
buttons are now functional. If you find one that isn't please
advise the Webmaster.
The list of Contributors
has been given a long-overdue update. As always, if I have forgotten
anyone please let me know and it will be rectified.
I also discovered to my shame that I never added Kevin Pavlich
to the Honour Roll. This
has been put right. |
|
02MAY09
|
The
gap-tooth grin has gone. Since the inception of the Adastra website,
we have had an annoying gap in the navigation bar at the top of
the page. The simple reason for this is that we always had an
odd number of menu selections. One of the more popular sections
is that collection of personal anecdotes which we call Adastriana.
Up until now, this has been buried deep within the People
menu. Not any more. You will note that there is now an Adastriana
button on the navigation bar in the place of the aforementioned
gap. Please note that whilst this button is fully functional on
all the upper level pages, the Adastriana button is not
yet functional on the lower level pages. If you strike this situation
just hit the Home button from where you can select Adastriana. |
|
02MAY09
|
Neil
Spencer, who was a navigator/camera operator in 1974, has contributed
two wonderful stories plus a number of photographs. Thank you
Neil.
Polishing VH-CTE
Two Blades are Better than One
See also Photo Album #2 Images
S1 and S2
Bonanza VH-CFV with tip
tanks
Hudsons VH-AGP and VH-AGS
out to grass at Tamworth
Thanks also to Geoff Goodall and Tony Arbon for additional photos
and historical information. |
|
03APR09
|
Update
#90 of the Personnel List
is now current. The total is now 331. |
|
23MAR09
|
Update
#88 of the Personnel List
is now current. The total is now 330. |
|
28FEB09
|
Added a new page on the ground search for Wackett
VH-BEC after it had been located by Adastra's Hudson VH-AGE.
Thanks to Paul and Alison Heaft for providing these poignant images
which were found in the collection of Alison's Grandfather, Tom
Murray MBE, the Police officer who led the ground search party. |
|
28OCT08
|
Added an image of Anson VH-BKZ
after its take-off accident at Moorabbin in July 1953. Thanks
to Phil Vabre of the Civil Aviation Historical Society. |
|
31AUG08
|
Tony Burgess has contributed some wonderful photographs, 12 of
which can be viewed in Album #2
(Scroll down to rows Q & R). Don't miss the story of the stolen
Cessna! Many thanks to Tony and to David Watts who has ably assumed
the role of our late friend Kevin Pavlich by preparing Tony's
material to go on the website.
Tony has also supplied several new photos of Adastra aircraft:
Anson VH-BLF
Catalina VH-AGB
Hudson VH-AGS
Hudson VH-SMM |
|
30AUG08
|
Added an image of Aero
Commander VH-KRA while it was owned by King Ranch. Thanks
to Greg Banfield and Eddie Coates. |
|
28JUL08
|
Robin Baker has contacted us with some recollections of his time
with Adastra. His story is titled A
Net of Circumstance. |
|
18JUL08
|
Badge collector Adrian Patterson has provided images of two Adastra
badges from his collection. Thank you Adrian. |
|
15JUN08
|
Added a new page on DH-60M
Moth VH-UOQ. Thanks to Phil Vabre of the CAHS for providing
the photograph. |
|
15JUN08
|
Added two new images of Aero
Commander VH-KRA and added further details of its history
thanks to Russell Legg, Barry Collman, Roger McDonald and the
late Mike Madden. |
|
15JUN08
|
Added further information on Aero
Commander VH-AGA thanks to Tony Arbon and Barry Collman. |
|
14JUN08
|
Added two new images of Aero
Commander VH-AGA and clarified details of ownership post Adastra.
Thanks to Russell Legg. |
|
10MAR08
|
Added a colour image of Hudson
VH-AGE taken around the time that the aeroplane entered service
with Adastra. |
|
20FEB08
|
It is with deep regret that we record the passing of Gordon
Bigg. Gordon passed away on the Gold Coast on 14FEB08. His
funeral is being held today, 20FEB08. |
|
02FEB08
|
It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of Kevin
Pavlich on Friday 1st February. It will be noted that the home
page of this website now carries this dedication to Kevin.
This special
dedication recognises the fact that without Kevin's encouragement,
this website would never have been created. Not only did Kevin
encourage its creation but he also put a great deal of effort
into gathering and processing the material which makes this
website such a useful historical resource. Thanks to Kevin,
this website serves as a tribute to everyone who worked for
Adastra. Kevin died knowing that this dedication would be put
in place after his passing.
Kevin's Biography
Kevin's Log Book
|
|
03JAN08
|
To celebrate the new year, the website has undergone some refurbishment.
Although much of this may be transparent to readers, the most
significant changes are that all pages now appear in the Arial
font and the captions on some of the earlier images have been
enlarged. Why some of the images had such miniscule captions has
been lost in the mists of time but probably falls into the category
of "seemed like a good idea at the time". |
|
17DEC07
|
George Charlwood (who was there) advises that the date of Adastra's
move from Hangar 8 to Hangar 15 was closer to 1946 and not 1940
as previously shown on the Hangar
page. All references have been amended accordingly. Thanks
George. |
|
27NOV07
|
Reader, Graeme Parsons, recently visited the Botany Bay Library
at Mascot to inspect the glass panels from the Adastra Vickers
Avenue office. He was pleasantly surprised to find that the panels
have now been incorporated into a replica
door structure which features in an exhibition on the history
of Sydney Airport. The exhibition finishes on 29 February 2008.
Thank you Graeme. |
|
17OCT07
|
Thanks to a lead from Michael Costello, whose father, Brian, used
to fly Hudsons for Adastra, we are in contact with Tony Dewey
of Fugro. Tony recovered the door from the wreck of Hudson VH-AGO
at Horn Island and the restored door now adorns his bar.
The door as found.
The door as restored. |
|
09OCT07
|
Readers of the Adastra site might like an update on Kevin Pavlich.
Kevin's health situation recently dictated a move from Sydney
to Nowra where he can receive full-time care while being closer
to his son Patrick. While he was still in Sydney, Kevin was being
cared for by good friend and Honorary Adastrian, David Watts.
Since Kevin's move back to Fleet Air Arm territory, David continues
to visit him regularly. More recently, David arranged for Kevin
to have a motorised wheelchair which has improved his mobility
and quality of life considerably. Son Patrick, an aircraft engineer,
has installed an onboard oxygen system which automatically kicks
in when Kevin passes 10 feet above sea level. A GPS is planned
for the future although first it may be necessary to install a
speed governor, or at least hydraulic disc brakes. Kevin was last
seen laying rubber in the carpark of the North Nowra Tavern. Immediately
before this sighting he was heard to be muttering something about
"Which way is Bathurst?".
It is particularly pleasing to report that, in addition to caring
for Kevin, David Watts will now assume Kevin's role of co-ordinating
the collection and preparation of historical material for the
Adastra website. When it comes to cameras and scanners, David
is more qualified than any of us so he is a most welcome addition
to the website team. Here is one of David's recent photos of Motorised
Kevin. |
|
23SEP07
|
Several readers have identified an anomaly on the page describing
Adastra's Mascot hangars. The
first building occupied by Adastra from approximately 1930 to
1940 was originally identified as Hangar 9 although the map on
the same page clearly identifies it as Hangar 8. Where this anomaly
crept in I do not know but it was almost certainly the fault of
the Webmaster, not the original researcher Chris O'Neill. As I
have been unable to locate any reference to Adastra occupying
Hangar 9, all references have been changed to show Hangar 8. |
|
25AUG07
|
We now have a new user-friendly Guestbook. |
|
29JUL07
|
Update #78 of the Personnel
List is now current. The total is now 325. |
|
10MAY07
|
Added a magnificent air-to-air portrait of Dragonfly
ZK-AYR (formerly VH-AAD) thanks to Xavier Méal. |
|
07FEB07
|
Added a report on the RAC
lunch in Sydney on 25 January 2007. |
|
02JAN07
|
Since the beginning of this website, we have grappled with how
best to present the contents of Kevin Pavlich's flying log book.
Several attempts at summarising this mine of information fell
by the wayside. More recently, Kevin himself bit the bullet and,
encouraged by the Webmaster who said it deserved the full treatment,
set about writing his "Magnum Opus". What emerged was
a manuscript of 40 pages plus 60 images describing in great detail
Kevin's time with the RAN, World Wide Aerial Surveys and Adastra.
During his flying career, Kevin diligently recorded such details
as aircraft registration, altitude, camera type, shutter speed
and aperture. Future historians will give thanks to Kevin for
recording this information in the first place and for preserving
it so that it might be shared with future generations. Thank you
Kevin. You can read Kevin's story here. |
|
09DEC06
|
Sandra Motteram has settled an ongoing debate once and for all.
The correct spelling of her father's name is Allen Motteram.
We had every possible permutation on the site but it is believed
that all occurrences have been corrected. If you find one we missed
please advise the Webmaster. Our apologies to the Motteram family
for this fundamental error. |
|
30NOV06
|
Mike Wood has contributed a priceless piece of Adastra memorabilia
- his navigation computer.
Many thanks Mike. If only it could talk! |
|
29OCT06
|
Doug Morrison has contributed a very useful listing of some of
the aeromagnetic contracts
flown in South Australia by Adastra. Thanks Doug. |
|
20SEP06
|
Peter Gates has supplied three new post-Adastra photos of DC-3
VH-AGU:
VH-AGU at Archerfield
in July 1988 showing collision damage.
VH-AGU at Archerfield
in July 1988 showing close-up of collision damage.
VH-AGU at Brisbane in
April 1998
Thanks Peter. |
|
18SEP06
|
Prolific contributor, Wal Bowles, has provided us with another
Lionel anecdote - Lionel's
Brush with the Law. Thanks Wal. |
|
14AUG06
|
Update #74 of the Personnel
List is now current. The total is now 322. |
|
13AUG06
|
Added
an image of a New Year greeting
from Mr & Mrs Bunny Hammond. Thanks to Lorraine Staniland
for this contribution. |
|
07AUG06
|
Added
a biography of Les Sheffield.
Thanks to his son Trevor for this contribution. |
|
29JUN06
|
Added
an interesting photo of Adastra's Hangar
8 at Mascot in 1940. The photo was taken by Ruth Dunstan (nee
Palmer) a nurse who started taking flying lessons at Archerfield
in 1938 with a view to becoming a flying nurse. Sadly, late in
1938 she was told that flying lessons were available only to men
and her dream never eventuated. Thanks to Dennis Gray for sharing
this photo with us.
Can anyone identify the aeroplane in the Adastra hangar? |
|
10JUN06
|
Added
a biography of Ted McKenzie,
former Chief Pilot and Operations Manager of Adastra. The biography
was prepared from notes supplied by Ted himself. Thanks Ted. |
|
30MAY06
|
Peter
Kelly has provided an interesting photo of Hudson
VH-AGX. The photo shows the aeroplane as deck cargo on the
"Townsville Trader" in the Port of Melbourne in February
1977. Thanks Peter. |
|
29MAY06
|
Although
Dick Glassey was with Adastra only briefly, he went on to become
a central figure in the development of postwar civil aviation
in Papua New Guinea, a country which he had surveyed during his
time with Adastra. This biography
was prepared with the assistance of his good friend Peter Sharpe. |
|
28MAY06
|
Allen
Windross has contributed a wonderful piece titled "A
Job Near Home". Allen tells how he joined Adastra at
age 15 as the "Chemical Boy" in the Photographic Laboratory
at Mascot. Included in the story is a diagram of the layout of
the laboratory. Thank you Allen for a superb article on a previously
overlooked aspect of Adastra's operations. |
|
24MAY06
|
On
22 January 2006, several Adastrians attended a welcome home party
for fellow Adastrian Alex Whitworth after his round-world voyage
in his yacht Berrimilla. Thanks to David Watts we have
been able to add three photos to Album
No 2. See images P4, P5 & P6. |
|
23MAY06
|
Four
new images have been added to Album No 2:
A fine portrait of Frank
Minjoy courtesy of Kevin Pavlich's brother Darcy.
Ken Rowlands and the
crew of VH-AGX at Wewak in 1965 thanks to Noel Langford.
Alfie Thompson and Jim Hilferty
in tropical uniform. Thanks to Les Hall.
Those were the days. The Adastra ramp
in 1959. Courtesy of Les Hall.
Les Hall has also provided three interesting images of Adastra
aeroplanes.
Hudson VH-AGX with
the red cowl adornments.
DC-3 VH-AGU with the under-belly
Doppler antenna exposed.
Prince F-BJAI (formerly
VH-AGF) being refuelled in Gabon.
Thanks to all our contributors. |
|
18MAY06
|
Added
another photo of Hudson
VH-BLA which later became VH-AGG. The photo comes from the
Gus Grulke Collection. |
|
14MAY06
|
It
may surprise some readers that the site now has a new page devoted
to an aeroplane which Adastra never owned. To the best of our
knowledge, Adastra had no association with the aeroplane beyond
the fact that it was the only heavy, survey aircraft retained
by East-West Airlines after it took-over Adastra. The aircraft
is the survey DC-3 VH-DAS
which spent its entire survey career in South Australia. Your
Webmaster has had to choose between rigidly applying policy and
relaxing our criteria to include a wealth of new information which
might otherwise be lost.
We have added a biography of Dean
Darcey who passed away recently in Brisbane. Dean's biography
includes the classic aviation poem "The Port Moresby Gliding
Club". Although many would be familiar with this clever poem,
not many would realise that Dean was the author. |
|
01MAY06
|
In
1943, Adastra was contracted by the NSW Main Roads Department
to conduct aerial photography of Sydney. These wartime photos
survive to this day in the archives of the NSW Roads & Traffic
Authority. The RTA recently produced a CD-ROM of these photos
for sale to the public. A new page on the 1943
Survey of Sydney displays several photos from the CD and provides
information on ordering a copy of the CD.
Update #70 of the Personnel
List is now current. The total is now 320. |
|
02APR06
|
The
page on the Hudson Magnetometer
Boom has been completely revised thanks to input from Ted
McKenzie and John Fincher. The pages for VH-AGE
and VH-AGS have also
been revised accordingly.
The page on the Hudson Winch
Bird has also been updated with the addition of two photos
(albeit of poor quality) which were previously missing from our
copy of the file. These depict the cable
pulley assembly and the bird
cradle. Thanks to Chris O'Neill for this new information. |
|
19MAR06
|
Kym
Stucke has contributed a very fine biography of her late father
Bruce Sellick. Thank you Kym. |
|
09MAR06
|
It
has emerged that there was another aviation company which used
the name Adastra. This company was called Ad
Astra Aero and they operated out of Switzerland from 1920
to 1931. |
|
24FEB06
|
Update
#68 of the Personnel List
is now current. The total is now 319. |
|
20FEB06
|
Thanks
to the State Library of NSW we have been able to add a wonderful
photo of two of Adastra's
founders, Miss Evelyn Follett and Captain Frank Follett.
Please note that the Guestbook has been reactivated. |
|
11JAN06
|
Thanks
to John Collins and Kevin Pavlich, we have been able to identify
the crew member in this photo
as Pat Murphy who was the navigator on Hudson VH-AGG when it was
lost at Lae. (It was previously stated incorrectly that Pat Murphy
was the camera operator but this has been corrected to navigator.
Thanks to Bob Cozens for the correction.) |
|
06JAN06
|
Update
#67 of the Personnel List
is now current. The total is now 318. |
|
27DEC05
|
It
wasn't enough for Alex Whitworth to compete in last year's Sydney
to Hobart and then immediately sail Berrimilla around the world.
Just days after returning safely to Sydney, Alex and Berrimilla
fronted up again for the 2006 Sydney to Hobart. Readers can monitor
Berrimilla's progress via the official race website by clicking
on "Yacht Tracker"
http://rolexsydneyhobart.com/default.asp
Don't miss the Google Earth feed. This is an innovation which
should really appeal to old aerial survey types. |
|
14DEC05
|
John
Collins has highlighted an anomaly with the model number of the
Cessna VH-KMF. Although officially a Cessna 210-5A, it was marketed
as a Cessna 205, the predecessor of the Cessna 206 which it closely
resembled. Thanks to John for pointing it out and to Tony Arbon
for explaining the details. We are all left wondering why they
didn't call it a 205 in the first place. |
|
12DEC05
|
The
recent passing of Dora Payens reminded us that several Adastrians
who have contributed to the website have passed away since its
inception. Accordingly, it was felt that these Adastrians should
feature on an Honour Roll. It will be noted that the Honour
Roll is restricted to the following:
(a) Adastrians who contributed historical material to the website
during their lifetime.
(b) Immediate family of Adastrians who contributed historical
material to the website after the passing of the staff member.
(c) Adastrians who provided for us with historical material which
was contributed after their death by family or friends.
If readers can think of anyone who should be on the roll please
advise Ron Cuskelly. |
|
12DEC05
|
It
is sad to report that we have received word that Ken Rowlands'
wife Gwen passed away in Bowral Hospital on 6 November 2005 after
a long illness. |
|
11DEC05
|
Prodigal
Adastrian Alex Whitworth Nearly Home!
Alex Whitworth, Pete Crozier and "Berrimilla" are
expecting to arrive in Hobart at approximately 1500 local time
tomorrow, Monday 12 December, thus completing their circumnavigation
of the world. (Next year they are planning to go somewhere else).
Their ETA Sydney is some time around 21 December. For progress
reports please see the Berri website:
http://www.berrimilla.com/log/TheLog.htm
|
|
04DEC05
|
It
is sad to report that we have received word via Ted McKenzie that
Dora Payens passed away during November. Dora's family found a
document amongst her papers asking that Adastra be advised in
the event of her passing. |
|
04DEC05
|
Thanks
to Ted McKenzie and Mike Wood we now have a better understanding
of what was happening in Geoff Goodall's photo of Hudson
VH-AGX ground running at Adelaide in December 1962 (not January
1963 as previously believed). |
|
26NOV05
|
Geoff
Goodall has supplied us with a wonderful photo of Hudson
VH-AGX ground running at Adelaide in December 1962. All we
have to do now is name the participants.
Geoff Goodall has also contributed a photo of Hudson
VH-EWR in rain-making configuration. This aeroplane later
became VH-AGE. |
|
24NOV05
|
Update
#66 of the Personnel List
is now current. The total is now 317.
Please refer to the previous update on 14NOV05. The location of
this photo was incorrectly identified as Horn Island but this
has now been corrected to Weipa. |
|
14NOV05
|
Recently
we were contacted by Alan O'Toole who has identified the unknown
engineer in this photo
as his friend Alan Baker. Thanks to Alan O'Toole and to Kevin
Pavlich who subsequently interviewed Alan Baker. |
|
23OCT05
|
Thanks
to Geoff Goodall we have an excellent photo of DC-3
VH-AGU wearing Westralian Aerial Surveys titles. The photo
was taken outside Hangar 13 at Mascot in January 1964. Thanks
Geoff. |
|
14OCT05
|
Aircraft
which were previously illustrated on the Miscellaneous Aircraft
page have now been moved to separate pages, all of which are indexed
on the Aircraft menu. These pages do
not at present provide a history of the aircraft but there is
now space for this if the information is forthcoming. In most
instances, content is limited to the photos relocated from the
Miscellaneous page which has now been deleted. Aircraft affected
are:
Beech Bonanza VH-CFV
Beech Queen Air VH-CTE
Boeing B-17 CF-HBP
Cessna 210 VH-KMF
Cessna 320 VH-DRK
DH-83 Fox Moth VH-UQU
These changes have been prompted by the receipt of an interesting
photo provided by Paul Hockey. The photo depicts a de Havilland
DH-60X Moth which is believed to be VH-UFT
which was owned by Bunny Hammond before he and Frank Follett formed
Adastra. Technically it's not an Adastra aeroplane but the interesting
historical connection is irresistible. Thanks Paul. |
|
13OCT05
|
Thanks
to Prince specialist, Tom Singfield in the UK, we have a very
interesting photo of Adastra's Prince wearing the Kenyan registration
VP-KRN. The aeroplane
is photographed somewhere in Africa in 1961. Thanks Tom. |
|
28SEP05
|
Update
#65 of the Personnel List
is now current. The total is now 315. The addition is Tom Cuthbertson
who was a navigator on the Dragonfly in 1946. Thanks to some detective
work by Cay Carpenter we now know that Tom Cuthbertson is the
previously unidentified person in this photo. |
|
23SEP05
|
Our Alex has his name up in lights again. The following is quoted
from a Royal Ocean Racing Club news release:
"The Seamanship Trophy, awarded each year by the Royal Ocean
Racing Club for an outstanding act of seamanship, goes to Alex
Whitworth and Peter Crozier and their Brolga 33 ft yacht ‘Berrimilla'.
Having sailed the 2004 Rolex Sydney-Hobart, the two set off to
sail to the UK via the Falkland Islands, taking 159 days. They
encountered severe storms with squalls of over 50 knots and were
knocked down during a south-westerly gale south of New Zealand,
subsequently having to put into Dunedin as Alex Whitworth had
severely bruised ribs. Having completed the voyage to the UK they
then took part in the Rolex Fastnet Race, coming 8th in IRC Class
3, and shortly afterwards set sail again for Australia, in order
to arrive in time to take part in the 2005 Rolex Sydney- Hobart
race. The prizes, together with all the other RORC Annual awards,
will be presented at the AGM and Annual Prize Giving Dinner at
the Drapers’ Hall on 22nd November." |
|
21SEP05
|
Further
to the recently added photo of the Prince
VH-AGF with its belly hatch open, Joe Tidey advises that "the
only magnetometer head carried by the Prince while with AHGL was
fixed into the absolute rear-end of the fuselage up under the
trailing edge of the rudder. Nothing was every streamed from that
belly hatch - not even unwanted bodily wastes, as we had an Elsan
on board. The hatch being provided to accommodate the 35mm tracking
camera." Thanks Joe for setting us straight with this. |
|
21SEP05
|
Thanks
to Ted McKenzie, the DC-3 Mystery
Modification has been identified. It's a Janitrol Heater. |
|
18SEP05
|
Tom Carpenter's
log book has yielded more detail of Adastra's acquisition of
the Anson W2599. From
the same source we also have more detail of the brief service
of Anson VH-BGO and
of the fire which destroyed the aeroplane. Previously we knew
that BGO's lifetime with Adastra was exactly one month but thanks
to Tom's log book it now appears that Adastra got only one successful
survey flight (of 4 hours 35 minutes) out of the aeroplane before
it was destroyed! Tom Carpenter did a lot of flying on Ansons
and a lesser amount on Hudsons as either camera operator, engineer
or second pilot. Much of this has been added to the chronologies
of the following aircraft although it should be noted that these
are mostly ferry flights and many "routine" flights
have been omitted. Thanks again to Cay Carpenter.
VH-AVT
VH-BKZ
VH-AGO
Tom's log book also provides us with a lot of useful details
of the early test flying of Adastra's first Hudson VH-AGG.
Dave Barth has provided additional information on the location
of the camera mount on VH-AGP.
This aircraft was the only Hudson in the fleet with the camera
in the cabin.
|
|
17SEP05
|
Noel
Slarks has contributed a letter
of sympathy from Bunny Hammond to his mother who was Josie
Linfoot's sister. Attached to the letter is a list of persons
and companies who had sent messages of condolence to the company.
Thank you Noel for this poignant contribution. |
|
16SEP05
|
Thanks
to Lorraine Staniland and Jim McKnight we have added a biography
for Neville Bruchhauser
who learned to fly with the Adastra Flying School and later went
on to fly the Bega run in the Fox Moth and aerial survey in the
Dragonfly. The biography is illustrated with a wonderful portrait
taken in new Guinea in 1936. From the same source we have an image
of a souvenir from the first annual Adastra
Dance which was held in 1931.These contributions have come
to us as a result of the article in "AERO Australia".
Thank you Lorraine and Jim.
Allen Windross has supplied a series of six photos of a mysterious
modification to the DC-3 VH-AGU. If any reader knows what
this apparatus is for please let us know. Allen has also contributed
an interesting photo of the Prince
VH-AGF with its belly doors open. There is also an enlarged
view of the doors. Also from Allen is a familiar photo of
three Hudsons parked outside Hangar 15 c.1955. A seemingly identical
photo is already in Album #1, but on closer examination there
are subtle differences. Compare:
Album #1 Image H3
Album #2 Image O4
And finally from Allen comes this interesting photo of himself
mopping out the darkroom at Mascot. Many thanks Allen. |
|
13SEP05
|
As
a postscript to one of Dave Barth's photos, Cay Carpenter checked
his father's log book and sure enough, Tom Carpenter was the camera
operator on the survey of Wandoan on 29 June 1949. Although Tom
was an engineer he often served as camera operator. The relevant
image is here. |
|
10SEP05
|
Dave
Barth has contributed a selection of 21 photos taken during his
service as a camera operator. They can be found in Album
#2 Images L1 to O3. There are many fine images in this collection.
Many thanks Dave for this outstanding contribution. |
|
04SEP05
|
Added
a short piece on Raydist in the
hope that it will inspire readers to expand on the system. Thanks
to Dave Bland for the comments and Maurie Miller for the photo.
Also added an anecdote from Joe Tidey titled "Tales
of Q" |
|
03SEP05
|
Added
a biography of Bruce Beale. Thanks
Bruce!
Although not an Adastra staff member, Graham Campbell has submitted
a very poignant tale of his time as a young boy in Lae. "Sad
Memories of Lae" is a very moving story. Thank you Graham. |
|
01SEP05
|
The
magazine article which appeared in "AERO Australia"
Issue 5 of January/March 2005 has been added to the site with
the kind permission of the Publisher/Editor, Stewart Wilson.
This page displays a scan of
all seven pages each of which are linked to a larger image.
This page shows only the
unedited text which was submitted to the magazine. |
|
31AUG05
|
The
list of Contributors has
been updated. As the website matures, it is becoming more difficult
to maintain this list. Could all readers please monitor this list
for completeness and advise
Ron if any omissions are detected. If the omission is you,
please don't be modest! |
|
30AUG05
|
Thanks
to Geoff Goodall we now have a better understanding of the lifespan
of Westralian Aerial Surveys. According to DCA files, Adastra
applied for an Airwork Licence in the name of Westralian Air Surveys
Pty. Ltd. on 24 January 1962. The Licence was issued on 1 July
1962 and was renewed each year until its expiry on 5 April 1969
after which it was not renewed. It is interesting to note that
the Licence names the company as Westralian Air Surveys
although it was ultimately painted on DC-3 VH-AGU and Hudson VH-AGS
as Westralian Aerial Surveys. Doubtless this was to minimise
repainting of the existing Adastra Aerial Surveys titles. These
dates have been added to the relevant Chronology.
Added a new page for Cessna
180 VH-ASP. |
|
29AUG05
|
Cay
Carpenter has scanned many images from the photo album which belonged
to his father Tom and a good selection have been added to the
site. Most can be found in Photo
Album #2 (Images I4 to K6) but others appear elsewhere on
the site. Herewith a summary of this wonderful new material:
Australia's First
Civil Anson by Tom Carpenter appeared on the site some time
ago, but we have only just received two of the images that have
been hitherto missing from the story.
1940s Map of the Victoria
Survey
The Wrecked Cheetah
Engine from VH-AVT
In order to show the necessary detail, these are large images.
Tom's album includes that familiar image
of Dragonfly VH-AAD flanked by two Ansons, but thankfully Tom
had the foresight to make some notes on the back of the print.
We now know that the photo was taken in Ballarat in 1946 and we
are now able to identify the Ansons.
Also featured in Tom's album is that classic photo
of three uniformed Adastra crew posed in front of Anson VH-AGG
prior to departure on the Victoria contract. Again Tom has provided
for us with notes on the reverse which state; "This was our
first Anson but it is Unit No 2, VH-AAD the Dragonfly was Unit
No 1". This confirmation has enabled a significant update
of the page on Unit Numbers.
Earlier, Cay supplied us with a wonderful 1946 photo of Anson
VH-AGG with the company car and trailer only just failing to obscure
the registration on the Anson. As interesting as the car and trailer
are, some readers may have wished for an unobstructed view of
the Anson. Again Tom has provided for us:
VH-AGG with the car
VH-AGG minus the car
Readers will be familiar with the small air-to-air photo of Hudson
VH-AGG on the front cover of the "How
Adastra Can Serve You" brochure. The same photo
has surfaced in Tom's album but it is evident that it has been
heavily retouched (in pre-Photoshop days!). Presumably a genuine
photo of VH-AGG has been superimposed on a more spectacular cloudscape.
Although all of Tom's photos are remarkable, one of them is really
special. It's a rare photo of Frank
Follett standing in front of an Adastra Anson.
As if all this isn't enough, we also have a very entertaining
account of Tom's aviation career titled "How
Lucky Can You Be?". This is a very detailed and readable
story which includes references to an early test flight in Hudson
VH-AGG which might have ended in disaster but for the skill of
Lionel Van Praag. Tom also mentions the hangar fire at Nhill which
destroyed Anson VH-BGO. This is a great read!
And finally, Cay has provided three new names for the Personnel
List, Issue #64 of which is now current. This brings the total
to 314.
Thanks Cay for going to so much trouble to make your Dad's precious
material available to us. |
|
26AUG05
|
Added
an image of Mustang A68-187
restored in the United States as N50FS "SU SU II". Thanks
to Curtis Fowles. |
|
24AUG05
|
Update
#63 of the Personnel List
is now current. The total is now 311.
The history of Dragonfly
VH-AAD has been expanded thanks to Richard Waugh in NZ. |
|
19AUG05
|
An
earlier decision to retain the Mustang A68-104
on the site despite suspicions that it never belonged to Adastra,
has proved fortuitous. It has now emerged that Jack McDonald lodged
Applications for CofA and Registration on 14 March 1962 and that
the registration VH-AGV was subsequently allotted. Sadly this
is as far as it went for it is believed that the conversion of
A68-104 was never even begun. Thanks to David Muir for this revelation. |
|
13AUG05
|
Although
the Adastra connection is rather tenuous, the history of Anson
VH-WMA has been greatly enhanced by a contribution from Bill
Withers. Bill was once the Senior Cloud Seeding Officer with the
CSIRO and he is therefore the ideal person to describe the CSIRO's
use of VH-WMA in rain-making activities. Thank you Bill for a
very informative and entertaining contribution. |
|
11JUL05
|
Thanks
to David Prossor, John Collins' story Adastra
and the Single Engine Survey Aircraft now includes a photograph
of Cessna 180 VH-ASP with Adastra
Aerial Surveys titles. Many thanks Dave! |
|
10JUL05
|
A
recent chance discovery by aviation historian Geoff Goodall suggested
that when Australia was visited by the Westinghouse survey Douglas
DC-6B in 1970 there may have been an Adastra connection. Kevin
Pavlich put the question to Mike Wood who responded with an unequivocal;
"Yes, I navigated on it!"
Mike has now consulted his diaries and come up with chapter and
verse on Adastra and the Westinghouse DC-6B. Geoff Goodall has
contributed a photo of the DC-6 taken in Perth during the survey
and Gordon Reid has supplied the full history of the aeroplane.
Given that your Webmaster visited Miami in 1980, I thought that
I should check my photo files - just in case. To my astonishment,
I discovered that I had photographed a rather decrepit DC-6B registered
5N-APS - the former Westinghouse flagship. This indefinable sense
of "meant to be" has been an ongoing feature whenever
Mike puts pen to paper, so it is to be hoped that we can look
forward to many more such contributions. Enjoy Adastra
and the Westinghouse DC-6B |
|
01JUN05
|
Thanks
to Nigel Daw, John Collins' story Adastra
and the Single Engine Survey Aircraft now includes a photograph
of Cessna 180 VH-ASP, albeit taken several years after Adastra
operated the aircraft.
Update #62 of the Personnel
List is now current. The total is now 310. |
|
28MAY05
|
John
Collins has provided an interesting insight into Adastra's use
of single engine survey aircraft. John has also contributed several
new names to the Personnel List. Although we are becoming accustomed
to regular additions to the list of people, we don't often receive
additions to the list of aircraft! John has informed us that the
company used the Cessna 180 VH-ASP from 1965 to 1967 before it
was replaced by the more familiar Cessna 185 VH-AGE. Thanks to
John's input, the following pages have been added or updated:
Adastra and the Single Engine Survey
Aircraft
Personnel List Update #61
(the count is now 306)
Fleet List (adding VH-ASP)
Dr Noel Sproles has kindly given us permission to reprint his
article "Arduous Times with
Adastra" which describes his time in the Army when he
was involved with Adastra on the Aerodist project.
Brian Lees has provided us with his biography
as well as an amusing Lionel anecdote titled Lionel
and the Tiger. |
|
07MAY05
|
We
are receiving a steady stream of photos from Cay Carpenter. These
will be added to the site as soon as possible. In the meantime,
one magnificent photo from Tom Carpenter's album has really set
the cat amongst the pigeons! Many of the Anson photos on the site
have been identified on the basis that only VH-AGO had the round
cabin windows. Imagine therefore what it would do to our theories
if someone came up with a photo of Anson VH-AGG with the same
round cabin windows. Here is such a photo!
This revelation has had most impact on the caption to the 1946
photo of the Dragonfly flanked by two Ansons. It also means
that the air-to-air photo
of an Anson thought to be VH-AGO might depict VH-AGG. |
|
06MAY05
|
Thanks
to Angela Bigg (Gordon Bigg's grand-daughter) we have added Gordon's
biography and several photos from his album (See Album
#2, images H6, I1, I2 & I3). Can anyone identify the gentleman
on the left in image I2? Gordon
is currently in retirement on the Gold Coast. Many thanks Gordon
and Angela. |
|
01MAY05
|
Seeing
that Alex Whitworth was good enough to send us his biography directly
from the South Atlantic, and given that his fame is increasing
daily, I thought that I should add a page
on Alex. |
|
14APR05
|
Wow!
It's been more than a month since the previous update. This doesn't
mean that I have abandoned the site but it is probably indicative
of my preoccupation with a new project, details of which will
have to wait until later. In any case, things have been quiet
in terms of the information coming in but we continue to make
useful contacts. As a result of the "AERO" article,
Kevin has received a letter from Alan Thomas of the Camden Museum
of Aviation. Anson fans will be aware that they are the custodians
of Adastra's VH-AGA. You can read the salient points from Alan's
letter on either the page for VH-AGA
or VH-BLF (look under
1964 in the chronology). It seems that more of BLF survives than
we had previously imagined. We are grateful to George Charlwood
for identifying two more personnel in this
photo. One of the people George has identified is himself,
a subject on which he is a world authority! The other is John
Nancarrow. |
|
25FEB05
|
As a result
of the Adastra article in AERO Australia magazine, we have been
contacted by Cay Carpenter whose late father Tom was an engineer
with Adastra when the Ansons first went into service. Indeed
it was Tom who first fitted Oxford cowls to an Australian Anson.
Cay was delighted to see a photo
of his Dad in the AERO article but sadly Tom passed away before
the article was published. Information in Tom's papers has enabled
us to update the caption to this photo
as we now know that it was taken in October 1945 just before
Anson VH-AGG departed Mascot to enter service on the contract
to survey all of Victoria. This was an important event for Adastra
so this probably explains the extra "spit and polish"
by the crew. Cay Carpenter has provided us with this photo
of his parents posing with Gordon Bigg, an Adastra pilot from
the post-war period and currently living on the Gold Coast.
Also included in Tom Carpenter's papers is the story
of his involvement in the fitment of Oxford cowls to the Ansons.
The story also mentions a very close call in Anson VH-AVT. Cay
Carpenter, who is currently a Captain on the Fokker 100 with
Alliance Airlines, is hoping that the family photo album might
yield even more of these treasures. Thank you Cay!
Continuing with the Anson theme, it would appear that we have
struck the "Anson mother lode" as we have received
an outstanding contribution from George Charlwood who was an
engineer with Adastra from 1945 until the late fifties. As well
as many wonderful photos, George has also contributed a detailed
biography. Most of George's
photos appear in Album #2
(G5 to H5 incl) but several others appear on the aircraft history
pages as follow:
GC-01
Waco YKS-6 VH-UYD
GC-02 Dragonfly
VH-AAD
GC-03 Dragonfly
VH-AAD
GC-05 Anson VH-AGO
GC-06 Anson VH-AGO
GC-11 Anson VH-BKZ
GC-13 Waco YKS-6
VH-UYD
GC-14 Waco YKS-6
VH-UYD
GC-15 Anson VH-AGO
GC-16 Dragonfly
VH-AAD |
After
a post-war overhaul
Taken circa 1946
George working on a Gipsy Major
With original helmet cowls
Air-to-Air! Don't miss this gem!
50 hourly at Mildura
Showing "Unit No 2" on the door
Taken in May 1945
A better print of an existing image
Showing the Adastra emblem on the door |
Another
photo contribution comes from Edge Adams. It shows a very crowded
Adastra hangar at Mascot with Anson VH-AVT (later VH-AGA) occupying
centre stage with a Hudson (believed to be VH-AGG) and a DH-84
Dragon (probably VH-AGC). The earthworks going on outside the
hangar suggest that this photo was taken soon after the company
occupied Hangar 13. Thanks Edge for this fascinating photo.
All of this wonderful material has prompted a reappraisal of
the Unit Numbers which were allocated to Adastra survey aircraft
in the early days. The revised table appears here.
Updates #58 and #59 of the Personnel
List have been added. This brings the count to 304.
|
|
14FEB05
|
As
a follow-up to Joe Tidey's story about "Adastra Green",
we have received some additional material from Sir Reginald Barnewall
who was one of the founders of Polynesian Airlines. Several Adastra
staff (known to include Ken Rowlands, Jim Hilferty and Joe Tidey)
worked for Polynesian Airlines but we now know that the Adastra
connection went further than this. Thanks Sir Reg. Please enjoy:
It's Not Easy Being Green #2 |
|
13FEB05
|
Update
#57 of the Personnel List
is now current. This brings the count to 302.
Brian Jelfs has been able to supply all of the names to go with
this group photo. |
|
10FEB05
|
Chris
O'Neill has extracted several files on Hudson VH-AGE (and its
earlier incarnations) from the National Archives and as a consequence,
our history of this aeroplane has been greatly enhanced. Many
thanks Chris!
VH-AGE |
|
03FEB05
|
Warren
Ide has put us in touch with Brian Jelfs who was a Photogrammetrist
from 1957 to 1972. Brian has contributed five wonderful photos
which have been added to Album #2
as images F5 to G3. Image G3 reveals
yet another car to come from the Hangar 13 paint shop. This one
isn't green however! Image F5
is one of those guessing competitions where you get to put names
to unidentified staff members.
Update #55 of the Personnel
List is now current. This brings the count to 301. |
|
02FEB05
|
Joe
Tidey has contributed a fascinating story about "Adastra
Green". This story throws new light on how the company came
to adopt this unusual colour. Thanks Joe. Please enjoy:
It's Not Easy Being Green |
|
31JAN05
|
Update
#54 of the Personnel List
is now current. This brings the count to 300. |
|
27JAN05
|
Thanks
again to Ed Coates, I have added another photo of Adastra's short-lived
Anson VH-BKZ. This one was taken outside Hangar 15 at Mascot in
the early fifties.
VH-BKZ |
|
25JAN05
|
Thanks
again to Ed Coates, I have been able to add a very nice image
of East-West Airlines Hudson VH-EWE which later became Adastra's
VH-AGE.
VH-EWE |
|
11JAN05
|
Two
new images have been added to the site.
Anson VH-AGA at Essendon
in the late fifties - thanks to Ed Coates
Hudsons VH-AGP & VH-AGS
stored at Tamworth - thanks to Richard Hitchins |
|
28DEC04
|
Update
#53 of the Personnel List
is now current. This brings the count to 298. |
|
26DEC04
|
Count 10 Lighthouses and Turn Right:
While most of us are spending Boxing Day enjoying Christmas dinner
leftovers, Adastrian Alex Whitworth is battling his way south
at the helm of his yacht Berrimilla in the annual Sydney
Hobart Yacht Race. Alex is no stranger to the race, this being
his eleventh trip to Hobart. On each previous occasion, at the
completion of the race, Alex has counted the same ten lighthouses
again and turned left. However, on this occasion, Alex will sail
on beyond Hobart via Cape Horn and the Falklands to the U.K. to
compete in the Fastnet Race. Berrimilla will return to
Australia via the Cape of Good Hope in time to compete in next
year's Sydney Hobart. Alex has created a website for Berrimilla
so that we can track his progress beyond Hobart. His progress
in the Sydney Hobart can be tracked on the official Rolex Sydney
Hobart Yacht Race website. We wish Alex and his crew fair winds
and God speed.
www.berrimilla.com
Yacht
Tracker |
|
23DEC04
|
And
now for something completely different. Former Adastra Hudson
pilot, Rick Geary, has sent us a link from which Flight Simulator
enthusiasts can download an instrument panel for the Hudson. This
panel was designed by Roger Lowery and it is based on the panel
of the former VH-AGJ which is now displayed at the RAF Museum,
Hendon. It will be interesting to hear if we have any Flight Simmers
amongst our readership. The download link is actually located
on another of Ron Cuskelly's websites, "The Lockheed File"
here. |
|
22DEC04
|
A brief
history of Adastra is now in print. The January/March issue
(Number 5) of "AERO Australia" magazine features a
7 page article on Adastra. The article includes 16 photographs
from our website as well as a table of survey aircraft operated
by Adastra. The photos are drawn from the collections of Dora
Payens, Alex Whitworth, Jack Howard, Maurie Miller, Allan Walker,
Peter Shute, Kevin Pavlich, Bob Cozens and Ron Cuskelly. Look
for it in your newsagent now.
|
|
15DEC04
|
Ed Coates has sent us two photos from long AGO. As readers may
suspect from the dreadful pun, they depict VH-AGO, both the Anson
and the Hudson. Although Ed is first to admit that the quality
of the Anson photo isn't the best, it is a very interesting photo
for several reasons. Firstly, it shows what must be Hangar 15
without the company name but with evidence of the former occupant's
name having been painted out. Secondly, it shows the aeroplane
wearing Oxford cowls. Thirdly, it shows clearly that VH-AGO retained
the round cabin windows, the only Adastra Anson to do so. This
gives us an interesting sequence of photos on the page for Anson
VH-AGO; with helmet cowls, with no cowls and with Oxford cowls.
The photo sans cowls is believed to depict the transition from
one type to the other. Many thanks Ed for these wonderful photos.
Anson VH-AGO
Hudson VH-AGO |
|
23NOV04
|
Update
#52 of the Personnel List
is now current. This brings the count to 295. |
|
21NOV04
|
A
recent enquiry from Derek Minter prompted some further research
into the reported demise of Dave Brennan. Sadly, this research
has confirmed that Dave was killed in an air crash on 22nd February
1977. Further details here.
|
|
20NOV04
|
Update
#51 of the Personnel List
is now current. This brings the count to 294. |
|
28OCT04
|
One
of our more prolific contributors, Maurie Miller, has penned an
interesting account of laundry
procedures in the field. Thanks Maurie. |
|
25OCT04
|
Update
#50 of the Personnel List
is now current. The count remains at 292. |
|
23OCT04
|
Thanks
to Ed Coates, I have been able to add two new images of the Dragonfly
VH-AAD.
with Bush Pilots Airways
with the Griffith Aero
Club
Before he emigrated to the USA in the fifties, Ed accumulated
a wonderful photographic collection of Australian civil aircraft
in the 30s, 40s and 50s. Several of Ed's photos already appear
on the Adastra site. Recently, Ed decided to share his collection
with the rest of the world by launching his own website. www.edcoatescollection.com
is well worth a visit. Indeed it's worth repeated visits as Ed
is adding to the site on an almost daily basis. |
|
22OCT04
|
Since
the inception of the website project, Kevin Pavlich has done a
wonderful job of co-ordinating all of the submissions and generally
making the job of Webmaster much easier. Kevin recently observed
that contributions have reached a plateau. This is not necessarily
a bad thing as it has enabled Kevin to spend more time recording
his own experiences with Adastra! As a result, we are able to
present a very detailed account of Survey
Navigation in the Avro Anson. Thanks Kevin for this wonderful
contribution. |
|
18OCT04
|
Geoff
Goodall has provided some additional information on the Catalina
VH-AGB. This material was sourced from DCA files in the National
Archives of Australia. Thanks Geoff. |
|
06OCT04
|
We
have been contacted by Dave Richards who is now the 292nd addition
to the Personnel List,
Update #49 of which is now current. Dave has contributed several
interesting photos for which we thank him. Included amongst these
are photos of the dingo pup and one of the donkeys which travelled
from Hall's Creek to Sydney on DC-3 VH-AGU. These photos have
enabled us to illustrate Derek Minter's
account of this incident. Five of Dave's photos appear in
Album #2 as images E6 to F4
inclusive. Another four photos have been added to the page for
DC-3 VH-AGU:
AGU in Hangar 13
AGU fogbound at Oodnadatta
The Gamma Ray Spectrometer
in AGU
The Gamma Ray Spectrometer
in AGU |
|
01OCT04
|
Ted
McKenzie has discovered something in his log book which has prompted
a re-examination of the Hudson
Magnetometer Boom installation. It now seems that the test
flights were with VH-AGE and not VH-AGS
as previously believed. Thanks for this contribution Ted. |
|
18SEP04
|
For
some reason which I can no longer remember, I decided to invoke
the power of Google to search for "Adastra". The results
astonished me. There were nearly two hundred thousand of them!
Although many are duplications, it is quite clear that the name
is a popular one. One wonders however, if any of them can trace
their ancestry back to 1930. Nevertheless, some are worthy custodians
of the name and others are not. The page titled "The
Other Adastras" has been expanded accordingly and there
is even a Google search button if you want to do your own search.
Don't miss the catamaran. |
|
15SEP04
|
Wal
Bowles has contributed a fine piece titled "Operating
the Anson". This can be found on the Operations Menu.
Thanks Wal.
Update #48 of the Personnel
List is now current. The count is now 291. |
|
04SEP04
|
Update
#47 of the Personnel List
is now current. Thanks to Warren Ide for contributing three new
names and service dates for five others. The count is now 290. |
|
30AUG04
|
Update
#46 of the Personnel List
is now current. |
|
29AUG04
|
Update
#45 of the Personnel List
is now current. This brings the total on the list to 287. |
|
28AUG04
|
One
of our more prolific contributors, Wal Bowles, has submitted an
item which was originally intended as a piece of Adastriana but
it was felt that this would not do justice to what is a serious
examination of a significant operational matter. Accordingly,
Wal's report on Flight Time Limitations
can be found on the Operations menu. |
|
20AUG04
|
It
is said that all electronic devices work on smoke. Proof of this
lies in the fact that once the smoke escapes, they don't work
any more! Maurie Miller has provided an amusing "smoke"
story from his time on the Catalina. The story is called A
Wake Up Call. |
|
19AUG04
|
Thanks
to Allen Windross we have been able to add something different
to the site. Allen's family lived in Lords Road, Lauriston Park
which may not mean a lot to many readers. However, in the late
fifties, Lords Road was renamed Vickers Avenue and the location
was by then known as Mascot. Allen's family home was only four
doors removed from Adastra's headquarters! Not only did Allen
live in Adastra's "patch" but he also went to work for
them from 1954 to 1965. To his great credit, Allen decided to
record his reminiscences, principally for submission to the Pagewood
Library, but he has also made the document available to us. At
first glance, this very comprehensive account of life in suburban
Sydney may not appear relevant to the Adastra site. However, what
Allen has done is to describe in great detail what it was like
living and working in Adastra's "patch" for more than
twenty years."Growing
up on the Lauriston Park Estate" will be a trip down
memory lane for many Adastrians and Sydneysiders. If more people
followed Allen's example, the job of future historians would be
much easier! |
|
14AUG04
|
The
previous update records that Warren Ide made contact with the
team and provided a remarkable 16 additional names to go on the
list of Adastra personnel. However, Warren's most remarkable contribution
has been held over while we worked up a special page to do it
justice. It will be recalled that we previously wondered what
happened to the ornate glass doors from Adastra's Vickers Avenue
headquarters at Mascot. Warren has solved that mystery for us.
He and his good wife Madeline, at the instigation of Jack Townsend,
saved those doors from the demolishers back in 1976! The best
news is that the doors survive to this day in the George Hanna
Memorial Museum in the Mascot Library. Read all about The
Doors.
The "discovery" of the doors poses another question.
What happened to the brass plaque?
Another addition is a close-up photograph of the nose of Hudson
VH-AGG showing the inscription "Air Survey Unit No 6".
For this we thank Allen Windross. |
|
05AUG04
|
Update
#44 of the Personnel List
is now current. Thanks to Warren Ide there have been no fewer
than 16 additions to the list. Have you ever wondered how many
names there are on the list? Well wonder no more. I have counted
them and there are 285. This is no mean achievement when you consider
that the list had to be built from scratch with no official company
lists to work from. Although we have come a long way, the really
big question is how much farther do we have to go before the list
is complete. Sadly we may never know, but it would be interesting
to receive some percentage estimates from some of the long-serving
Adastrians. So that we can keep a running tally of names on the
list, I have added another column to the table of updates on the
Personnel List.
Warren has also filled in a couple of blanks in the caption to
the reunion photo. (Len
Brock and Jan Cumberland). |
|
27JUL04
|
We
always knew that it was Adastra Hudson VH-AGE which located a
missing Wackett Trainer in the desert of South Australia in 1965.
Thanks to Rob Hornsby, we now know more about the incident and
we also have photographs to illustrate this tragic tale. Have
a read of "The Missing Wackett"
and see if you are not moved by this poignant story. |
|
22JUL04
|
Update
#43 of the Personnel List
is now current.
Terry Smith has provided us with a fascinating biography of his
father, Alan Brierley Smith.
Thank you Terry and Alan.
There is a new page on the Company menu. It is called "The
Other Adastras" and it will be used as a repository for
latter day users of the Adastra name - some good and some not
so good. Read about the raincoat and the vineyard. |
|
21JUL04
|
Ken
Richards has contributed an interesting tale about the Sycamore
helicopter charter in Tasmania. It is titled "Chasing
Birds in Tasmania". |
|
19JUL04
|
Update
#42 of the Personnel List
is now current.
Ken Richards has supplied his own biography
as well as correcting the captions to several of the photos from
his time in the company. Thanks Ken. |
|
16JUL04
|
Added
a new colour image of Hudson VH-AGE
at Maralinga in 1964 thanks to Rob Hornsby. |
|
15JUL04
|
Thanks
to Joe Tidey and Ken Richards we have been able to add 8 new images
to Photo Album #2. These images
are labelled D4 to E5 inclusive. |
|
13JUL04
|
Added
a close-up photo of the Doppler antenna fairing on DC-3 VH-AGU
thanks to Joe Tidey.
Added a close-up photo of the nose markings on Prince G-AMLW
thanks to Ken Richards. |
|
10JUL04
|
From
1974 to 1979, DC-3 VH-AGU (by then with East-West Airlines) was
used on trials of the Australian developed Interscan Microwave
Landing System. Roger McDonald has supplied dates relevant to
these trials and these have been added to the page on VH-AGU
along with links to the website of the Civil Aviation Historical
Society which describes Interscan in detail.
The June 2004 edition of the British magazine "FlyPast"
features a four-page article (plus a centrefold) on Hudson VH-KOY
(the former VH-AGS). Several facts from this article have been
added to the history of VH-AGS.
Several updates have been added to the page for Catalina VH-AGB
thanks to David Legg. |
|
06JUL04
|
The
page on Adastra's early airline
operations has been expanded thanks to several newspaper cuttings
supplied by Roger McDonald. According to the Sydney Morning Herald
of 6th February 1934, there were two aeroplanes which operated
the inaugural service to Bega. Whilst it is known that one was
the Fox Moth VH-UQU, the identity of an accompanying Gipsy Moth
is unknown, although it was possibly either VH-UOQ or VH-UOR.
Thanks for this contribution Roger. |
|
05JUL04
|
Thanks
to Rick Geary we have a new page about Van
Praag Place in the A.C.T. Rick has also provided a series
of photographs of Lionel's street. Thank you Rick. |
|
22JUN04
|
Update
#41 of the Personnel List
is now current. The Guestbook has been modified so that the date
is automatically inserted and no longer needs to be manually selected
from a drop-down menu. Several transparent changes will hopefully
result in fewer spam attacks and fewer blank entries. |
|
15JUN04
|
Update
#40 of the Personnel List
is now current. |
|
15JUN04
|
Joe
Tidey's new word "Adastriana" made such an impression
on Kevin and Ron that we have decided that the "Personal
Anecdotes" page should be renamed "ADASTRIANA". |
|
14JUN04
|
Aero
Commander VH-KRA has certainly seen better days, but it is nice
to know that her mortal remains are serving a useful purpose.
What is left of the airframe is now mounted on a trailer and used
for fire fighting and rescue drills at Mackay Airport. Thanks
to Cliff Robinson for this recent photo.
Joe Tidey has contributed another anecdote, this one titled "Shunting".
Joe has also contributed a new (to this writer anyway) word -
"Adastriana". |
|
12JUN04
|
A
new page has been added to the "People" menu. "Where
Are They Now?" is intended as a repository for biographical
information about Adastra staff for whom the available data is
insufficient for a dedicated biography page. The first thing readers
will notice about the new page is that there is only one name
on it! Hopefully, the many Adastrians who visit this site will
soon rectify this shortcoming. This new avenue of expression may
have particular appeal to those Adastrians for whom a brief period
of employment or modesty may have precluded aspirations to a dedicated
biography page. Please forward all contributions to Ron. |
|
10JUN04
|
Update
#38 of the Personnel List
is now current. We also have a new anecdote from that most prolific
contributor Wal Bowles. Who Moved
the Sun? is Wal's 11th contribution to the Anecdotes section.
Many thanks Wal. |
|
05JUN04
|
Update
#37 of the Personnel List
is now current. Two new biographies have been added to the site:
John Bertles tells of his time
with Adastra and of his part in the designing of the Adastra Hunting
emblem.
Linda Drake has supplied a wonderfully detailed biography of her
mother, Pat Gregory, who passed
away in April. This story provides an interesting insight into
the life of a remarkable woman. |
|
04JUN04
|
Update
#36 of the Personnel List
is now current. This includes several corrections supplied by
Ted McKenzie. Ted also advises that photo Z3
in Photo Album #1 misidentifies Derek Middleton as Al Palmer.
Thanks Ted.
Joe Tidey has contributed a comical anecdote titled Guard
of Honour. Thanks Joe. |
|
03JUN04
|
The
fact that so little remains of Adastra's history, emphasises the
importance of preserving what we have been able to gather together
for this website. Although a website is capable of disseminating
a vast amount of material in a short time, the "mortality"
of web sites is a major concern. Fortunately, the National Library
of Australia has addressed this problem through their Pandora
project. Under this project, selected websites are archived on
the NLA website and in the NLA offline archives. Pandora also
recognises the importance of keeping pace with advances in technology
so that archived resources are always accessible. With all these
positives in mind, the Adastra website was recently submitted
to Pandora for consideration. It is most pleasing to report that
the site has been accepted for archiving. This means that our
work will be preserved in perpetuity, to use the term favoured
by the Pandora team. This provides much comfort to the webmaster
in the event of the "under a bus tomorrow" scenario!
In the short term, there may not appear to be any advantages to
archiving as there will always be a time lag between the archived
version and the "master" site. However, it was recently
demonstrated that there are short term advantages. Towards the
end of May, for reasons I won't go into, the adastron domain was
"off the air" for several days. Had there been an urgent
need to refer to the Adastra site during this outage (to check
the personnel list for example) it would have been possible to
do so on the NLA website. Full marks to whoever thought of Pandora!
Read more about Pandora here. |
