'Father John' Fowles has had to withdraw from the project as our Jabiru pilot. We thank him for his work in planning and for his enthusiasm, and he carries with him the very best wishes of all of us.
His place is being taken by Owen Zupp. Owen, a former Ansett Airlines pilot, is a noted author and a very experienced Jabiru pilot. You can read more about Owen on his website www.owenZupp.com . Jabiru Aircraft of Bundaberg is supplying the aircraft, and he will carry the modern version of Guillaux’ load – the 1475 postcards and the symbolic tea and fruit juice.
When AHSA met in August to decide what kind of aircraft to use, the Jabiru was a clear leader, but there was a strong body of support for the use of more 'historic' aircraft.
We now are having both.
Australia Post is sending a philatelic package to Sydney, and this will be carried by a relay that includes some amazing aircraft. there is huge enthusiasm among light and historic aircraft to participate, and so far we have allocated four stages.
The first stage will be flown by Michele Schiffer, of Melbourne, in her CT4-a VH-PTM. This is of course the last iteration of the Australian-designed (and originally Australian-Made) Victa airtourer, made in New Zealand by New Zealand Aerospace. Therefore we will have the Jabiru as an example of modern construction, and the CT-4 as a design that is basically 50 years old. It will be remembered that the 1964 re-enactment was made by two Victa Airtourers, then a very new design. This of course is another Australian design, so the beginning of the re-enactment will be conducted by two Australian aircraft of roughly equal performance, so for the first stage they will take off and land at similar times. It is a very appropriate aircraft for the purpose. Dr Michele Schiffer, when not an aviator, is a research fellow in genetics at the University of Melbourne. Read more about Michele and her aircraft...
We have some very exciting possibilities for the next four stages but these are not yet definite, so watch this space....
From Wagga Wagga to Temora the Temora Aviation Museum is providing their Ryan STM S2 Rego: VH-RSY Military Serial # 474. This took part in a special flight for philatelic purposes when on 9 March 2010 David Lowy flew from Wagga to Temora to commemorate the centenary of the first powered flight in Australia, by Colin Defries.
From Temora to Harden the load will be carried in a Piper Cub, the legendary American light aircraft first flown 77 years ago, and capable of amazing feats.
From Harden to Canberra the load will be carried by the formation flying group from Canberra Aero Club will take the mail from Harden to Goulburn. They will arrive during Sunday afternoon at Harden, stay overnight and leave early the following morning. See an album of their flights on http://www.allen.net.au/photo/#Albums/album_466c79696e67
The remaining stages are yet to be allocated, and there is great interest from many aviators. Many aircraft are joining in for a stage or two just to be part of this historic event.
We are going to be stopping at Benalla, which has a wonderful aviation museum, en route to Albury.
Maurice Guillaux' original plan was to land at Moss Vale, but for various reasons he did not do so. A hundred years later it is planned to make a stop at the historic Mittagong airfield, constructed in 1944 by the Royal Australian Airforce as part of the defence of Australia and now operated by the Berrima District Aero Club.
The decision to make these stops was only finalised today, and already there are plans for special exciting activities. The information at is largely out-of-date and will be upgraded as soon as possible!
The PDC is the storage area for the PowerHouse Museum. The professional staff have a great appreciation of technological history and the volunteers are also highly skilled specialists. On 14 and 15 June they are having an open weekend on the subject of Flight, and a number of special events are taking place. The highlight for many will be the ‘behind the scenes’ tours of the Sir Henry Barraclough engine collection which will also include a viewing of original Hargrave models, which are in a very fragile state and are seldom seen. Details are available on http://castlehill.powerhousemuseum.com/. The commemoration group is very grateful for the co-operation of the PDC staff and volunteers in this regard.
The two commemorative Guillaux stamps will be launched in Melbourne on July 1. On July 2 at Australian Aviation Museum Bankstown there will be a function 5pm to 7pm to introduce the stamp in Sydney. Stamp clubs, aviation enthusiasts, historical societies and other groups will be represented. This will precede the July AHSA meeting which will also be held at AAMB.
A number of special items are available for resale, all profits going to the re-enactment funds. They will be available on our new E-bay shop and also at functions such as the PDC day and the July 2 stamp launch at AAMB.
The name of the shop is Australia’s First Airmail, but the easiest way to reach it is by simply typing Guillaux in the search box. We have the majority of the entries! Then just click on one of our entries and then click on ‘visit our store’. This is not a particularly elaborate store – our IT department is sorely overstretched! – but an increasing variety of items will become available. Please check it out!
TOTAL, the French oil company, only has a presence in Australia through the supply of special lubricants, and their head office is in Perth. However they are supplying funds for the purchase of fuel for the re-enactment flight. This is very welcome. We also are being supported by other French firms and this basic level of support means that we are certain that there will be no problem financing the basic re-enactment. Many participants are paying their own expenses.
Postcard sales are continuing, and each card sold will add to the resources that can be used for the re-enactment. We are getting excellent support from the stamp media: Australian Stamp Professional devoted its cover and a major article to the re-enactment.
We are now being sponsored by the Australian tea company Madura Tea Estates, based in Murwillumbah. They will be providing tea products for many of our functions. Madura has a great interest in Australian history and traditions, and will be supplying the symbolic tea ‘freight’ for the re-enactment. We welcome their enthusiasm. (They replace the original sponsor from 1914 and 1964, who were only going to provide ‘product’ and also were reluctant to make any special effort to supply a symbolic ‘historic freight’ item).
We have had no success in attracting a provider of a soft drink / fruit juice ‘freight’ item to be carried on the re-enactment, to correspond to the famous ‘O. T.’ Juice carried by Guillaux. We have, however acquired a bottle of the original O.T. cordial, a mixture of fruit juice and chilli extract, which was widely sold in the early 1900s. Our bottle, untouched, dates from about 1920: its contents would be a bit risky to use at this stage, but it will provide an appropriate symbolic ‘freight’.