Queensland Air Museum in Caloundra, Queensland | Aviation museum

Queensland Air Museum

Locality: Caloundra, Queensland

Phone: +61 7 5492 5930

Address: 7 Pathfinder Drive 4551 Caloundra, QLD, Australia

Website: http://www.qam.com.au

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• Non-profit organisation
• History Museum
• Aviation museum

25.01.2022 #ThrowbackThursday A formation of Macchi MB-326H led by A7-072. Picture: Defence

25.01.2022 #ThrowbackThursday A brand new P-3C Orion A9-760 on static display at an airshow at Laverton on 8 April 1979. CAHS Mike O'Grady Collection #TBT

25.01.2022 #QAMupdates Angelo Calleja

24.01.2022 #ThrowbackThursday Winjeel A85-410 in formation with A85-413 and A85-422 near Uranquinty circa 1956. The Collection p1171-1887

23.01.2022 #QAMupdates Orion empennage and MAD boom reattachment Angelo Calleja

22.01.2022 #ThrowbackThursday Macchi MB-326H A7-072 in the midst of a formation of at least nine other Macchis. Place and date unknown. RAAF Official

22.01.2022 Engine runs cancelled this weekend due to technical issues. We apologise for any inconvenience. We are still open all weekend :)

22.01.2022 #ThrowbackThursday Meteor WA880 photographed at 5MU RAF Kemble in March 1962 prior to the aircraft departing for Singapore. Photo: Ray Deacon

22.01.2022 #ThrowbackThursday Bell UH-1H Iroquois A2-310 was originally operated by the Royal Australian Air Force. Commonwealth of Australia 2012

21.01.2022 "Queensland Air Museum at Caloundra is home to an amazing collection of aircraft and aviation artefacts, and exciting tales of courage, adventure and lucky escapes. However, you don’t need to be an aviation enthusiast to enjoy a visit here. The volunteers who have been preserving Australia’s aviation history at this museum since 1973 are what make this place special. Every exhibit has a story to tell and the volunteers are accomplished raconteurs.." Tiana Templeman. Full article: https://tellmewhere2go.com/meet-the-aviation-legends-at-qu/

21.01.2022 #ThrowbackThursday Sabre A94-935 after its take-off accident at Williamtown in October 1961. The red nose band indicates that the aircraft was in No 76 Squadron markings at the time. via David Bussey

21.01.2022 #QAMupdates Rob pointing out corrosion on cabin roof stringers Angelo Calleja

20.01.2022 #QAMupdates Custom-build Chipmunk seats - by Tony @Angelo Calleja

20.01.2022 #QAMupdates Graig working on a propeller refurbishment Angelo Calleja

20.01.2022 #QAMUpdates Engine stands in the welding shop @Angelo Calleja

19.01.2022 All set! Our doors will open at 10am today. Come and tour the Orion! Angelo Calleja

17.01.2022 #HistorybyRonCuskelly Once a Jolly Swagman During the sixties, Airlines of New South Wales operated a series of outback tours organised by Neville Salisbury. These tours were marketed under the name of Jolly Swagman Tours. Although several DC-3s were used, VH-ANR was the preferred aircraft because of its Viewmaster windows. Tours of this type subsequently became more widely known when operated by Bill Peach using Fokker Friendships as Aircruising Australia. Thanks to recent... correspondence with Graham Godwin of Scouts NSW, Air Activity Centre, we now have the itinerary of one of these Jolly Swagman Tours. Graham’s parents were passengers on this tour which was operated by VH-ANR. Sun 31MAY64 Dubbo - Walgett - Charleville - Longreach - Mount Isa Mon 01JUN64 Tour of Mount Isa Tue 02JUN64 Mount Isa - Brunette Downs - Katherine - Darwin Wed 03JUN64 Tour of Darwin Thu 04JUN64 Darwin - Daly Waters - Tennant Creek - Alice Springs Fri 05JUN64 Alice Springs - Ayers Rock - Alice Springs Sat 06JUN64 Alice Springs - Oodnadatta - Leigh Creek - Broken Hill Sun 07JUN64 Broken Hill - Dubbo. This schedule comprised 23.1 hours flying. Graham Godwin has another connection with VH-ANR. During the seventies, VH-ANR was used by Scouts NSW, Air Activity Centre as a static training aid. Although the aeroplane was not flown, the engines were run on at least one occasion, prompting a protest from Camden Tower because the smoke was obscuring the runway!

17.01.2022 7 Pathfinder Drive, Caloundra 26 and 27 September Free colouring-in books for the kids. Meet up with some our Tours Guides the guys who made aviation history!... Queensland Air Museum will run a range of vintage aviation engines at 11am & 1pm each weekend during the holidays. There is plenty of space at the museum for visitors to keep a safe distance between one another.

16.01.2022 Orion aircraft free from scaffolding after many hours of work under the direction of Bruce Small. Angelo Calleja

15.01.2022 #QAMupdates Helicopter line-up

15.01.2022 FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER, we will open the doors of the Orion to the public! January 9 and 10, 2021 will be a one-off opportunity to see what makes the Orion one of the RAAF’s most serviceable aircraft. Our specialist Orion crew will be on hand to show the many features unique to the Orion.

13.01.2022 Hand sanitiser will be provided. Stay safe QLD

13.01.2022 #Onthisday 31 years ago!!! Captain Jim Perry (left) and Captain Jack Stammer (right) in the cockpit of Dove VH-MAL at Caloundra on 28th October 1989. No doubt they were reminiscing about the infamous undercarriage incident in which they were both involved 38 years previously. Photo: Ron Cuskelly

13.01.2022 #OnThisDay Today marks the anniversary of the day when Bert Hinkler flew non-stop from New York to Jamaica in 18hrs. The first non-stop flight on this route - 1931 @ Hinkler Hall of Aviation

12.01.2022 #QAMUpdates Engine boys keeping engines alive (Gipsy Major)

11.01.2022 #QAMupdates Drover fuselage out of the paint shop to workshop 3 for additional work and markings Angelo Calleja

11.01.2022 #ThrowbackThursday CAC CA-16 Wirraway A20-652 at a service station in Gaffney Street, Pascoe Vale on 7 November 1965. The Collection p1171-0267

10.01.2022 #ThrowbackThursday Kiowa A17-012 being assembled in the Bell Helicopter Australia hangar at Eagle Farm, Brisbane on 22 January 1972, just five days before the aircraft was delivered to the Army.

10.01.2022 #throwbackthursday Two F-105F Thunderchiefs from the 6441 Tactical Fighter Wing formate with two Mirage IIIO from No 75 Squadron off the coast from Williamtown. The F-105s, which were based at Yokota, Japan, arrived at Williamtown from Guam on 3 October and returned to Guam and Yokota on 18 October 1965. These aircraft were amongst many foreign aircraft which had deployed to Williamtown for Operation Pacific Concord One. The aircraft depicted are F-105Fs 63-8271 and 63-8296 a...nd Mirage IIIOs A3-15 and A3-19. QAM's Mirage A3-16 also participated in the exercise. The photograph was taken by Sydney Morning Herald photographer George Lipman from an accompanying RAAF Vampire. The photo was published on 5 October 1965 which suggests that it was taken on 4 October. Picture: Licensed by Fairfax Media (FXB103367) During Pacific Concord it was claimed that on 12 October Flying Officer Marjorie Cummins, WRAAF, became the first Australian woman to fly supersonic in one of the F-105Fs piloted by Major Henry "Shark" Shudinis. Also during the exercise it was announced that RAAF Mirages from A3-51 onwards would be completed as ground attack aircraft. The following table lists the serial numbers of the F-105s that participated in Operation Pacific Concord 1.

10.01.2022 Attention Photographers Bookings are now available for photoshoots. Sent an email to [email protected] for a quote.

09.01.2022 #ThrowbackThursday Hunter XF311 on display at an open day at RNAS Condor at Arbroath, Scotland in the early sixties. Photo: CPO Murray Lees via his nephew Keith Rattray.

09.01.2022 #QAMUpdates Brossard maintenance work @Angelo Calleja

09.01.2022 Engine runs cancelled this weekend due to technical issues. We apologise for any inconvenience. We are still open all weekend :)

08.01.2022 Thanks Helimods Pty Ltd for helping to restore the Neptune. Andrea Buono pictured here creating the machining code to manufacture seat rails for the aircraft. A mechatronics engineer by training, Andrea loves designing and building his own drones amongst other such cool projects. "If I could have dinner with anyone from history, it would be Elon Musk...To pick his brains on human-machine interfacing

08.01.2022 #historybyroncuskelly Now we know Given that Australia regrettably produces few aircraft, it is important to historians that we know when aircraft arrive in the country for the first time. As custodians of an F-111C we made it our business to record all the F-111C delivery dates on our website. This was an easy matter as the RAAF published these details along with crew names soon after the last F-111C arrived. The subsequent F-111A and F-111G deliveries were not so easy but ...Continue reading

06.01.2022 Lest we forget.

06.01.2022 #QAMUpdates Spitfire. Replica rebuild continues Angelo Calleja

06.01.2022 #QAMUpdates DC-3 Cabin roof replacement panels Angelo Calleja

05.01.2022 #QAMupdates Drover wings removal Angelo Calleja

05.01.2022 #QAMupdates Caribou replacment wings unpack Angelo Calleja

05.01.2022 Most of our displays are undercover and if you forgot your umbrella, we could lend you one! 7 Pathfinder Dr, Caloundra West #rainyday #Sunshinecoast #Aircraft #Museum #caloundra

05.01.2022 QAM has been the subject of a ‘Significance Assessment by the respected historian Dr Tony Brady, a member of the PHA QLD and author of ‘The Empire has an Answer’ This document was officially handed over to QAM President Cameron Elmes on Saturday 27th June 2020. To summaries Dr Brady’s Statement of significance on the Queensland Air Museum:... "Queensland Air Museum holds the largest aviation collection in Australia, including the largest collection of aircraft, the largest collection of engines and the largest aviation themed library. The collection held by the Queensland Air Museum is deemed to have significance at the National and International level. Whilst Dr Brady’s assessment is still an in-house document, and will be released publicly shortly, we are able to give a short summary of just one of the QAM 100 historic aircraft, the Lockheed Ventura A59-96. The Ventura range was developed by Lockheed in the lead up to US involvement in WW2 and was primarily used in surveillance and anti-submarine roles from 1941. A59-96 was shipped to Australia mid-1944 and saw active service towards the end of the Pacific War. At the end of the war A59-96 and many military aircraft were found to have no commercial value and were sold for scrap. An interesting fact is the RAAF had 15,000 surplus pilots at the end of WW2. So, the Ventura was sold for scrap in 1949 and remaining fuselage was a playground for children in Brunswick Heads, NSW eventually ending up on a farm as a storage shed for pig food. QAM acquired what remained of the fuselage in 1991 and then a restoration spanning almost 30 years resulting in the only representation of this type of aircraft in Australia on one of just a few world-wide. This restoration project is testament to the resolve of the dedicated QAM volunteers. Wings, engines, propellers, and many other components were sourced from around the world, and in many cases, the components needed substantial restoration or were made in the QAM workshops. A quote from Dr Tony Brady Thanks to the efforts and forethought of the restoration team A59-96 is now the only Australian supplied Lockheed PV-1 Ventura on display in the world. The restoration of A59-96 is ongoing with the interior, instruments, and cockpit almost complete. " And this is just one of 100 historically significant aircraft in the QAM display along with 141 engines contributing to the 85,000 catalogued items held by QAM. Winner of the 2019 Queensland Tourism Awards Outstanding Contribution by a Volunteer Organisation QAM is a great place to spend a few hours.

04.01.2022 #Throwbackthursday This photo was taken at the Douglas plant at Santa Monica on 22 November 1948 as BCPA's first DC-6 VH-BPF was about to leave on its delivery flight to Australia. (left to right) Captain A.A. Barlow (BCPA), Bert Foulds (Douglas), Keith Stuart (BCPA Navigator), Eric Pearson (BCPA Radio Operator), John L. Watkins (TAA), Sir Arthur Coles (BCPA Chairman), J.W. Clynes (Douglas), Captain John W. Bennett (BCPA), Captain Harry G. Mills (BCPA), S. Perry (Pratt & Whitney), 'Smokey' Stover (Doglas). R. Barlow via Harry Moore Collection

04.01.2022 #HistorybyRonCuskelly Back in August 2011, QAM acquired a set of aircraft floats from a source in Toowoomba acting on advice from a member who spotted them and formed the opinion that they were old. Identification proved difficult because the data plates had been removed from both floats. Although many fittings were missing, both floats were undamaged which suggested a voluntary removal. Research at the time suggested that they were probably EDO type 2130 which are approved f...or Cessna 172, Husky A-1B and Champion Scout 8GCBC. EDO Aircraft was founded in the United States in September 1925 by Earl Dodge Osborn (1893-1988). The company manufactured floats for many types of aircraft including a massive set of amphibious floats for the C-47. Given that as many as 13 Cessna 172s were operated on floats in Australia, it is likely that the floats were removed from one of these aircraft. Of those aircraft that could not be eliminated because they were written off or because they were fitted with floats of another manufacturer, two emerged as possible candidates. Cessna 172F VH-DNT (MSN 52700) which was operated on the Gold Coast but was converted to a landplane circa 1978. Cessna 172M VH-TUV (MSN 63691) which was operated in South-East Queensland as late as 1978 but was subsequently struck off the register. Eventually the floats were restored and placed on display in Hangar 2 but their provenance remained a mystery. These days, often the best way to flush out information is to postulate a theory and publish it on the internet. Accordingly, the sum total of QAM’s knowledge of these floats was published on the QAM website, and there it sat for nine years. Then, in July this year we were contacted out of the blue by Bill Lane who advised; Those floats are EDO 2000 floats off VH-DNT which I operated from Southport in the early seventies. VH-TUV which replaced it was on PK 2300 floats." Case closed - and it only took us nine years!

03.01.2022 We are excited to announce the launch of our updated website www.qam.com.au Thank you to our contributors Photography: Matt Dwen and Doug Dicker Web design: www.advertastic.com.au

01.01.2022 #ThrowbackThursday V35 Bonanza VH-CAD in the original factory colour scheme and a three-bladed propeller. Place and date unknown. Picture: Graham Stephenson via CAHS

01.01.2022 #ThrowbackThursday Chrislea CH.3 VH-BRO at Rutherford, NSW circa 1962. Darryl Connor via Geoff Goodall