|
|
Post by Dave Homewood on May 17, 2007 0:46:46 GMT 12
In 'Military Wings' Volume Two by Brendon Deere the text about Catalinas in RNZAF service states that the remains of one of them was in Northland into the 1970's.
Does anyone know where, what the circumstances were, owner and what happened to it?
|
|
|
|
Post by Bruce on May 17, 2007 8:25:26 GMT 12
It is likely to refer to the aircraft that was kept in a back yard in wellsford for some time. The aircraft could be seen from the main road and was located just south of where the fire station is now. It was brought to Wellsford as a source of parts for ag machinery, but in the event became a playhouse for the owners kids. My mums family came from that area and can remember it well.
|
|
|
|
Post by Peter Lewis on May 17, 2007 9:30:12 GMT 12
Boeing PB2B-1 Catalina NZ4055
Declared surplus 1956, Disposal #42/56. SOC. Sold £250 J Sellars, to Wellsford 1958 (marked as NZ4057?), scrapped late 1960s
The owner of Sellars Garage at Wellsford.
As I heard it, it was towed from Hobsonville to Leigh. At one stage, the fuselage was to become a yacht, but that didn't work, so as Bruce says it went to Wellsford township.
I used to look out for it on our car trips from Whangarei to Auckland. It was between two houses on the main road to the south of the town centre, on the right hand side travelling south, nose pointing towards the road.
I was too young to be taking photographs then, but I still cannot resist looking for it on the way past even now.
Some fellow wrote a brief article on this Catalina in Wings magazine several years ago. I responded (giving the information above) in the hope that he would be able to track down a photograph, but I never had any response from him.
Another of these unphotographed mystery ships, like the Cambridge Corsair!
|
|
|
|
Post by Bruce on May 17, 2007 9:45:59 GMT 12
I have seen a photo of it, But I cant for the life of me think where!
|
|
|
|
Post by Dave Homewood on May 17, 2007 9:49:27 GMT 12
Thanks. So what happened to it? Is it in Wellsford dump?
|
|
|
|
Post by Bruce on May 17, 2007 10:00:04 GMT 12
I heard that it was broken up for scrap in the erly 1970s - Its surprising that No-one tried to rescue it then, as by that time there must have been an awareness of its value.
|
|
|
|
Post by Dave Homewood on May 17, 2007 10:35:04 GMT 12
Incredible to think really, especially as the Motat guys had to go to PNG to get their example.
As an aside, I know the Motat Catalina, now at Wigram, was used as a fire practice airframe but was it actually ever burned? Or just used for evacuation drills? I know these days they tend not to burn the airframes but I believe they used to set them alight and put them out a lot. Also, does it have wings? I don't recall seeing them.
|
|
|
|
Post by Bruce on May 17, 2007 13:13:03 GMT 12
when I was a kid back in the '80s visiting Motat i remember seeing the catalina sections strewn around the Meola Rd site There was at least a centre section at that time, and the other assorted bits did have burnt areas.
|
|
|
|
Post by Dave Homewood on May 17, 2007 13:24:37 GMT 12
The guys at Whenuapai did a great job (so far) considering then. The first time I recall seeing it was at Hobsonville wet apron in 1989.
Reading about the Catalinas after the war apparently only 5 Squadron was kept going and the rest of the Cats were stored at Hobsonville. Were they stored moored on the sea there? Or did they drag them up onto the airfield like they did with the Sunderlands later? Most of them went back into service in the 1950's when 6 Squadron was reformed so they must have been kept in reasonable contion in the late 1940's.
|
|
|
|
Post by Bruce on May 17, 2007 18:47:57 GMT 12
In the book "Golden age of NZ flying Boats" there are many pictures of the Catalina storage "Graveyard" at Hobby. 10 or 12 reserve boats were parked between the Medical section and the No 1 Hangar. It appears as though the inhabitants of the "graveyard" were rotated with those in service throughout the period of Cat ops. During the war most stored aircraft were Late model Boeing P2Bs, but postwar these had been placed in service and older PBYs went out to pasture. Significant damage to the stored airframes was caused by storms in 1951 and 1956. Oh to be around in those days....
|
|
|
|
Post by Dave Homewood on May 17, 2007 19:25:32 GMT 12
That seems much the same system as the Harvards which were rotated in and out of service/storage as groups.
Which hangar was No. 1 Hangar at Hobby? The tin shed or the concrete one? There was no medical section there by the time I lived there.
|
|
|
|
Post by Peter Lewis on Oct 17, 2007 20:08:18 GMT 12
The Wigram museum Catalina is is a PBV-1A ex Bu68045 44-34081 CV592 VR-HDH VH-SBV. Here it is as 'SBV in the mid-1960s:  Note that it is (of course) an amphibian. Given that all the RNZAF Cats were pure water boats, I would assume that the rebuild will convert SBV to boat-only status. Is this just a matter of removing the landing gear and blanking off the recesses? or is rather more work involved? I seem to remember that the water-only boats had a much longer range than the land boats (hence their use in the very long distance Perth - South Africa service) so presumably had a larger fuel capacity. Over to a Catalina expert to comment. The Pacific wrecks website lists SBV as "Its last flight was in Port Moresby January 5, 1966. This aircraft, minus its engines remained in Port Moresby, near Jacksons (7-Mile) Airport. It went into storage and was used for fire training, and was damaged at some point after that." This tends to indicate that it was not burnt or damaged during fire training? They have a photo of SBV taken during this period, which also does not have any fire damage evident:  |
|
|
|
Post by corsair67 on Oct 18, 2007 14:28:08 GMT 12
Peter, you got me thinking about whether the RNZAF Museum's Catalina had been modified to RNZAF Catalina standards, so I had a look through my photos and came up with this:  Certainly appears that the undercarriage bays have been blanked off, but I'm not sure if it's only external or whether it has been done internally as well. By the way, great photo of the Cat in TAA colours: makes me wish I was born 20 years earlier than when I actually was!  |
|
|
|
Post by agalbraith on Oct 18, 2007 16:31:27 GMT 12
Yes she has been done inside as well. If you didnt know her history then you would think she had been built this way.
She is a hollow shell inside though, a huge ammount of work to be done still. But wouldnt she look awesome finished!
|
|
|
|
Post by Dave Homewood on Oct 19, 2007 14:14:56 GMT 12
Indeed, it would be great to see it completed someday down the track. Especially as it will be the only Flying Boat version in NZ, as opposed to the amphibian version. It would be neat to see it displayed in a water scene, say beaching at Halavo Bay or something like that.
|
|
|
|
Post by Dave Homewood on Oct 20, 2007 11:08:47 GMT 12
Richard Moore (or Kiwi on the forum) has kindly sent through this photo of the Catalina at Motat sometime in the 1970's.  |
|
|
|
Post by shorty on Aug 25, 2008 13:33:50 GMT 12
Further to the story on the Wellsford Catalina I have found some more info on it.
J sellars, a local garage proprietor, intended to convert it to a twin screw sea going launch with 20 bunks. He bought it for £250 and towed by launch from Hobsonville to Whangatau Harbour. The wings and tail unit were first removed by axe and handsaw, and the aircraft, or what remained of it, was taken to Wellsford. When finished a further part ot if it's tail was to have been removed, part of the fuselage top replaced by a small falt deck, it was to have a wide buffer strip around it and below decks there was to be a stateroom, bunkroom, navigation room, and storage space all seperated by waretight bulkheads.
I guess everybody needed a dream! (and to hell with corrosion)
BTW I have some 8mm film I took of the Catalina at Port Moresby just after it's last flight in 1965. I was on my way to Changi in one of our (very new) Hercules.
|
|
|
|
Post by Peter Lewis on Aug 25, 2008 22:42:20 GMT 12
|
|
|
|
Post by shorty on Aug 27, 2008 16:56:50 GMT 12
I had a photo ex NZ Herald or Auckland Star of it about mid 60's. I think Ken Jacobs borrowed it from me but regardless I don't have it any more. Good newspaper archive search for someone!
|
|
|
|
Post by hairy on Aug 27, 2008 20:00:24 GMT 12
I keep hoping that someone - Marcus? - will unearth a photo of it. Sorry, all I have of NZ4055 is...............   ..........nothing of it in Wellsford.  |
|
