|
|
Post by Peter Lewis on Jun 16, 2011 17:50:01 GMT 12
Early in July I will be visiting Vanuatu (used to be the New Hebrides).
As part of that trip I will be traveling from Port Vila to Espiritu Santo, spending time in each.
Of interest to me is the WW2 seaplane base at Segond Channel, where as well as the US Navy squadrons, the RNZAF did base Catalinas.
I have accessed the 'Pacific Aircraft wrecks' website, but would be interested in finding out any other info that may be available on Catalina operations in this area and what if any remnants are still available to view.
Any other aviation artifacts still viewable on these two islands?
(I am aware of the 'Million Dollar Point' area, but prefer to keep up in the air rather than down under water. In short, I do not dive).
|
|
|
|
Post by yak2 on Jun 16, 2011 18:28:14 GMT 12
The P40 under restoration at Wigram was recovered from Vanuatu. It was originallya Merlin powered model, and from memory had been involved in a bad weather/low fuel accident.
|
|
|
|
Post by curtiss on Jun 17, 2011 21:23:49 GMT 12
It is almost 20 years since I have been there buy even then there was not much left on Efate. There is the remains of a Corsair that went in hard near Quoin Hill - it is very hard to find and it is all confetti. I think there is also the remains of a Dauntless on the Eastern side of the islands somewhere ( I have never seen it). The Corsair that was in the Mangroves by Quion hill is now in Australia. There is another Corsair a bit further off shore.
On Santo there is the remains of a crashed B17 and an Avenger that are easy to find. There are also wrecks up in the mountains that are very hard to access. Just start talking to the locals and you will soon find things. Remember that you will need their permission to go on the land anyway. Watch out for the Hornets - they sting bad........
|
|
|
|
Post by aileronroll on Jun 21, 2011 12:08:27 GMT 12
Flyernzl,
I will be visiting Santo for 10 days of Scuba Diving in Sept, very keen to hear about what you discover!
|
|
|
|
Post by Peter Lewis on Jun 21, 2011 22:34:48 GMT 12
I see that Shorty posted some wartime photos of the Segond Channel base some time ago.
I must see if I can get some larger versions from him so I can match up on the ground.
|
|
|
|
Post by Peter Lewis on Jun 23, 2011 21:30:19 GMT 12
Following up, I see that there is an Air Club Vila with a 172. Oddly, their website at www.airclubvila.com/seems to be solely in Chinese (or Japanese)! Strange for a country with English and French heritage. There is a Vanuatu Seaplanes who operate the Lake LA4-200 Buccaneer that used to be ZK-DQM but is now YJ-VSL1 so I may be forced to be web-footed instead. Have emailed them. |
|
|
|
Post by agalbraith on Jun 23, 2011 23:49:09 GMT 12
Hi
My wife and I spent 3 weeks in Vanuatu, with much of it being on Santo about 8 or 9 years ago.
Santo has a LOT of stuff still there. We went to Auri (?) Island and I dived on a Dauntless as well as President Coolidge and Million Dollar Point.
If you get the chance, 2 things I would suggest are going over to Beauganville Resort. The owner has a garage out the back with loads of artifacts, prop blades, wheels arrestor hooks etc. They know where there are wrecks to look at. Just down the road from there are the sad remains of a Beech 18 on the side of the road. They took us up to the Bomber 1 airfield as well.
Also more importantly, TRY to get up to Champagne beach. Aside from an amazing beach there are lots of aircraft littered around the hills. The key is to get to know the locals well. Once they get your confidence they will open up and gladly show you the "white man metal". When we were at Champagne beach it was being looked after by an English couple who were botanists and knew the countryside like the back of their hand. On the last night before we left we had a few drinks and they revealed the existence of some amazing complete aircraft. They had collected many artifacts and were preparing to set up a museum. Upon which they were going to bring several of the planes down from the mountains and put them under cover. We stayed in touch and I was able to help them out with items for display as well as starting to organise a grant to help with the museum. Sadly this all fell over as the wife (I just cant remember her name right now) got very sick from a tropical infection and they went back to the UK. They were a fantastic couple who were hugely respected by the locals. They were dedicated to helping the locals set up small business to get some income from tourists. I wish we were able to make it back up there before they had to go and see the planes that they told us about. They pointed to exact locations in the morning they wanted to take us to. One very amazing story of a "Metal Bird" that fell out of the sky that the gods gave them (thats how they think). They villagers all got together and pick the plane up and carried it to the village until the 'gods' told them what to do with it next. They dug a huge hole and gently placed the plane in it and proceeded to build the chief's house over it!!
They saw the plane and described it as a single seater and one of the wings out near the tip was bent up. Apart from that they said it was an absolute time capsule! Aparently the pilot walked off and they never came back to recover it.
We got to see lots of cool stuff and the old Kiwi base (although it was just trees now!). The english couple had recovered boxes of brand new uniforms, as well as parts from a famous bar for the servicemen called the "Pink Pig" or something like that.
The people are beautiful and Belynda and I have fond memories of our favourite holiday......I would LOVE to go back.
Have fun and please let us know how it all goes for you.
Cheers and hope I have given you a few leads.
Anthony
|
|
|
|
Post by Dave Homewood on Jun 24, 2011 0:28:30 GMT 12
Those uniforms would not have been RNZAF uniforms, they reckon the NZ made uniforms lasted about three weeks in the tropics before falling apart and they all had to get kitted out with US kit. Amazing that it lasted so long as up till now though even if they were the much better US uniforms.
I have heard similar stories from a guy who lived at Guadalcanal about the natives knowing of many aeroplanes that they didn't tell tourists or treasure hunters about. He personally was taken by natives to see a Zero sitting in the jungle completely intact. This is just about 5 years ago.
|
|
|
|
Post by Peter Lewis on Jun 30, 2011 19:46:37 GMT 12
|
|
|
|
Post by Peter Lewis on Jul 2, 2011 13:30:26 GMT 12
Thanks for the info Anthony. I have acquired a map of the Segond Channel area that should be useful  |
|
|
|
Post by Peter Lewis on Jul 16, 2011 20:09:32 GMT 12
Well we have returned from our Vanuatu trip. A most interesting sojourn. The three hour flight from Auckland to Port Vila by A320 is bearable, even if it means getting out of bed at 3.15am.
It's amazing what new information you find out on such a journey. We know from experience that some foods are unavailable in the Pacific Islands, so we took some with us. Did you know that marmalade (in a sealed unopened jar) is an illegal export from NZ? We didn't. Confiscated. Even worse, Barrys Bay cheese, again still in a sealed pack, is an illegal import into Vanuatu and was pounced on by the MAF guys at Vila. We later found out why - the only cheese available in the Port Vila shop was a vile Australian concoction called 'Coon cheese'. (How do they get away with a name like that in these PC times?) We wished the Vila airport staff the very best for their wine and cheese party, if only they could also confiscate some wine.
The ni-Van people are Melanesian, not Polynesian. Smoking is virtually unknown among them, alcohol is not part of their culture and the price is the price, no haggling please and they do not expect tips. Most refreshing. The language can be English, French or Pidgin, depending on the mood of the day. We had no problem making ourselves understood, but interpreting the incoming messages can be a bit more of a problem. Unlike Fiji, there is no evidence of racial or tribal tensions. Apparently there are around 138 different tribal groupings, none of them very large. You have to get along together because no matter how you cut it you're always in a minority. No one group can dominate. Their diversity is their strength. Unemployment in western terms is very high, between 80-90%, so the majority of the population live subsistence lives in rural areas with only 20% being town dwellers.
The money is the Vatu, currently about 70 vatu to the NZ dollar. This can lead to seemingly large amounts of cash going out during the day. Think of NZ being priced only in cents, with no dollars existing. Your weekly grocery bill would be 20,000 cents rather than $200. As with all island economies, imports and western-style foods are expensive.
Our Telecom XT mobile did work. However, aware that calls to and from this handset would travel via NZ and thus incur draconian roaming charges, I also took along a cheap little prepay mobile. At the Vila airport on arrival I paid 1000vt (about NZD14.30) for a local Digicel sim card. Installed in this phone, it worked perfectly first time up with no hassles. Never before have I had a mobile phone that has not needed at least one visit to the local operators office in order to get working. After using this mobile for a few days to organize things locally, I thought I'd check the balance available before we went up to Santo. I was then told that the balance available was 1100vt, a bit strange since I'd only paid 1000vt in the first place. I did not need to top it up for the duration of our trip, and the coverage was all we could desire. If Digicel ever came to New Zealand they'd have Vodafone down and out by the end of the year.
In Port Vila, the roads are in a bad way. Main roads are ridden with spring-breaking potholes, while the condition of the suburban and side roads would stop a Sherman tank. There are no street name signs so there is no point in getting someone's address in normal terms, it's more like 'left at the Thai restaurant and we are 200m beyond the Vets'. Vanuatu gained independence in 1980, and none of the road markings and road signs have been painted since. Conversely the main ring road from Port Vila around Efate Island, about 140km, is in good condition. All was explained when we were told that the ring road has been built with overseas aid while the city roads are funded locally. They vote for a new Prime Minister seemingly every year, my suggestion that next time they should vote for one with a spade was met with a laugh.
Around Vila, white minivans prowl the streets. These buses can be identified with a red 'B' on the number plate. You wave down one of these and tell the driver where within the town you wish to go. Ask the fare before you climb in. It’s generally 150vt per person for a city/suburban trip. They do pick up and drop off other people on the way, but you will get there. We were ripped off by two of these drivers in the early stages of our visit but you soon get to know the ropes.
Aviation activity is concentrated at Port Vila's Bauerfield International Airport. There is some GA flying there, alongside the local charter and inter-island operators. As with most 'International' airports, the airport company is dedicated to making life as difficult as possible for these people. Their latest effort is to try and get all charter and private passengers to board their aircraft through the domestic terminal and hence incur a 200vt per passenger airport embarkation charge to pay for a terminal that they do not want or need. Remind you of somewhere? Rotorua? Palmy? The local Air Club Vanuatu has already folded. I found no trace of any GA activity at Luganville, the main airport for the island of Santo.
Accommodation can be as basic or as luxurious as you are willing to pay for. We spent our initial few nights at Port Vila in an inland resort. This had bungalows, pools, a restaurant (expensive) and no sea access. That was OK as we were out exploring during the day. Moving to Espirito Santo we stayed at what can best be described as a Vanuatu version of an NZ motel. Self catering, with a kitchen. Probably at the lower level of what we personally would consider acceptable, but it was warm and dry and we enjoyed the rather boisterous company of our Australian neighbours.
Our last day was a return to Vila and an overnight stay to be available for our late morning departure back to New Zealand. We decided to make this last stop the luxury end of the trip and treat ourselves, so we booked in at Breakas Resort. We arrived at their front door at 2.45pm. Not early in the day, you’d think, but we were tersely told "Your room is not ready. Still being cleaned", which was a bit of a shock at that hour of the day. "Also, tonight’s food service will be a seafood buffet. There will be no other food available". So that meant we would need to eat somewhere else, as I do not eat sea offal.
Things got worse. We were told to sit at the end of the hotel reception area adjacent to the pool, and wait for our room. We asked for a map, to check for other restaurants that might be around the area. None available. Checked on progress on our room at 3pm, 3.15pm, 3.30pm. Same brush off. There was a late checkout from the room apparently. They would have charged someone else extra for that of course, and charged us for the same room, nice money if you can get it and we were left sitting waiting.
At 3.45 a busload of tourists arrived, were checked in and taken to their rooms. We still waited. After one and a half hours of this, I said "OK, obviously we will be spending the night here so we’d better unpack". I cleared the tableware off the adjoining tables and started to hang my shirts, shoes and other clothing out among them. I was just starting on a display of underwear when the agitated staff descended.
"Yes, yes, your room ready now". We were embarrassing, creating a scene in a public place.
So after 90 minutes of being thoroughly and totally ignored we were suddenly the centre of attention, scooping up our belongings and rushed off to the bungalow. It was 4.30 by then, it gets dark at 5.45 and we were being collected by the shuttlebus at 8.30 in the morning. Not a lot of time to enjoy the resort amenities for which we had already paid a high price plus we had to find somewhere else for an edible meal.
Very disappointing and upsetting. Unsurprisingly, when we checked out in the morning there was no customer feedback form available. No doubt they have got sick of the complaints and don't want to hear.
So don't bank on getting a service related to the money you pay, and don’t stay at the Breakas Resort.
Enough of the travellers’ tales, aviation stuff to follow.
|
|
|
|
Post by Dave Homewood on Jul 17, 2011 0:31:15 GMT 12
Yikes, it sounds like Fawlty Towers.
Interesting stuff Peter.
|
|
|
|
Post by Peter Lewis on Jul 17, 2011 20:33:14 GMT 12
The main centre of Vanuatu aviation activity is Vila's Bauerfield International Airport. A few of the GA aircraft based here have a New Zealand history. Lake LA4-200 Buccaneer ZK-DQM arrived in NZ back in 1974 as a new aircraft, and went initially to Omaha Ocean Beach Resort Ltd., Auckland before going through a few Auckland owners including Sea Bee Air. It then went to the Wellington area in 1986 and passed into the hands of First Pacific Airlines Ltd., Vanuatu in July 1999. It is now operated by Vanuatu Seaplanes as VJ-VSL1 and is proudly advertised as 'the only operating flying boat in the South Pacific'  Britten-Norman BN2A-6 Islander ZK-FLU spent 15 years flying out of Noumea as F-OCFQ before serving with Southern Air Ltd., Invercargill on the Stewart Island service from late 1985 to 1999. It is now based at Vila with Air Vanuatu as YJ-RV16  Hughes 369D ZK-HEL/4 has a history in the USA and Japan from 1980 until arriving in NZ in 2003 for use in Hawkes Bay and Taupo. It went to Vanuatu in 2009 to become YJ-HEL with Vanuatu Helicopters  Vanuatu Helicopters other machine is R-44 YJ-VHH which we found carrying out scenic flights from a pontoon in Vila harbour  The pride of the Air Vanuatu domestic fleet is the ATR-72 VJ-AV72 which is mainly used on the Vila-Santo route  Routes to other islands in Vanuatu are frequently operated by Air Vanuatu's three Harbin Y-12 Chinese-made aircraft, YJ-AV4 YJ-AV5 and YJ-AV6. Aircraft of this type are seldom seen outside the sphere of Chinese influence.    Among the aircraft at Bauerfield is this nice privately owned Cessna A1885F VJ-CCM. This aircraft has visited New Zealand.  The original aircraft operated by the previous owners of the Vanuatu seaplane operation was Maule M7 YJ-NZ20. This operated as a floatplane, and as a result of being moored on salt water for some time is now grounded with extensive corrosion problems.  The floats from this Maule are still onsite  The Aero Club used to operate the Cessna 172N YJ-RV14. Although the club is now moribund, the Cessna is still undergoing work  Finally, no self-respecting airport is complete without at least one dead Cherokee. YJ-RV11 has been grounded for at least seven years  |
|
|
|
Post by Dave Homewood on Jul 17, 2011 23:31:56 GMT 12
Why would the helicopter operate from a pontoon in the sea? Surely this means a boat is needed to access it, and it's more exposed to problems with weather and corrosion I would think? is this to avoid landing fees?
|
|
|
|
Post by FlyingKiwi on Jul 18, 2011 16:42:07 GMT 12
I met the (new) owner of the seaplane operation earlier in the year, he's an expat Kiwi who was visiting to collect the turbo 206 YJ-RIR which was destined for a private owner in Vanuatu - I assisted him with some of the test flying. I don't suppose you saw that aircraft while you were there Peter? I think I recall him saying it was going to be based on an outlying island.
|
|
|
|
Post by Peter Lewis on Jul 18, 2011 19:57:30 GMT 12
Why would the helicopter operate from a pontoon in the sea? To cater to the captive clientele off the cruise ship in the harbour on that particular day  Surely this means a boat is needed to access it Sure did  I met the (new) owner of the seaplane operation earlier in the year, he's an expat Kiwi who was visiting to collect the turbo 206 YJ-RIR which was destined for a private owner in Vanuatu - I assisted him with some of the test flying. I don't suppose you saw that aircraft while you were there Peter? I think I recall him saying it was going to be based on an outlying island. Yes we met Seaplane Paul. He'd talk the leg off an iron pot. Told us his life history over three hours. He lived in Japan for some years and flew a Piper Cub there. His interest in floatplanes was sparked by the prospect of fitting floats to the Cub and tracking the route between Japan and NZ as flown by Chichester back in 1931, only in reverse. This didn't work out, but the idea of webfoot aviation stuck. Seaplane Paul at Iririki Island, Vila harbour, with two visitors from Kiwiland - Mrs and Mr Flyernzl  Yes the 206 YJ-RIR was on the scene, obviously arrived safely. (There were other aircraft photographed at Vila airport that I have not posted here).  |
|
|
|
Post by aeromedia on Jul 18, 2011 21:20:33 GMT 12
We called at Santo as part of a cruise back in the early 90's. We went ashore and whilst most of the passengers lay on the beach, we approached a lineup of Toyota trucks and asked one of the drivers if he could show us old WWII airfields. We embarked on quite a cross country, stopping at a village for a jerry can of fuel. Felt quite vulnerable actually. Eventually we pulled up in a clearing in the jungle and sure enough, this was the location of an old WWII airfield. I have never found out which one it actually was. There was a large hole with the remains of the fuselage of an American aircraft in it. I couldnt conclusively identify it, but i climbed down into the hole and under the wreck and there was American markings on it. The people told us that up until a few years earlier, there were several buildings still in situ. All had gone by the time I was there, but there were areas of metal marsden matting and you could quite clearly make out where the activity would have been. Then, a little further along, off one end of the strip was a big deep water hole. Hard to recall now, but perhaps 50 metres in diameter (but possibly much more), very very deep and very very clear. The airmen used to swim in it to keep cool and I'd imagine it would have been bliss in that heat.
From this description, could anyone on here tell me where I actually was?
Cheers
|
|
|
|
Post by Dave Homewood on Jul 18, 2011 21:47:42 GMT 12
"Somewhere near Taupo?"
(I'll bet no-one remembers that TV ad...)
Thanks Peter L. I had not even thought about the cruise ships. Makes more sense to have the helicopter closer to the ship I guess.
|
|
|
|
Post by Peter Lewis on Jul 18, 2011 22:18:05 GMT 12
Aeromedia I'd say the beach was Champagne beach. Cruise ships still call in there.
Heading south, the first WW2 field you'd come to would be Fighter 1 - see the map on the previous page.
There are the Matevulu Blue Holes there, suitable for swimming.
|
|
|
|
Post by rbwannabe on Jul 18, 2011 22:28:02 GMT 12
what? you are only up to your knee's and you need a life jacket?
Seriously Vanuatu is the one "jewel" of the Pacific and I was lucky enough to have a gig flying there for a few months which also meant overnighting there for 3 or 4 nights a week, and yes I know exactly what you went through when checking in, it is "normal" to be told your room is not serviced yet despite being there the same time every week!
Interestingly the large building to the left in background of your photo was built by the Chinese (or Taiwanese depending on who was the prime minister at the time!) and was supposed to be a Hotel, but because the rooms were so small no hotel chain would take it on, it sat for about 7 years empty! I believe it is now a casino.
Phil Hooker used to supervise the instructors at the Aeroclub up there and I remember being invited one day to go along one day on a checkride for two of the instructors in that 172. It was a great flight and memorable because on takeoff the two guys in the back seat ended up in the luggage compartment together! They said is was because the seat back collapsed!!!!! certainly wasn't because of the startling performance of the 172. It was however a great flight as we dropped into the coin hill airstrip (well really a set of wheel tracks in the long grass) which was a fighter base during the war. And then completed a circumnavigation of Efate which included spotting the Corsair wreck near the mangroves (thanks again Phil).
We managed to find out how to live there reasonably cheaply by going to the "le Bon Marche" supermarket just out of town (can't buy beer after lunch time on Saturday!) and the "harbourside" pub (although I have heard it has since burnt down) Great meals and cheap "tuskers" (beer).
Great place and enduring memories like dropping the Flight attendants off at their "houses" (read shed!) in the Hilux crew bus at night on rainy nights, and no they did not live on the main drag!
|
|
