VH-AFX Avro 643
Cadet II
(c/n 861)
Sister aircraft to the
previous
entry. This machine was formerly A6-12 with the RAAF and is still
flying
today,
being a regular on the Australian Air Show circuit. It is seen
above in the long grass
at Mascot, NSW in
the late 1940s, while Barry Maclean's shot of it at Richmond, NSW
(below)
in October 1991 showed it still
looking good. The photo at the foot of the page is by current
owner Howard Jones (via
Geoff Goodall) and was taken at Morwell, Vic in April 2010. The
Cadet had just completed an
overhaul and repainted into markings of previous agricultural operator
Hardy Brothers Spraying Co of
Pittsworth Qld. In 1960 Hardy Bros had re-engined
two of their
Cadets VH-AFX & -AFY
from 150 hp Armstrong Siddeley Genet Major 1A radials to 220 hp
Jacons R-755 engines, and -AFX
still retains the American power plant. Howard Jones has a large
collection of Avro Cadet
parts and has three of these historic machines currently under
restoration.