VH-AMB
(2) DHC-1 Chipmunk
21
(c/n C1/0383)
The Royal Aero Club
of WA was the first of the Australian clubs to introduce the Chipmunk,
and
built up a large fleet of them
until they were eventually replaced by the first of the
Cessnas . The
above image, from the Geoff Goodall collection shows VH-AMB at Maylands
Aerodrome, Perth
on 4 January 1952 just after it
had been assembled and two weeks prior to its receiving its Australian
C of A. At that time
the club was using the old ANA hangar (originally built for West
Australian Air-
ways' big DH.66
Hercules used on the Perth-Adelaide service). A
civil Mark 21, VH-AMB was
diverted from the RAF production line at Harwarden, Cheshire, and its rego
was in honor of Club
President A.M.
Bay. The shot below, also via Geoff shows -AMB at
Perth Airport in May 1959
after the club had moved there from
Maylands. By that time it had been repainted in the RAeCWA
standard
red with the fleet number 'Chipmunk 2' It was sold in
April
1962 to the Mid Murray Flying
Club of Swan Hill, Victoria, and was the first Chipmunk to be
flown across Australia when it was
ferried
from
Perth to Victoria in May 1962. Bob Neate's photo of -AMB at
the foot of the page was taken
at Moorabbin in March
1963. It was later to acquired by Sasin Aircraft of
Goulburn,
NSW where it
became the prototype of the Sasin
SA-29
Spraymaster VH-SJD.
