VH-UPB Saunders
Roe A.21 Windhover
(c/n A21/1)
This
very nice photo comes from the Wally Civitico collection who obtained
it from the archives of
Exxon Mobil. It
depicts the tri-motored amphibian (3 X 105 hp Gipsy III) over Melbourne
en route
to Tasmania while
being operated by Matthews Aviation Pty Ltd on their airmail service
from Essen-
don to
Launceston via King Island. Vaccum-Mobil Oil products were
obviously used. In February
1932
registration of the craft went to T.P. & R.E. Manifold of
Camperdown, Victoria, and was then
restored to Matthews in
December of that year. The interesting shot immediately below
comes from
Keith Webb who discovered
it in an old album he was perusing, searching for additions to his own
site on historic
airfield
vehicles. For more on
this fascinating subject go to:
http://www.oldcmp.net/dca_1.html
The
Windhover had first been destined for Union Airways of New Zealand and
given the registration
ZK-ABW . In the event
Union Airways decided it didn't
meet their
requirements and sold it before
delivery, so it went
(or was diverted) to Australia instead. The
caption on Keith's print indicates
that
it came
ashore at Skenes Creek, Victoria (just east of Apollo Bay) sometime in
1936, due to a
land-
ing in rough sea,
whereupon some slight damage had been sustained.
The
caption doesn't state
whether the landing
was forced or not.
Now, interestingly,
this machine was involved in another
marine accident
shortly after that (on 14 May 1936) when it again landed in the sea
and
then drifted
onto
rocks near Currie on King Island. This mishap resulted in
it
being struck off the register in
January of 1937.
Despite its three engines the Windhover
was not that
robust of a beast and maybe
they
shouldn't have been trying to land it in the rather stormy (at most
times) waters of Bass
Strait?
Seen below is are two more
shots of this rare
aircraft. This upper one
comes from the
Civil Aviation
Historical Society's
Charles Ohlson collection,
while at the foot of the page is a photo from the State
Library of
Victoria collection showing it on the
rocks on King Island in May 1936.
