Books

THEN NOW ALWAYS

Royal Australian Air Force Illustrated History 1921-201

Big Sky Publishing Pages: 460 in hardcover RRP: $59.99 ISBN: 9781922615053

The Royal Australian Air Force has come a long way since its early beginnings in the Australian Flying Corps, an element of the Australian Army. From its birth as a fledgling little brother of the other two services, the RAAF has developed over the years in its elements of raising, training

AUSTRALIA’S DAMBUSTERS

Flying Into Hell With 617 Squadron

Author: Colin Burgess Simon & Schuster Australia Pages: 336 in paperback RRP: $35.00 ISBN: 9781760859237

On the evening of 16 May 1943, nineteen modified Lancaster bombers from 617 Squadron RAF, under command of youthful Wing Commander Guy Gibson, roared into the night sky from their Lincolnshire base. They were on a top-secret Bomber Command mission, and sustaining an effective force, its people, its tools of the trade, its involvement in operations and peacetime activities, and how it looks to the future. Commemorating the 100 Year Anniversary of the Royal Australian Air Force, Then. Now. Always covers the story of the AFC and the RAAF during time of both war and peace, with carefully researched text relating to various stages of the life of the RAAF. These historical facts have been combined with interesting personal adventures to provide a holistic view of the RAAF story, and is illustrated throughout with an extensive range of both black and white, and colour photographs. A must have addition to any military history collection documenting the evolution of one of the great air forces of the world.

codenamed Operation Chastise, now regarded as one of the most dangerous and audacious bombing raids of World War II – an attack on the formidable, well-defended dams of Germany’s Ruhr Valley. Slung beneath the belly of each aircraft was one of the war’s greatest secrets – a bouncing bomb. Against the odds, and flying straight and level into the teeth of terrifying enemy fire, they succeeded in breaching the two principal dams. Many of the 133 airmen involved that fateful night hailed from Australia, and several would be counted among the 56 who would not return to base next morning. Australia’s Dambusters offers a truly comprehensive account of the most famous bombing raid of the war through words and stories of courageous Australian airmen and others who flew on this and later perilous missions, remembered and forever immortalised as the Dambusters.

THE DIGGERS OF COLDITZ

The Classic Australian POW Story About Escape From The Inescapable

Authors: Jack Champ, Colin Burgess Simon & Schuster Australia Pages: 336 in paperback RRP: $22.99 ISBN: 9781760855178

Colditz Castle was Nazi Germany’s infamous ‘escapeproof’ wartime prison, where hundreds of the most determined and resourceful Allied prisoners were sent. Despite having more guards than inmates, Australian Lieutenant Jack Champ and other prisoners tirelessly carried out their campaign to escape from the massive floodlit stronghold, by any means necessary. In this riveting account – by turns humorous, heartfelt and tragic – historian Colin Burgess and Lieutenant Jack Champ, from the point of view of the prisoners, tell the story of the twenty Australians who made this castle their ‘home’, and the plans they made that were so crazy that some even achieved the seemingly impossible – escape! Well worth the read, hard to put down, helps us better understand what our diggers went through, attempting to return home to family and friends, knowing death was never too far away. This is an updated version from first publish 30 years ago. It contains added detail, including pen pictures of many of the men involved. Diggers of Colditz delivers exciting and inspiring stories of courage, sacrifice and determination by Australian and allied POWs.

THE FREEDOM CIRCUS

Author: Sue Smethurst Penguin Books Pages: 320 in paperback RRP: $22.99 ISBN: 9781760890322

When Sue Smethurst first sat down with her grandmotherin-law and asked how she survived the Holocaust, she was shooed away. Mindla was in a Melbourne Jewish nursing home with other survivors, her body ageing but mind still razor sharp. As death began approaching Sue became a little pushier. She knew Mindla’s life had to be recorded and they were running out of time. Each week she’d bring cake from her favourite shop in St Kilda, a bottle of the brightest nail polish she could find, a handful of old pictures and her tape recorder. They’d chat and paint Mindla’s nails. With each ‘chat’ her story unfolded. It was beyond anything Sue could have imagined. The tale of how Mindla and her husband Michael Horowitz, a circus performer for the famous Staniewski Brothers, escaped from Poland with their young son and embarked on a terrifying journey through the USSR and Middle East to Africa and ultimately to safety in Australia, is nothing short of extraordinary. The Freedom Circus is an epic story of courage, hope, humanity, survival and, ultimately, love.

Wirraway Aviation Museum RARE WARBIRDS ON SHOW

Pokolbin has a new, high-flying tourist attraction. It's early days, but potentially the sky's the limit for the unusual Wirraway Aviation Museum, tucked in opposite Cessnock Airport, in Pokolbin's wine country.

Opened quietly in October 2018, the Wirraway museum is a bit of a misnomer as it showcases a variety of fascinating warbirds, including even some with metal patches denoting old bullet holes. Entry is free.

The lone CAC Wirraway, a World War II training aircraft which is the real star of the show here for site owner and famous Hunter Valley airshow operator Paul Bennet. And it's a very rare relic, said to be one of only three still flying in Australia out of more than 700 built.

In its drab green livery, the legendary Wirraway (an Aboriginal word meaning 'challenge') is unobtrusive within the museum's hangar, hidden between three other aircraft while two other magnificent warbirds stand outside.

And yet, looks are deceiving. The WWII trainer (19391946) is credited with being the foundation of Australian aircraft manufacturing. It was the first aeroplane made by the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation (CAC). Later it was modified into a wartime 'emergency fighter' known as the Boomerang.

Yet, as painted up here to resemble Wirraway A20-176, it instantly recalls its fame as Australia's unlikeliest fighter, for "doing the impossible": a humble pilot trainer which, despite the odds, surprised and shot down a vastly superior Japanese 'Zero' enemy aircraft near Buna, New Guinea, in 1942. It was an amazing feat as the Wirraway was used only for reconnaissance missions. It was never intended as a frontline combat aircraft even in those desperate early war days.

The enemy aircraft shot down was actually a Nakajima aircraft of the Imperial Japanese Army/Air Force, but an impressed US General Douglas MacArthur awarded Aussie pilot Jack Archer with a Silver Star for combat valour (and surviving).

Better still, Archer and his observer were then also given 12 bottles of beer by the Australian High Command as a reward. Six they drank and the others they sold.

Some 755 Wirraways were built as pilot trainers and general-purpose aircraft. Of these, only 15 are now registered. Only five are airworthy, with three being worked on and the rest are static, including one in storage in Florida. But only three are flying at present and the Museum has one.

Nearby, with its unique folded wings, as it would travel on a US aircraft carrier, is the yellow-tipped, black Grumman Avenger dating from 1942. It was created initially for the US Navy. One WWII Avenger pilot rescued in 1944 later became US President George H.W.Bush.

The Avenger was the biggest single-engine torpedo bomber the Allies had. It was developed in the wake of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour in December 1941. That's why it was called the Avenger.

Six Avengers took part in WWII's Battle of Midway. Five were shot down and one came back, badly damaged.

The Avenger and Wirraway both call the Museum their full-time home, although depending on when you visit, you could catch even more. A whole roster of other warbirds regularly rotates in and out of being on display. At the time of writing, a Curtiss P-40E Kittyhawk and a red-nosed North American T-28 Trojan trainer are sitting amongst the regular occupants. Recently, the Museum has housed a Hawker Hurricane and North American Mustang, just to name a couple more.

Parked outside the hangar is another strange beast. It's the graceful, if gaudy (painted bright yellow), Yak-52 Soviet aircraft whose design dates from 1976. It was used to train Russian pilots for MIG jets and is capable of some impressive aerobatics.

Despite housing such an intriguing collection of historic aircraft, the Wirraway museum isn’t just about static exhibits. In fact, it’s quite hands-on at the hangar.

Hoping to excite, inspire and educate the regions next generation of pilots and aviation enthusiasts, visitors can also find Aerohunter Flight Training and Aerohunter Adventure Flights located at the museum.

Aerohunter Flight Training is for those curious about taking their first steps toward learning to fly. Visitors can get started with a Trial Introductory Flight over the beautiful Hunter Valley Wine Country and can keep learning with Aerohunter all the way through to a recreational pilot’s certificate.

Meanwhile, Aerohunter Adventure Flights is just for the

thrill-seekers. Remember that Yak-52 trainer mentioned before? Those looking for some instant adrenaline can get strapped in and taken on a range of adventure flights full of turns, loops, rolls and more.

And yes, even the extremely rare Wirraway and Avenger can be booked for an adventure flight, for the serious enthusiast after a special and surreal chance to relive aviation history.

This means all of the aircraft on display at the museum are in airworthy condition. What’s more, they regularly fly in airshows across the country, providing a rare chance for people to experience the sights and sounds of these oldschool machines in action.

One such event is the bi-annual Hunter Valley Airshow, which calls the Wirraway Museum and Cessnock Airport home and attracts 15,000 visitors over two days. The event sees an incredible variety of aircraft and attractions flock to the region for a huge aviation festival.

With plenty to offer, the unique Wirraway Museum, launched from humble beginnings, has its sights set on becoming the heart and hub of the Hunter Valley’s burgeoning aviation industry.

The Wirraway Museum is located at 40 Grady Rd, Pokolbin NSW and is open 7 days. To reach the Aviation Museum from Cessnock Aerodrome, tourists must drive in a virtual U-shape: up Broke Road, then down De Beyers Road, then turn left to the very end of Grady Road. The Museum is a must see in the Hunter Valley.

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