A45-1 (ex VH-UBI) Ford 5-AT-1 Trimotor. No 33 Sqn RAAF at Kila Kila (3 mile drome) Port Moresby PNG. Between 1 Oct to 24 Nov 1942. (Ed Rogers in Aeroplane Monthly May 2015 via DH)
by Dick Hourigan & Steve Mackenzie
A45-1 was a model 5-AT-C Ford Tri-Motor which was impressed into RAAF service from Guinea Airways on 06/02/42. Previously it had been registered VH-UBI from 26/10/35 to 06/02/42, the rego being carried in Black on the Nat Metal airframe (per photo below). It was serialled A45-1 and camouflaged by the RAAF and originally looked like the 2nd photo, taken with 24 Sqn at Parafield S.A. Note early war Blue/Red roundels.
Converted to Air Ambulance 24/07/42. Then To 1 AD 11/10/42, To 36 Sqn 31/10/42. At 33 Sqn 16/11/42. Crashed at the waterlogged Myola strip on 24/11/42 in the same time period as the 2 crashes of the RAAF Vultee Vigilants (see issue 34-3 for futher details) while attempting to evacuate wounded Diggers. The aircraft was flown by Mr T. O'Dea, an experienced civilian pilot, who was injured in the crash. O'Dea had flown the aircraft into Myola as an experiment to see if it could be used to evacuate patients from the 2/6th Field Ambulance to base hospitals in Port Moresby.
In the last few years a new photo has become available (posted as the page header) which shows that previous drawings of this airframe had a number of variations from the real airframe. Style of roundels (with a greater White ratio than previously shown), the presence of fin flashes, no Red Cross markings on the fuselage and surprisingly under wing serials being marked up (presumedly both wings). I have put Red Cross markings on the upper fuselage as usually carried, (it is not known for certain if there were lower fuselage Red Cross markings, I have added them but they should be considered provisional).
Go to the 2nd page to see what has happened to A45-1 since plus some modelling info.
