DH 84 DRAGON RAPIDE VH-ASK (A34-13)
A Territory Treasure
At the outset of WW2, production by De Havilland Aircraft Pty Ltd at Mascot, Sydney NSW - the serial numbers A34-1 to A34-12 were allocated to DH84 Dragons impressed to the RAAF from civil aviation companies. However, the civil Dragon planned to become A34-12 was not impressed, so the serial number A34-12 was used on a later aircraft on the Sydney production line. Thus, the first locally produced Dragon was allocated serial number A34-13.
War Service
In February 1943, No. 6 Communication Unit commanded by the Northern Territory’s legendary flying doctor, Clyde ‘Doc’ Fenton, arrived at Batchelor followed by No. 18 NEI Squadron, a mixed Dutch and RAAF bomber squadron, during May. The Mitchell bombers and crews of 18 NEI Squadron moved to the Netherlands East Indies as part of Group Captain ‘Moth’ Eaton’s No. 79 Wing in 1945 - whilst 6 Communication Unit relocated to Darwin’s Parap Civil Drome, later that year.
Regrettably, it has not been possible to exhume Ops Record Books for 6 Communication Unit - which is unfortunate as many important & courageous flights were undertaken in appalling weather, constant concerns about fuel, minimal avionics and often nothing but virgin scrub & beaches upon which to land. If such come to light they will be added. We are indebted to Sr. Margaret Kettle for her magnificent achievement.
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"I witnessed a de Haviland twin-engine plane (RAAF) take off from Bathurst Island 'drome and crash in the mangroves on Melville Island in early 1944. A Tiwi girl about sixteen years of age was killed. The Pilot had serious back injuries and an American policeman was hurt. A prisoner/cook from Cape Fourcroy was uninjured - in fact he pulled the others out of the mud. An enquiry into the crash was held at the old Presbytery, conducted by Flying Officer Fenton. The finding of the enquiry was that there was water in the fuel; the strainer had not been used. It was re-fuelled before take-off. The pilot was very upset because the person killed was black; he said it always happened to them." In The Tiwi Islands by John Pye, p51.
Post-War Service
Above is Jack Slade beside VH-ASK (A34-13) - the first Dragon built in Australia in 1942. He is seen here at Elcho in 1946, during the Post-war Adjustment Period, during which he flew a weekly tour of the missions & on this occasion was joined by author Alan Marshall. (Sheppy? & Yolngu? - in Sheppy Col.)
They must be cooling the motors as it is midday - they only stayed overnight & left early. Slade flew most of the 700hrs that this plane did with Flying Doc Fenton's No. 6 Communication Unit out of Batchelor & Parap between 1943/46. Slade selected ASK and VH-ASL/A34-31 for the NT Medical Service air wing post war at 50 quid a piece.
They must be cooling the motors as it is midday - they only stayed overnight & left early. Slade flew most of the 700hrs that this plane did with Flying Doc Fenton's No. 6 Communication Unit out of Batchelor & Parap between 1943/46. Slade selected ASK and VH-ASL/A34-31 for the NT Medical Service air wing post war at 50 quid a piece.
"SLSA PRG-933-13-545 Alan Marshall, Sheppy, ? Capt. Slade Butterbox post WW2 de Havilland ". Not Sheppy - presumably Elcho after a good Wet - props still going - young Jack Slade - Marshall had polio age 6 - a communist sympathiser - in spats & Army issue boots c45/46 immediately post war.
'Ourselves Writ Strange' by Alan Marshall p139 - Flt-Lt Jack Slade O/C of No. 6 Communication Unit stationed in Darwin, flew an antiquated Dragon biplane on a weekly service round the northern missions during the adjustment period after the war.” They had two Dragons A34-13 & 31 - both of which served the Northern Territory handsomely through the post-war decade.
'Ourselves Writ Strange' by Alan Marshall p139 - Flt-Lt Jack Slade O/C of No. 6 Communication Unit stationed in Darwin, flew an antiquated Dragon biplane on a weekly service round the northern missions during the adjustment period after the war.” They had two Dragons A34-13 & 31 - both of which served the Northern Territory handsomely through the post-war decade.
NT (Aerial) Medical Service
1946 - Purchased by Commonwealth Dept. of Health for use by the proposed Northern Territory Medical Service, Darwin. A34-13 & A34-31 purchase price £50 each, plus unserviceable A34-23 at Darwin for £25. Captain Jack Slade was the first Chief Pilot, and he selected A34-13 because of his experience with this particular aircraft with 6CU during the war, which he believed to be superior to the subsequent Australian production Dragons built at Mascot. Jack Slade later recalled: "The two serviceable aircraft cost £50 each and A34-23 was £25.
"De Havillands gave us the stretcher and folding chairs, and the total cost including two Christophersen propellers was around £220. The props cost £50 each and I had a job persuading the Health Department to be so extravagant." |
This image doesn't match the log & there were a great many other flights - try to find Jack Slade's logs.
Civi-street as VH-SNB
VH-ASK was sold out of the NTMS in 1954 & in 1973 and struck off the register - her glory days done. In 1958 she was re-registered as VH-SNB, dropping parachutists at air-shows, before being sold in 1962 to do evangelical tours as "Australia's Outback Patrol" - a Christian community service to the outback community - part funded by aerial photography and Tupperware sales. She had a 2 year rebuild before more air-shows and an ‘around-Australia trip' before being struck off once again in 1966. Rebuilt and re-registered VH-SNB, did more evangelical tours until struck off again in 1967 with 4150 airframe hours. She was sold to an aircraft exporter in 1973, who sold a number of aircraft, including Hudson VH-AGJ, to Sir Willy Roberts who was building a collection on his ancestral estate at Auchterader in Scotland. Following a change in Willy's fortunes, she was offered as Lot 89 at a Chrisites auction in London in 1981. The Royal Scottish Museum of Flight paid £7,000 for her and after a complete rebuild - she is today on static display at their East Fortune museum, east of Edinburgh, where they have amongst their many treasures, a Concorde & a Vulcan bomber.
VH-ASK - Geoff Goodall
Scottish National Museum of Flight
Perhaps unaware of true pedigree as an air-ambulance - VH-ASK is presented in her latter, somewhat diminished guise as VH-SNB - air show jump taxi & Tupperware dispenser to the bible belt. A great many people in the Top End owe their lives to this humble aircraft which brought life-saving medical help & emergency evacuation to their forebears in the bush during the war years and for a decade thereafter. Is her restoration to glory - too much to ASK?
Geoffrey De Havilland (1882-1965) began his career at the Army Balloon Factory Farnborough and ended it on jet airliners. Through the DH Moth to the Dragon Rapide - the 'wooden wonder' Mosquito and the Comet. (BAE Systems)
Notes & Anecdotes
Rescue of 31 Beaufighter Squadron CO - 'Coomalie Charlie' (later Air Marshal Sir Charles Read KBE, CB, DFC, AFC) - rescued from Drysdale's sodden airfield & delivered safely home to Coomalie in "nothing more than a twin-engine Moth".
Jack Slade won the Home Brewed Beer 1st Prize at the Bees Creek Show - (Richard Luxton of Coomalie Airfield was a judge)
Jack Slade won the Home Brewed Beer 1st Prize at the Bees Creek Show - (Richard Luxton of Coomalie Airfield was a judge)