Dakota A65-104 in the garden of the residence of the Officer Commanding RAAF Darwin. Because there was no crew to fly the aircraft out, it was chained to tie-down rings set in the concrete floor of Hangar 124. So strong were the winds that the aircraft was blown out of the hangar, coming to rest 200 yards away. Gouge marks left in the ground indicated that the props had been turning in the wind. Deemed a write-off, the aircraft was subsequently cut up and sections dispersed to various locations. The tail section, wing centre section and both wings are held by the Australian Aviation Heritage Centre in Darwin. The nose section was last sighted at East Sale, VIC and the fuselage was last sighted at Sydenham, NSW. The AAHC are hoping to restore A65-104 to static display standard so any leads on the existence/location of the fuselage and nose section would be welcome.

(Picture: RAAF Official via Air Commodore David Hitchins Collection)

HUMOUR IN ADVERSITY

This "Parking Ticket" appeared on the fuselage of Dakota A65-104 after it came to rest in the garden of the Officer Commanding RAAF Darwin. It reads: "This vehicle is illegally parked - the owner is to remove it from the Base immediately and report to the SP's at 0800".

(Picture: Air Commodore David Hitchins Collection)