Seeing the light for ground tests to be delivered to FAMET once painted

Flying into Melbourne Airport was this Lynden Cargo L-100 Hercules, N402AC. Built in 1976 it has had a number of operators in its life.

Doing a low speed barrel roll.

Ex 44-74923 with the USAAF. To N5438V in September 1957. To the Salvadorean Air Force in July 1969 as 410. Shipped the US as a dismantled wreck. Became a restoration project, adopting the ID of USAAF 44-11353, registered N132. Resoted between 1974 and 1984. Reregistered N100DD in 1978. Competed in the Reno Air races in 1982 and 1983, but crashed in September 1983 after an electric failure. Repaired and continued to compete in several more race editions. Crated in Kissimmee in March 1995 and shipped to the Netherlands. Restored between 2004-2012.

Its initial history is not clear to me, but apparently stored at Barstow-Daggett (CA) between 1975 and 1980. For sale as a project. Trucked to Tahoe in 1980 for restoration; parts were sourced from 45-49192/N47DD and a wing from South America. the final result was given the ID of 45-49192/N47DD. The frame exchanged owners while still being restored (70% completed by 1984). First flight was in August 1985 as N(X)47DD. Shipped to Duxford in early 1986. Became G-THUN in June 1999. Back to the US as N147PF between July 2006 - February 2018. Back to the UK in February 2018 as N147PF.

Ex WG655 with the Royal Navy. To Hawker Siddeley in 1957 as G-9-65. Later also became D-CACU. It crashed at RNAS Yeovilton on July 14, 1990 after engine trouble. during the attempted belly landing, it hit a tree and broke in 2 pieces, with lots of additional damage. It was deemed unrepairable and the remains were sent to New Zealand. The wing folding mechanism ended up in ZK-FSR. The aircraft was later restored in the US as N20MD, which was completed in May 2005. Sold to The Fighter Collection in 2009 and became G-CHFP in April 2012. Sold to a new owner in July 2018 as G-INVN. It was seriously damaged, possibly beyond repair, in a crash landing in a wood at Button End in Harston, Cambridgeshire on 4th August 2020

Ex 44-84847 with the USAAF. Became N251RJ in January 1999. Exported to the UK in June 2014 to join The Fighter Collection as G-TFSI. Badly damaged on July 9, 2017 (at Flying Legends) following an emergency landing due to loss of power. Thankfully the frame could be repaired and was painted as Contrary Mary flown by Lt. Col. Roy B. Caviness of the 84th FS, 78th FW, USAAF Station 357, based at Duxford in1945.

Its initial history is not clear to me, but apparently stored at Barstow-Daggett (CA) between 1975 and 1980. For sale as a project. Trucked to Tahoe in 1980 for restoration; parts were sourced from 45-49192/N47DD and a wing from South America. the final result was given the ID of 45-49192/N47DD. The frame exchanged owners while still being restored (70% completed by 1984). First flight was in August 1985 as N(X)47DD. Shipped to Duxford in early 1986. Became G-THUN in June 1999. Back to the US as N147PF between July 2006 - February 2018. Back to the UK in February 2018 as N147PF.

Ex EE602 with the RAF. Became G-VMIJ in May 2011. To G-IBSY in January 2012. The aircraft was restored between 2012 - 2015. First flew again in May 2015.

First flew in May 1956 and became XF515 with the RAF. To G-KAXF in December 1995.

Always one of my favorite displays at the airshow. Ex 42-16482 with the USAAF. Had become N49943 by January 1964. Sold to the UK and reregistered G-IIYI in August 2018.