At the Avalon Airshow 2011, Day Four

At the Avalon Airshow 2011, Day Five

Matt Denning's second, brand-new Boomerang restoration was on static display at the Wide Bay International Airshow. The aircraft is said to be the former A46-63, which crashed at Cape York, Qld, on 24 August 1943 after only 4 months service with 84 Squadron. The restoration included the addition of a second seat, although you wouldn't really know it to look at. The first post-restoraton flight was at Caboolture on 26 June 2009, a week before this photo was taken.

New Guinea? Northern Australia? No: it's the Temora Aviation Museum, the only place in the world where you can regularly see an airworthy Boomerang and Hudson together, bringing back memories of those desperate days of 1942-45. (The Hudson is VH-KOY.)

The survival of A46-54 is remarkable because its stripped airframe was sold for scrap in 1955. About 1973 the fuselage frame was purchased by Les Arthur who had an aviation museum on his property at Wellcamp, near Toowoomba. Not long after the photo it was acquired by Greg Batts and became a long-term restoration project. In 2001 it was registered VH-MHB but it was still a long way from completion. New wings were mated to the restored fuselage in 2017.

Brought on RAAF charge 18 August 1943. Struck off as converted to components May 1946 and stored at RAAF Oakey 45/48. Trucked to a local farm, from where recovered in 1972. Rebuilt by Matt Denning 1975-2001 to this pristine example of Australia's rare indigenous fighter. Seen here at WOI 16.

'Suzy -Q' basks in the terminal lights, waiting for the Narromine Airshow to begin tomorrow.

One of the few remaining examples of this indigenous Australian fighter, 'Suzy-Q' heads home after a long week at the Australian International Airshow.

Restored in the US for Australian warbird collector Guido Zuccoli, VH-BOM returned to the skies in 1992. It was withdrawn from use in 2008 and displayed at the Museum of Australian Army Flying at Oakey, Queensland.

This aircraft has the core of a real Boomerang, but modified AT-6 wings and an AT-6 rear fuselage. Unfortunately the latter is cleary too long, even from this angle. Note the Donald Duck on a boomerang artwork.