ADF-SERIALS
Australian & New Zealand Military Aircraft Serials & History
RAAF A91 RAN N5 Bristol 171 Sycamore
RAAF Sycamores
| RAAF Serial | Type | C/N. | Aircraft History |
| A91-1 | Mk 3 | 12894 | Ex G-ALSZ
and WV695. Records indicate this airframe was initially allocated the serial A80-2 but unclear if this was ever applied. Received by RAAF 09/09/51. To ARDU 14/09/51. To Bristol 14/04/54. To 2 AD 15/02/56. To ARDU 28/02/56. Operated almost exclusively at the Woomera Rocket Range (1ATU) from 1951 to 1965 when replaced by Alouette III. Dept of Supply approved for disposal 18/03/65. Registered VH-GVR 10/06/66 to 25/01/67. Damaged 25/01/67 at Falls Creek VIC. Static Display Moorabbin Air Museum. |
| A91-2 | Mk 14 | 13202 | Received by
the RAAF 04/01/55. To 1 ATU 02/02/55. To Bristol 13/12/56. To ATU 05/07/57. Accident 13/12/60 at Lake Heart. Written Off 12/10/61, Scrapped and used for spares for A91-1. |
| RAN Serial | Type | C/N. | Aircraft History |
| XA219 | HR Mk 50 | 13063 | Came to
Australia aboard HMAS Vengeance. First Flight 25/10/52. Delivered 31/10/52. Served with 723 Sqn coded 906 and 724 Sqn coded 996. Grounded after two cylinders cracked during VIP flight 11/56 (Pilot Lieut S O’Farrell) and returned to Nowra by road. Crashed 10/09/58, flown by LEUT (P) D.J Orr, RAN, had a partial power loss, force landed and caught fire Nowra NSW. Scrapped 15/12/58. Remains reported to have been used as Instructional Airframe at Schofields NSW, Presumably scrapped there before the training school closed.
|
| XA220 | HR Mk 50 | 13064 | Came to
Australia aboard HMAS Vengeance. First Flight 05/12/52. Delivered 31/12/52. Served with 723 Sqn coded 907 and later 849. Served with 724 Sqn. Damaged 8/5/53 when tail rotor struck fuselage in strong wind (Pilot Lt D.V. Farquarson RN). Damaged 8.7.53 when rotor blade struck cockpit roof. Tail rotor damaged 01/02/56, Sold to Business Aviation, Bankstown, but does not seem to have made it to the civil register. (Possibly as spares for VH-BAW [XR592], VH-SYC [XN448] or one of the ex-British Sycamores on the Australian Register), To Naval Aviation Museum as 907. Current.
|
| XA221 | HR Mk 50 | 13065 | Came to
Australia aboard HMAS Vengeance. First Flight 12/52. Delivered 12/01/53. Served with 723 Sqn coded 908. Crashed 25 February 1955 flown by LCDR(P) G. McPhee, RAN and LEUT(O) B.Hill RAN Crashed during an attempted rescue of two men from a signal box during the Maitland floods in NSW. They were lifting one man and a second grabbed onto the first as the helo moved to place the man on a bridge. Both men dropped off and were drowned the aircraft then hit a high-tension cable and crashed into the Hunter River. The crew escaped and were swept five miles downstream before being picked up by an Army "Duck" water vehicle. LCDR McPhee awarded an OBE. Aircraft written off.
|
| XD653 | HR Mk 51 | 13071 | Ex G-AMWJ.
First Flight 12/11/53. Delivered 16/12/53. Served with 723 Sqn coded 904 and 724 Sqn coded 850. Forced landing 09/10/58. Last Sycamore in RAN service, Flown by LCDR Payne (P)RAN to HMAS Nirimba, Sydney for apprentice training on 15 July 1965. To RAN Museum. 10/08/77 Static Display at Naval Aviation Museum as 850. Current.
|
| XD654 | HR Mk 51 | 13146 | First
Flight 14/12/53. Delivered 01/03/54. Served with 723 Sqn RAN. Damaged 02/55, Dubbo NSW while working on Flood Relief. Coded 991 then 909 Code changed to 851 Ditched 04/03/61. Flown by LEUT(P) J. Dacosta RAN from HMAS Melbourne attempted to hover alongside HMS Hermes, a Royal Navy Aircraft Carrier, Insufficient wind and ditched, off Cocos Islands, all crew rescued.
|
| XD655 | HR Mk 51 | 13147 | First
Flight 22/12/53. Delivered 05/08/54. Came to Australia by HMAS Melbourne on Maiden Voyage. Served with 723 Sqn. Coded (908) Damaged 07/10/55, Point Cook VIC. Crashed 12/10/55 LEUT (P) J.T Ferguson, RAN and LEUT (P) A. Sanders RN Ditched in five feet of water in St Georges Basin, where they were carrying out wet winching...practising rescue of aircrew. Suspected power loss. No further records so presumably scrapped. |
| XD656 | HR Mk 51 | 13148 | First
Flight 04/01/54. Delivered 05/08/54. Served with 723 Sqn RAN Coded 905 then 902 Ditched 21/11/57 LT(P) H.P. Hunt RAN while flying from HMAS Melbourne, Experienced engine trouble and was forced to ditch aircraft into the sea near submarine HMS Telemachus. The crew of two were rescued but the aircraft was lost.
|
| XK902 | HR Mk 51 | 13401 | First
Flight 23/02/56. Delivered 01/03/56. Came to Australia by HMAS Melbourne on Maiden Voyage. Served with 723 Sqn RAN. Coded 902 and 992. Crashed 10/01/58 Flown by Leut(P) A. Ignatief RAN in woodlands near Coffs Harbour NSW when working with HMAS Warrego charting the NSW Coast. 5 crew injured. Aircraft written off 26/6/58.
|
| XL507 | HR Mk 51 | 13407 | Original
Serial XL903. First Flight 01/03/56. Delivered 06/03/56. Served with 723 Sqn coded 903. 24/05/57 while embarked in HMAS Melbourne had an engine failure during auto rotation practice and ditched near carrier. Crew rescued. Pilot LEUT(P) A. Ignatief RAN. |
| XN448 | HR Mk 51 | 13270 | Ex G-AOBM,
Went to Mexico in 1955 as CF-HVX, as a company demonstrator, G-18-5. First Flight 16/04/58. Delivered 26/04/58. Was initially marked as 13270 in RAN Service. Served with 723 Sqn code 852. Damaged 27/06/60 while landing. Sold 14/09/65. Registered VH-SYC 14/02/67 to 14/08/72. Damaged near Wyndham WA 02/12/69. Initially preserved by the RAAFA Museum, Bull Creek, Perth WA but later transferred to the eastern states. Fate not known.
|
| XN449 | HR Mk 51 | 13504 | Ex
G-18-177. First Flight 10/02/59. Delivered 14/06/59. Served with 723 Sqn coded 853. Damaged 10/60 on landing and overturned. C rashed near RANAS Nowra 03/09/62 after a suspected tail rotor failure - spun in and burnt out. The pilot LEUT(P) M Astbury RAN escaped from the burning aircraft.
|
| XN450 | HR Mk 51 | 13505 | Ex
G-18-178. Last Sycamore Built. First Flight 12/58. Delivered 19/6/59. Served with 723 Sqn coded 848. Sold 14/09/65 to Business Aviation Bankstown. Preserved in the Beck Collection, Mareeba QLD. Current.
|
| XR592 | HR Mk 51 | 13070 | Ex G-AMWI,
XN635. Delivered 06/61. Served with 723 Sqn coded 851. Damaged 17/07/63 when rolled over on takeoff at HMAS Albatross, Nowra whilst being flown by LEUT(P) Spratt RAN. Repaired and put back into service. Sold 14/09/65. Registered VH-BAW 14/11/67 to 14/08/72. Currently located at the Camden Museum of Aviation This is a privately owned collection and is not open to the public. . |
The Authors of this page are Bob Geale, Dave Masterson & Joe Barr.
Navy Sycamores were allocated the code N5, but because they were retiring they were never applied.
Navy Sycamores served in 723 Squadron other than from the period 26 October 1956 to 18 February 1957. During that short period it was with 724 Squadron as a flight.
A numbering change was made in July 1958 when all 900 series numbers were replaced. I.E 904 became 854.
In October of 1962 the first Oxford Blue Sycamore appeared.
Source: Australian Aviation Magazine, CASA Aircraft Records, RAAF Status Cards, Wings across the sea by Ross Gillett.
Emails: Bob Geale Allan Green, Dave Masteron, Tjalling Boelman, Trevor Scantlebury, Dave Taskis, Rex Ramsey, Brendan Cowan, Tom Crabtree
Updated 27th March 2017
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