Ghost Plane at Hawker
 |
Mounted Constable L.F. Butcher of Hawker received several
enquiries on Friday 26 August 1948 regarding a low flying Tiger Moth biplane
that was seen at 8:15am, then disappeared!
Railway workers witnessed
the plane flying low near the township when it suddenly disappeared into a hillside. Afraid there had been a crash, they alerted the local authorities.
Enquiries to the Civil Aviation Department found that all
planes from as far away as Broken Hill, Whyalla and Albany were checked, and
none matched the plane, nor its flight path. M.C. Butcher enquired with locals
in the area, and no one had seen, nor heard the aircraft flying in the vicinity
of Hawker.[1]
M.C. Butcher stated in the newspapers "It's a complete
mystery."
The authorities would
not believe a ghost plane could ever fly in our skies, so launched an
investigation. It was widely rumoured that either a Tiger Moth or Puss Moth had
been seen illegally flying somewhere near Beltana, South Australia. However, Mr
A.V. Lauchland, an officer in charge of the Parafield Airport stated that there
was no way the unregistered pilot could buy aviation fuel without a current
registration. The Civil Aviation Department investigated through the Disposals
Commission on the sales of light planes in the state.[2]
238 km's south of
Hawker, at Clare, Meggitt’s Ltd. was using a Tiger Moth to crop dust with DDT, in fields around the Clare region. The same planes were being used in Queensland
and New South Wales for the same purpose.[3]
So perhaps, one of the Tiger Moths had
made its way to Hawker as well?
It was never
determined if the Tiger Moth seen at Hawker was a ghost plane or an illegal
pilot. However, a similar style of plane was once flown over the skies of
Kapunda by my Great uncle. Long after his death, and the plane being sold and
removed from the area, a phantom Tiger Moth has been seen silently flying over
the township from time to time…
Researched and Written by Allen Tiller © 2022
[1]
'"Ghost" plane in north', News, (27 Aug 1948), p. 1.,
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article129908639.
[2]
'Is 'phantom' plane unregistered?', News, (28 Aug 1948), p. 1., http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article129899109.
[3] 'Linseed
Dusting in Clare District by Aeroplane', Northern Argus, (18 Nov
1948), p. 7., http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article97816206.
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