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TAVAS

has now embarked on the next phase
of what has been a five-year labour of
love and huge personal expenditure
– the further development of a
dedicated exhibition space.
Hangar 106 at the Caboolture
Airfield opened officially to the
public in June, the culmination of a
frenzied period of volunteer activity
to deliver not only aircraft displays
and explanatory placards but also
wall-mounted exhibits detailing the
early history of flight and the largely
unheralded exploits of Australia’s
WW1 aces.
In an interview for Australian
Aviation in April, ahead of the flying
exhibition that would commemorate
the 100th anniversary of the shooting
down of von Richthofen, Carter said
he was aware that many Australians
had no idea of the depth of ability and
bravery of its pilots in WW1. said the TAVAS example is the
“Our aces wall exhibition is about only reproduction in the world of
putting that right,” he said. an aircraft that first flew in 1911
Further behind the scenes work when the brothers charged 25 cents
ahead of the opening included a person to view the aircraft and
diamond cutting and epoxy painting took in $600 over a weekend. The
of the floors, preparation of exhibition reproduction was built by Herbert
cabinetry and installation of audio Seiser in South Africa and donated
visual services. to TAVAS in mid-2014.
Carter paid particular tribute » A Henri Farman III, obtained
to Renni Forbes and Dave Walsh via Carter’s contacts in New
for creativity in partitioning the York (who, incidentally, helped
exhibition space from the ongoing source the Gnome 160 rotary
workshop. After all, TAVAS is about now powering the D.VIII) and
acquiring examples of historic aircraft about as far away as possible from
and working on them to deliver the engineering ability of each member of Hangar 106 is home to a the 737s Carter flies today. In a
capacity to fly. the TAVAS team. priceless collection of vintage newsletter to TAVAS members
The acquisition of each of the 14 Pre-war exhibits include: aircraft. steve gibbons he described it as a type that had
aircraft on show in Hangar 106 is a » A 1909 Johnson monoplane, always fascinated him because of
story in itself and a tribute to tenacity, designed by brothers better known its similarity to the Bristol Boxkite.
capacity for research, and pure for their marine outboards. Carter “I just had to have it,” he said. “It is

The Fokker D.VIII was known to
the Allies as the Flying Razor.

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