Lest we forget.

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Darwin is the only Australian State Capital City seriously affected by WW II with a Pearl Harbour type raid by the Japanese aircraft. So it is quite appropriate to have excellent WWII relics and history preserved. There are many sites around the area from military camps, air strips, gun placements and the Aviation Heritage Museum on the south side of Darwin, not far from the airport.

David and Mary recommended we have a look at this display as they had great memories of a visit here and a guided tour. Unfortunately for us, there was no guided tour on the day we visited, so we got to just look around and read material on display.

There is a great montage, a collection of WWII aircraft images that brings the reality home of the horror of war.

There are personal stories of all sorts of events. As serious as these events are, there is a story of a Japanese pilot who crashed in a remote location. The tribal women were scared, so they hid until the following morning when their men folk returned. They quietly hunted the pilot down, and as he walked past their lair, they grabbed him from behind and said 'Stick'm Up, Both hands'.

The pilot was then stripped of all but his UPs and taken to the mission station where he was after time collected by the military police. The pilot felt so disgraced by being captured, so worthless and unable to face colleagues and family again, that he attempted suicide.

His Mitsubishi aircraft (rather mangled) is on display at the museum.

As for aircraft, I love planes but my knowledge is limited. There is a Goliath and David type image where a B52 bomber has a Salvation Army Flying Padre aircraft parked under the wing between the two sets of engine pods. One delivered destruction, the other eternal hope. An even more ludicrous comparison is adjacent to the fuselage of the B52, a spunky little home built micro light aircraft.

The display is quite varied, and I am sure my father in law will smile as he sees a good old tiger moth just like he got his private license in many years ago in Palmerston North (NZ).

Jets, helicopters, an F111 etc. All well presented though minus important things like jet engines. You can see straight through the Sabre from one end to the other.

Marg and I wandered around here for an hour or more after fronting up with a quite modest entry fee. Good shop there too for aircraft and or souvenir enthusiasts. The B52 is still the lasting memory - it is HUGE.

Lest we forget.

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Photos

Not the fastest Indian!
Bomb squad, so get out of my way.

Comments

[Mum & Dad]

Another great effort by the bloggers
Now the Tiger Moth really sets this blog off. Brings back so many memories of my hours flying them. Loved all the aircraft shown and the comments.

[David S]

B52
Rob, What a pity that there was no guide talk. Part of the overall ambience of the whole exhibit.