VH-ACG Comper
CLA7 Swift
(c/n GS32-2)
This shot of VH-ACG was taken at Bankstown in 1952. It had acquired a
cockpit cover by that time.
A decade
later it had migrated west to Adelaide, where Geoff Goodall took the
shot immediately below
(# 2) in March of 1963. The deep red had been
modified to a lighter crimson with black nose trim and
the rego had moved to the fin. At
that time it was owned by Bob Burnett-Read of Adelaide who was
president of the Vintage Aircraft Club of Australia
and a genuine enthusiast who also owned two Proctors,
a Ryan STM, a BA Swallow, a
Puss Moth and sundry other aircraft during the 1960s.
Shortly after that
photo was take Bob repainted
the Swift in a silver with blue trim scheme as seen in the following
shot (3)
by Geoff at the Blythe, South Australia air show in
October 1963. Shortly after it continued its westward
migration.
Shot 4 shows it at arriving at Doug Muir's house in
the Perth suburb of Mount Pleasant, in October 1971.
Doug had just bought it from
the previous owner Jack Conroy at Kalgoorlie, where it had been stored
for
3 years waiting for an engine
overhaul. Doug Muir's Muir Airlines of WA had been
taken over by Civil
Flying Services, and Doug rebuilt the Comper as a
retirement project over the next twenty years in Perth.
There was a plan at one stage to restore it to
the UK register as G-ABWH. The idea was to display the
aircraft at Hooton Park,
Manchester, where it was built in 1932, prior to going out to Australia
in
1939.
However, as of now VH-ACG is with the Roy Fox
vintage aircraft collection in Sydney so presumably
that dream came to nought.
Finally, shot 5 shows the Comper after its restoration by Doug Muir in
Perth: Photo by Geoff at Jandakot
in
October 1987 displaying it with the Fokker "Southern Cross" VH-USU
during a visit of the Fokker.
Doug painted it into the racing color scheme
it wore in England in the Kings Cup Air Races of the 1930s
as G-ABWH and then sent to
USA for the Cleveland races in 1934 as NC27K.
2
3
4
5