Hawker Siddeley HS.125 Series 3B VH-CAO's Departmental career came to
an end on 1 August 1978 when the registration was officially transferred
from Department of Transport, Air Transport
Group to Arnjul Pty Ltd of Auburn, NSW.
The photo above shows VH-CAO ungergoing major maintenance at Bankstown on 9 September 1979. Note that the leading edges of the wing and tailplane have been removed, as has the cowling of the port Bristol Siddeley Viper 522. The aircraft still wears the basic colour scheme of its former owner.
(Photo:
Michael Austin/Roger McDonald collection)
At a later date, VH-CAO was re-painted in the rather interesting, predominantly
black colour scheme seen above at Sydney/Kingsford Smith Airport on 16
July 1988.
The aircraft reportedly suffered a landing accident at Sydney/KSA in 1991 and was officially withdrawn from use on 19 May that year. Not being Stage III noise-compliant, returning the aircraft to airworthiness was deemed uneconomical. It was later sold to Arondu P/L, Mascot NSW, and reportedly put on the Malaysian register as 9M-AYI - but this registration was evidently never taken up. In 1998 all useable parts were removed and sold to Dodsons Aviation.
At some stage the hulk was acquired by a former Qantas Flight Engineer who, by coincidence, also owns the hulk of former Qantas HS.125 VH-ECE. VH-CAO was stored at Sydney/Bankstown, spending some time at the Australian Aviation Museum, before being moved to The Oaks aerodrome in 2006.
(Photo: Roger
McDonald)
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