VH-PKW  (2)  Cessna 180                                                (c/n  31121)

                              

                                  I have been advised by Mr. John  Patterson, a former director of Airfarm that the oddly shaped
                                  hopper on the port wing of this 180 was, in fact, a 'seed pod' used for spreading grass seed. The
                                  photo above, from the Geoff Goodall collection, was taken at Tamworth, NSW whilst it was in
                                  Airfarm service in 1968 .  In John's shot below, this pod had been removed and the aircraft con-
                                  verted back to a conventional fertiliser spreader.   This -PKW is actually is the second aircraft to
                                  bear this rego, the first another 180, having been written off in a crash when it stuck overhead wires
                                  at Copanhurst near Grafton, NSW, in June 1955     The replacement machine seen here was one
                                  of the first 180s into Australia (in October of 1954) and was originally VH-BQF.  (See my shot of
                                  it at Moorabbin shortly after it arrived)    It later went to Western Australia to continue more crop
                                  dusting activities.   VH-PKW(2) is still  currently  active and is registered to an owner in NSW
                                  where it has been used for skydiving.  Tony Arbon's shot at the foot of the page shows it as a
                                  skydiving platform.