VH-RMQ      Vickers 720C Viscount                                      (c/n  45)

                              

                                     This was originally TAA's VH-TVB  delivered in late 1954, and sold to Ansett in October 1962
                                     becoming VH-RMQ..  Greg Banfield's shot of it (above) was taken at Mascot in July 1964.  It
                                     was leased to MacRobertson Miller Airlines in September, 1968 who renamed it 'Quininup'.
                                     Immeduiately below are photos from the Geoff Goodall collection of it at Perth Airport, both
                                     intact and in pieces.  On New Year's Eve (31 Dec 1968) the aircraft was operating flight 1750
                                     which departed Perth at 08:29 for a flight to Port Hedland.   The flight climbed to FL190, en-
                                     countering light to moderate turbulence.      The last radio contact was at 11:34 when the crew
                                     reported 30 DME south of Port Hedland, descending from 7000 feet. The aircraft was seen to
                                     descend rapidly and steeply a little later.   The wreckage was found 28 miles from Port Hedland.
                                     Probable cause of the accident was given as "fatigue endurance of the starboard inner main spar
                                     lower boom being substantially reduced by the insertion of a flared bush at station 143 when the
                                     margin of safety associated with the retirement life specified for such booms did not ensure that
                                     this boom would achieve its retirement life in the presence of such a defect."      Translation:  The
                                     starboard wing fell off due to improper maintenance/inspection of the main spar.      All 21 passen-
                                     gers and the crew of 5 were killed.