VH-UTQ  Bell 47G-4                                          (c/n  3337)

                                    

                                           Here are two Greg Banfield shots of a Bell chopper taken at Bankstown.  Above, in October
                                           1986* and below, somewhat earlier in November 1983.   Both are rather cluttered.  Can't help
                                           that however when one can "see through" the bloody thing!   A crop duster, it was first registered
                                           in February 1965 and saw a two-year secondment to Fiji in January of 1970.    First, colonially
                                           registered as VQ-FBN and later as DQ-FBN, it returned to Australia in January 1972 and assumed
                                           its VH-UTQ identity again. 
                                           * Interestingly, the Australian ATSB has a detailed report of it hitting power cables whilst inspecting
                                           spraying result at 'Berwick Station', a property some 23 km W of Werris Creek, NSW on 24 March
                                           1984.    The report indicates the damage was serious enough to write the machine off.    However,
                                           despite this, Greg's shot above was taken after that date.  It turns out that it  languished somewhere
                                           for four years and then was rebuilt in 1982 as a 47G-3B-1.  In October 2002 it was sold in New
                                           Zealand as ZK-ICJ where it is still current.