The story of the Upper Hunter's donation of war planes during WWI is being remembered thanks to community support. Scone RSL has sponsored a local charity to assist with continued flying of a WWI aircraft replica which wears the colours of a locally donated aircraft from the First World War, an Upper Hunter Battleplane.
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Hunter Fighter Collection Incorporated, is a Scone based registered charity, that owns and operates a range of over 20 aircraft from its base at Hunter Warbirds Aviation Museum at Scone Memorial Airport. Amongst the aircraft owned by Hunter Fighter Collection is a WWI era Bristol F.2B Fighter, painted to represent an No 1 Squadron, Australian Flying Corps (AFC) aircraft, B.1229 (Also known as 67 Sqn RFC at one stage) serving in the Middle East. Bristol B1229 was a "presentation" aircraft, meaning that it was procured for 2,700 Pounds from a donation by the Macintyre Kavuga Estate of Scone NSW and was the 11th such aircraft NSW donors had provided. The aircraft carried the inscription "N.S.W. No. 11, The Macintyre Kavuga Estate "under the rear cockpit.
This aircraft was at one stage flown by Captain Ross Smith, later Sir Ross Smith, K.B.E., M.C. and Bar, D.F.C. and two Bars, A.F.C. Smith scored 11 of his 12 enemy victories in this machine in the Middle East between Sept 1917 and October 1918. Smith served in No1 Squadron AFC and whilst there he flew as Lawrence of Arabia's pilot in Bristol F.2B B1229. Sir Ross Smith, (also a Gallipoli veteran), survived the war and took part in several record flights (for which he and his brother Keith were knighted) however he was killed in crash in the UK in April 1922.
Bristol B1229 was also flown by several other Australians and is said to have a total record of 20 Victories. Pilots flying this aircraft are said to have achieved 17 decorations. 11 other aircraft were presented to the AFC by the people of the Hunter Valley and the area was the greatest donor of aircraft anywhere in the world.
The original logbook for Bristol F.2B B1229 is held in the collection of the Australian War Memorial in Canberra ACT.
The generous sponsorship by the Scone RSL ensures that Hunter Fighter Collection can keep this precious aircraft flying well into the future as a memorial to those who served in Australian service and to the people of the Hunter Valley who supported their efforts in WWI.
It is a priceless memory of the Upper Hunters past and it is expected that the Bristol Fighter will be able to participate in future commemorations at Scone and at this year's Anzac Day ceremony.
