VH-RMA Lockheed 188 ELECTRA

Order was placed with Lockheed - December 9, 1958

First flown as VH-RMA - February 13, 1959

Accepted by Ansett-A.N.A. at Burbank, California - February 27, 1959

Entered onto the Australian Aircraft Register as VH-RMA - March 5, 1959

Registered to Ansett-A.N.A.

Departed Burbank on delivery flight - March 7, 1959

Delivery route: Burbank-Las Vegas-San Francisco-Honolulu-Canton Island-Nadi-Melbourne

Flight crew: Capts A. Lane, A. Lovell, A.C. Thomson; Navigator W.C. Kennedy; F/Es M. Perry, C. Ford

Arrived at Melbourne's Essendon Airport with R. M. Ansett as passenger - March 10, 1959

Aircraft was originally configured with 60 First Class & 14 Economy seats

Operated its first Ansett-A.N.A. revenue service - Melbourne (Essendon)-Sydney - March 18, 1959

Flight crew: Capts A. Lovell & A. Lane

This was the first L-188 service operated outside the United States

Established new record on Sydney-Brisbane sector (Capts A. Lovell & K. Nicholls) - April 6, 1959

Withdrawn from service for six days for Electra Refinement Program - June 21, 1959

During program engine mounts were modified under guidance of Lockheed Engineers

Tail titles were modified to read 'Electra Mk II Turbo Prop' in single tail band - early 1960

Tail titles again modified to final twin-bands - May 1960

Withdrawn from service and ferried to U.S. for LEAP modifications arriving Burbank - April 25, 1961

Ferry route: Melbourne-Nadi-Canton Island-Honolulu-Burbank

Flight crew: Capt N. Murdoch, A. Thompson, D. Moodie; Navigator W.C. Kennedy; Engineer C. Ford

Entered LEAP program as LEAP # 134 - April 26, 1961

Departed Burbank on redelivery to Australia - May 20, 1961

Ferry route: San Francisco-Honolulu-Canton Island-Nadi-Melbourne

Ferry crew: Capts N. Murdoch, W. Ross, P. Longbottom, A. Lane; Navigator W.C. Kennedy

Aircraft was grounded by Department of Civil Aviation order - July 24, 1964

This was result of corrosion specks being found in wing of TAA Electra VH-TLB

They had been misidentified as being wing cracks and grounding order lifted on Electra fleet - July 27, 1964

Registered to Ansett Transport Industries (Operations) Pty Ltd - December 18, 1969

Operated final Ansett passenger service - April 28, 1971

Withdrawn from service - and stored at Melbourne

Departed Melbourne for conversion to freighter with Lockheed - March 6, 1972

Ferry route: Melbourne-Port Moresby-Wake Island-Honolulu-Ontario California

Ferry crew: Capts B. Porter, S. Davis; Navigator W.C. Kennedy; Engineer P. Straney

Test flown at completion of conversion to L-188AF standard - July 18, 1972

Departed Ontario on redelivery to Australia - July 22, 1972

Arrived Melbourne at conclusion of ferry flight - July 25, 1972

Ferry route: San Francisco-Honolulu-Wake Island-Port Moresby-Melbourne

Ferry crew: Capts A. James, G. Backhouse; Navigator W.C. Kennedy; Engineer G. Lynch

Returned to service as freighter with Ansett Airlines of Australia Air Cargo - August 3, 1972

Operated last freighter service Melbourne-Adelaide-Perth-Melbourne as AN950/951 - December 23, 1983

Flight crew: Capt S. Smythe; F/O K. Lumsden; F/E G. Young

Withdrawn from use and stored at Melbourne's Tullamarine Airport pending sale

Aircraft had flown 52,937 hours with 40,509 cycles

Sold to Turbo Power International - June 29, 1984

Entered onto U.S. Aircraft Register as N356Q

Cancelled from the Australian Aircraft Register - October 8, 1984

Departed Melbourne as N356Q on delivery flight to TPI - October 12, 1984

Leased to Air Bridge - February 2, 1988

Reregistered as N355WS to Air Bridge - November 23, 1989

Reregistered as N356Q

Leased to Hunting Cargo Airlines as N356Q - May 6, 1993

Returned to Renown Aviation - July 1, 1994

Wet leased to Amerer Air - November 1996

Sold to Amerer Air - August 1998

Cancelled from U.S. Aircraft Register - August 22, 1998

Entered onto the Austrian Aircraft Register as OE-ILB - September 28, 1998

Registered to Amerer Air GmbH

Had flown 64,341 hours & 49,819 cycles as of July 24, 2001

Advertised for sale by Amerer Air - June 2002

Operated its last flight as TAY73P Wien-Linz

Amerer Air advised by Austrian C.A.A. the CofA on this aircraft would not be renewed

Sold to Buffalo Airways, Yellowknife, NWT - October 2006

Ferried Linz-Coventry - October 27, 2006

Ferried Coventry-Reykjavik-Keflav-Iqaluit-Red Deer-Alberta - October 28, 2006

Entered onto the Canadian Aircraft Register as C-FBAQ - July 3, 2007

Current

The complete history of VH-RMA is available as a book. This book explores the background

of Reg Ansett's involvement in securing the Electra for his airline before presenting the history

of VH-RMA in text and photos. To purchase a copy of this book - click HERE.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - in original livery with single tail bar during test flight, February 1959.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - in original livery with single tail bar, at Oakland, February 1959.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - in the original livery with single tail bar, February 1959.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - in the original livery with single tail bar at Melbourne Airport, April 1959.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - in original livery with single tail bar at Sydney Airport, October 1959.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - in original livery with single tail bar at Melbourne Airport, October 1959.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - original livery with modified tail bar titles at Sydney Airport, date unknown.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - in the full livery at Melbourne' Essendon Airport, January 1965.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - in the full livery at Sydney Airport, June 1965.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - in the full livery at Brisbane Airport, July 1965.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - in the full livery at Essendon Airport, date unknown.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - in the full livery without nose titles at Essendon Airport, date unknown.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - in the full livery at Brisbane Airport, date unknown.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - in the full livery at Essendon Airport, January 1967.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - in the full livery at Sydney Airport, January 1968.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - in the full livery at Essendon Airport, June 1968.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - in the full livery at Melbourne's Essendon Airport, January 1970.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - in the full livery at Melbourne's Essendon Airport, May 1970.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - in the full livery at Melbourne's Essendon Airport, November 1970.

VH-RMA. Ansett-ANA - in the full livery, location and date unknown.

VH-RMA. Ansett Airlines of Australia - in the 'delta' livery at Essendon Airport, February 1972.

VH-RMA. Ansett Airlines of Australia Air Cargo - in the 'delta' livery at Brisbane Airport, November 1974.

VH-RMA. Ansett Airlines of Australia Air Cargo - in the 'delta' livery at Brisbane Airport, January 1979.

VH-RMA. Ansett Airlines of Australia Air Cargo - in the 'delta' livery at Sydney Airport, January 1979.

VH-RMA - Ansett Airlines of Australia Air Cargo - in the 'delta' livery at Sydney Airport, January 1980.

VH-RMA. Ansett Airlines of Australia Air Cargo - in the 'delta' livery at Melbourne Airport, August 1980.

VH-RMA. Ansett Airlines of Australia Air Cargo - in the 'delta' livery at Tullamarine Airport, August 1980.

VH-RMA. Ansett Airlines of Australia Air Cargo - in the 'delta' livery at Tullamarine Airport, August 1981.

VH-RMA. Ansett Air Freight - in the 'Southern Cross' livery at Brisbane Airport, April 1982.

VH-RMA. Ansett Air Freight - in the 'Southern Cross' livery at Melbourne Airport, June 1982.

VH-RMA. Ansett Air Freight - in the 'Southern Cross' livery at Brisbane Airport, June 1982.

VH-RMA. Ansett Air Freight - in the 'Southern Cross' livery at Melbourne Airport, November 1982.

VH-RMA. Ansett Air Freight - in the 'Southern Cross' livery at Melbourne Airport, May 1984.

VH-RMA / B / C. Ansett Air Freight - in the 'Southern Cross' livery at Melbourne Airport, June 1984.

VH-RMA. Ansett Air Freight - in the basic 'Southern Cross' livery at Melbourne Airport, September 1984.

N356Q. TPI - in the full livery but without titles at unknown location, June 1985.

N356Q. TPI / Air Bridge - in TPI livery with small 'Air Bridge' titles on nose, February 1988.

N356Q. TPI / Air Bridge - TPI livery with large 'Air Bridge' titles, location unknown, May 1989.

N355WS. TPI / Air Bridge - TPI livery with large 'Air Bridge' titles, location unknown, December 1989.

N355WS. TPI / Air Bridge - TPI livery with large 'Air Bridge' titles at Brussels Airport, date unknown.

N356Q. Hunting Cargo Airlines - in the full livery at Stuttgart Airport, July 1993.

N356Q. Hunting Cargo Airlines - in the basic livery at Brussels Airport, June 1994.

N356Q. Renown Aviation - in the full livery at Miami Airport, August 1995.

N356Q. Amerer Air - in the basic livery without titles, May 1997.

N356Q. Amerer Air - in the full livery with small nose titles, May 1997.

OE-ILB. Amerer Air - in the full livery at unknown airport, August 2003.

OE-ILB. Amerer Air - in the full livery at Ostend Airport, October 2003.

OE-ILB. Amerer Air - in the full livery at Wien Airport, October 2003.

OE-ILB. Amerer Air - in the full livery at Ostend Airport, date unknown.

C-FBAQ. Buffalo Airways - in the full livery at Red Deer, July 2008.