The Caboolture Warplane Museum is a great day out, particularly for kids bored on holidays and the young at heart. Turn left at Aerodrome Rd at Caboolture, near the Bribie Island Brisbane turn off on the Bruce Highway and go to the very end of the road and you will find this hidden treasure trove of memorabilia and restored aircraft still flying today.
At $10 per adult the museum presents good value and the volunteers guide you through history with their knowledge of the displays and equipment housed at the museum. Each piece has been lovingly restored and information provided about their past provided on display as you potter around the exhibits.
Aircraft are the main focus with a complete Bell Iroquois (Huey) Helicopter from the Vietnam War on display where you can sit in the cockpit and see the inner workings of this huge gun ship and inspect the troop bay and cargo area. A part display of an F111 is also fascinating incorporating a complete cockpit section full of mind blowing controls crammed into a tiny working area for two pilots. This display showcases the F111s state of the art weapons, navigation and avionics technology.
A part display of a C47 Dakota from the RAF is also available to view and this plane has first class pedigree having once transported Dwight D Eisenhower, Winston Churchill and King George VI. A full RAAF Wirraway (1945) US Navy T-28B Trojan is also on display and for a price you can book a joy flight with pilot over Bribie Island in the fully restored aircraft.
A Havilland Gypsy Moth Bi Plane which flew from England to Australia in 1931 setting a new world record of 9 days 4 hours and 11 minutes is also housed at the museum. There are a number of detailed large models of other aircraft such as Spitfires, Hurricanes and Coursairs as well as V2 Flyingbombs, and turrets from B24 Liberators.
There are a wide variety of uniforms, helmets, weapons, medals and day to day items used by airmen during the wars. A display of the exploits of Warrant Officer Leonard Waters, the first indigenous fighter pilot of WW2 and his plane Black Magic is fascinating and contains full details and artefacts from his service to this country.
In addition to these aircraft and associated paraphernalia there are anti-aircraft guns such as 40mm Bofor’s, a Brengun Carrier tank, searchlights, radios and navigation equipment. A civil aviation display will bring back memories of airlines like TAA and Ansett complete with on board menus from the 1970s offering cigarettes for 40c.
There are many, many other items on display and much of it is interactive which will entertain the kids while the parents and grandparents recall the past. I would thoroughly recommend the museum for a half day out or drop in on your way back from the Caboolture shops next time you have to make the journey to make it so much more worthwhile.
By Staff Writer Mozza
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