A SOCIAL outing just 45 minutes from Port Stephens has given a group of locals an unexpected window into aviation history and highlighting the value of staying curious, connected and engaged with the wider community.
Members of the Port Stephens Friendship Group recently travelled to Beresfield to see the painstaking restoration of an 83-year-old Catalina flying boat by volunteers from the Rathmines Catalina Association.
For the visitors, the appeal was not simply seeing an enormous historic aircraft gradually being pieced back together.
It was also an opportunity to meet the volunteers behind the project, hear their stories and discover a significant piece of Hunter and Australian wartime history practically on their doorstep.
The visit began with morning tea before Rathmines Catalina Association president Bill Anderson presented a talk and video about the wartime Catalina base at Rathmines on Lake Macquarie and the remarkable journey of the aircraft being restored.
The Catalina had been abandoned in a field in Puerto Rico before being purchased by the association and transported to Newcastle over eight months.
Volunteers are now several years into the huge restoration project, with the aircraft ultimately expected to be displayed at Fighter World at Williamtown.
During a tour of the Beresfield workshop, they inspected the aircraft’s body, wings, tail and former gun positions while talking with the volunteers undertaking the work.
For participant Jan Barnett, seeing the project up close brought its scale, and the dedication behind it, to life.
“Visiting the Catalina Flying Boat reconstruction site was very interesting and informative on the history of the Catalinas’ pre- and post-war role,” Jan said.
“It was like a large Meccano set. The volunteers are very dedicated to preserving the history of WW2 aircraft and knew where every piece fitted.
“The volunteers were very passionate about the restoration work.”
The project has benefits extending beyond preserving an important aircraft.
School and university graduates can gain practical experience alongside the volunteers, allowing specialist knowledge and hands-on skills to be passed to a new generation.
For Friendship Group members, excursions provide something equally valuable: a reason to explore, learn, meet people and discover places and projects they may otherwise never encounter.
The group has been active for more than 30 years, combining excursions with regular coffee mornings, lawn bowls, social gatherings, and guest speakers.
The simple formula continues to provide residents with new experiences, new conversations and reasons to keep exploring their community and beyond.
By Jacie WHITFIELD
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