Oct 11, 20222 min read

Bound for Guinea Airways

On March 8, 1936, Lockheed Electra 10A number 1060 was completed at the factory in Burbank; three months later the Electra was put on the S. S. Hauraki for Adelaide. On July 31, 1936, the ship arrived at Port Adelaide, South Australia, for delivery to Guinea Airways who had purchased the aircraft for £18,000; the Electra was registered as VH-UXH and was reassembled in the Adelaide Airways hangar at Parafield. On April 25, 1937, the aircraft was damaged at Tennant Creek when a truck backed into the port propeller; the Electra was flown to Darwin, with damaged propeller, where it was repaired.

At the end of December 1942, VH-UXH was flown to Port Moresby to participate in the Buna campaign; for much of World War II the aircraft was used on Guinea Airways courier service between Adelaide and Darwin - sources note that numerous forced landings occurred during this time but the aircraft was never damaged.

On August 26, 1946, VH-UXH was withdrawn from service, two days later it was sold to Union Airways in New Zealand where the registration changed to ZK-ALH. September 30, 1946, the Electra arrived in Wellington, New Zealand on the Karitane. After being reassembled at Rongotai, the aircraft was ferried to Palmerston North. Two years later, February 24, 1949, ZK-ALH was damaged at Hamilton when the wheels were retracted instead of the flaps; following repairs the aircraft was test flown at Palmerston North the next month. By the end of July 1949 the airline had withdrawn the Electra from service where they placed it in outside storage at Palmerston North. In February 1951 the aircraft was sold to Rural Aviation Ltd., who intended to use the Electra for spares for their Beaver fleet; by March the Electra had been cancelled from the New Zealand Register. In March 1953 the aircraft was dismantled at Palmerston North, the fuselage was transported to Longburn (near Palmerston North) and was later scrapped. By the 1980s whatever parts of the fuselage remained were airfreighted to Australia for use as patterns in the restoration of Electra 1107; however these remaining parts were subsequently scrapped.