The record passenger uplift for a single Fokker Friendship flight was set when the Trans-Australia Airlines Fokker

Friendship VH-TQN undertook a Queensland Flood Relief Flight from Hughenden to Mt Isa on January 24, 1974.

Crewed by Captain Allan Heaton and myself this aircraft uplifted 60 people (56 passenger, 4 crew).

This was quite an amazing feat for a 36 passenger seat aircraft! The Friendship could be converted to seat 40 passengers

by moving the forward bulkhead forward but this reduced the space for baggage and freight in the front hold.

I never heard of our Friendships being used as '40-seaters' but I presume many other airlines did.

The following day a new record was established when the same aircraft undertook a Flood Relief Flight from

Normanton to Mt Isa. Crewed again by Allan Heaton and myself it uplifted 61 people (57 passengers and 4 crew).

These flights were undertaken due to extensive flooding in NW Queensland. Mt Isa had been cut off by rail and road

for so long that the Friendship VH-TQR was used as a freighter to fly in essential supplies on January 23 and 24.

Allan and I then flew VH-TQN on flood relief and evacuation flights. As the Flinders Highway was cut between

each of the towns along it, 9 relief flights including the two record-breaking flights were undertaken over the next

several days. Passengers were weighed with three being seated in a double seat - the centre armrests were folded up.

Infants were carried on laps and each take-off was performed just below the maximum take-off weight.

On the Normanton - Mt Isa flight the flood water was up to the edge of the bitumen runway on departure.

Following this stint I deadheaded on the Darwin - Mt Isa - Brisbane Boeing 727 service home. It turned out to be one of

the last flights into Brisbane before this airport was closed by the 1974 flood.

 

Warwick Henry