MacRobertson Miller Aviation (MMA) ordered three D.H.84 Dragon IIs (VH-URW, VH-URX and VH-URY) after winning the Government tender for the North-West W.A. service.
De Havilland Aircraft built the aircraft at its Hatfield factory in the UK, then dismantled them and crated them for shipment to Fremantle.
VH-URY arrived in Fremantle in August 1934 and was taken to the Maylands Aerodrome for assembly and testing by MMA.
VH-URY was registered to MacRobertson Miller Aviation Co. on 11 September 1934, fitted out to carry 8 passengers and named ‘The Murchison’. Its colour-scheme was dark, royal blue fuselage with silver wings, tail and stripes.
On 7 November 1934, it crashed, at Halls Creek after an engine failed on take-off. While VH-URY was extensively damaged, its pilot and four passengers escaped major injuries.
Horrie Miller worked onsite for some weeks to repair the aircraft before flying it back to the Maylands Aerodrome for a rebuild.
In 1936, VH-URY was damaged in a forced landing at Ord River Station.
In 1938, Airlines (WA) Pty Ltd purchased VH-URY from MMA for use on its Goldfields service and named it RMA Murchison
VH-URY impressed the RAAF in 1940 and became A34-6.
In 1941, it required extensive repairs after being damaged in a collision with a truck at Mount Gambier in South Australia.
A34-6 was sold to QANTAS Empire Airways Ltd. in 1943 for use by the Flying Doctor Service of Australia; it was re-registered as VH-URY and named ‘John Flynn’.
After being sold to TAA (Trans Australia Airlines) in 1949, it retained the name ‘John Flynn’ and continued to be used by the Flying Doctor Service.
It was written off in 1953 after a crash on takeoff from Cheviot Hills Station in Queensland. The flying doctor aboard the plane suffered head injuries, his wife and the pilot were killed, but the mother and child collected from Cheviot Hills Station were uninjured.
For more information, see our VH-URY Flickr Album
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