Guest Speaker:
Noel Phelan
Join us in Gordon Library Meeting Room 1
at 2 pm on Saturday 24 August 2024
As many of their operations were carried out in secrecy, the story of the humble Catalina flying boat – and its crucial place in our WWII history – is not well known.
These long range, multi-purpose aircraft could land almost anywhere, and were one of the mainstays in the Battle for Australia and the Pacific. It has been said that the PBY Catalinas were to Australia what the Spitfire was to Britain in the Battle for Britain.
Noel’s presentation will describe the history of the aircraft, and the many roles the Catalinas played in WWII, including air-sea rescue, convoy escort, supplying coast watchers and others (such as Z Force) behind enemy lines, as well as the strategic mine-laying operations by the Black Cats. And at the end of the war, Catalinas were involved in repatriating POWs from Japanese concentration camps.
Hear about the history and incredible feats of these versatile aircraft and the bravery of the men that flew them during the dark days of WWII.
About Noel Phelan
Noel has been a volunteer guide at the Maritime Museum for over 15 years, and is a volunteer at the Naval Historical Society where he has developed three Navy harbour cruises. He has also organised a speaker’s program for the Navy Historical Society. Noel recently fulfilled a boyhood dream to fly a WWII fighter, by flying a Spitfire at the Imperial War Museum, Duxford, UK.
As always, please keep an eye on our website in case of any last-minute changes.
The venue is Gordon Library Meeting Room No. 1, in the Old Gordon Public School, which adjoins the Gordon Library, 799 Pacific Highway, Gordon (corner Pacific Highway and Park Avenue).
It’s just a 5-minute walk from Gordon Station.
For a map and parking information, see our Contact page.
