A Douglas A-20 Havoc bomber aircraft used by the 5th United States Army Air Force (USAAF) during the Second World War has taken residence at the Papua New Guinea National Museum and Art Gallery (NMAG) in Port Moresby.
Nicknamed Hell’N Pelican II, the aircraft was returned to Papua New Guinea by the Royal Australian Air Force on board the Australian Defence Vessel (ADV) Reliant.
The delivery of the aircraft recognises Australia and Papua New Guinea’s shared history, with the aircraft being a permanent representation of the long-standing cooperation and close defence relationship forged in our shared suffering, tenacity and sacrifice during the Second World War.
“The friendship between PNG and Australia means a lot not only to the people of PNG but also to the PNG National Museum and Art Gallery,” said Terence Moka, President of the PNG National Museum and Art Gallery Board of Trustees.
“We accept with thanks the gift of the new heritage aviation shelter, and the return of the historical Havoc aircraft, and look forward to our future close relationship with the Royal Australian Air Force.”
In 1944, the aircraft was assigned to USAAF pilot Second Lieutenant Charles Anderson. During a mission the Hell’N Pelican II hit bad weather and made a forced landing near Amaiamon village in Madang Province, PNG. The pilot and the other crew member, USAAF gunner Sergeant John McKenna, managed to escape.
The aircraft was hidden by vegetation for the next three decades until it was located by an Australian Defence Force team, transported to Australia and restored by a specialist team from the Royal Australian Air Force.
The Hell’N Pelican II had been on display in the Aviation Heritage Centre at RAAF Base Amberley since 1996 until a suitable location to permanently house the aircraft in PNG was established.
The 5th USAAF was established in Townsville on February 5, 1942, when it was moved to Australia as part of a transformation of Garbutt Airfield to become a major staging post for combat missions.
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The Hell’N Pelican II was returned to Papua New Guinea by the Royal Australian Air Force on board the Australian Defence Vessel (ADV) Reliant.
For further information, including access to related materials, please contact the Australian High Commission media team: +675 7090 0100