Old Bar Airfield is a heritage-listed airfield located off Old Bar Road at

Old Bar Old Bar is a coastal town in New South Wales, Australia in Mid-Coast Council. It lies around east of Taree on the Mid North Coast, and around north of Sydney. Geography Old Bar is on the southern side of the mouth of the Manning River. ...

Mid-Coast Council MidCoast Council is a local government area (LGA) located in the Mid North Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. The council was formed on 12 May 2016 through a merger of the Gloucester Shire, Great Lakes and City of Greater Taree councils. ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, Australia. It was built from in 1925 by George Bunyan and family. It is also known as Old Bar Airstrip and Old Bar Aerodrome. It was added to the

New South Wales State Heritage Register The New South Wales State Heritage Register, also known as NSW State Heritage Register, is a heritage list of places in the state of New South Wales, Australia, that are protected by New South Wales legislation, generally covered by the Heritag ...

on 25 February 2000.

History

Old Bar Airfield was constructed in the mid 1920s by George Bunyan as part of the fledgling air mail and aerial passenger services following the

Commonwealth Government The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Like other Westminster-style systems of government, the Australian Government i ...

's decision to call tenders to award contracts for these services. 44 Aerodromes and 90 Emergency Landing Grounds were established in the years to 1926 and Old Bar was the main refueling stop between

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

and

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

. The airfield was designated as an "aerodrome" on 6 November 1930 by the Department of Defence. A major historical event was the Air Pageant held on 15 and 16 November 1930 with 35 planes including the "Canberra" owned by Sir

Charles Kingsford Smith Sir Charles Edward Kingsford Smith (9 February 18978 November 1935), nicknamed Smithy, was an Australian aviation pioneer. He piloted the first transpacific flight and the first flight between Australia and New Zealand. Kingsford Smith was b ...

and the "City of Lismore" piloted by Captain

Charles Ulm Charles Thomas Philippe Ulm (18 October 1898 – 3 December 1934) was a pioneer Australian aviator. He partnered with Charles Kingsford Smith in achieving a number of aviation firsts, serving as Kingsford Smith's co-pilot on the first transpaci ...

. The pageant featured "joyrides" typical of the early aviation "barnstorming" tradition. The airfield was the refueling point for Kingsford-Smith and Ulm's Australian National Airways till mid 1931. From July, 1931

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

Airways operated a bi-weekly air service between Sydney and Brisbane stopping at Lismore, Grafton,

Coffs Harbour Coffs Harbour is a city on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, Australia, north of Sydney, and south of Brisbane. It is one of the largest urban centres on the North Coast, with a population of 78,759 as per 2021 census. The Gumbaynggirr ...

and Old Bar. The

Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

utilised the airstrip for refueling from the mid to late 1930s with regular visits of up to six Hawker Demons at Old Bar. For twelve months during 1939-40, the RAAF stationed a Wackett Gannet at Old Bar to undertake coastal surveying and mapping. The Old Bar Aerodrome was designated an emergency landing field for the RAAF during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. The Old Bar Airstrip was visited constantly by the key Australian aviation pioneers including Kingsford-Smith, Ulm,

Jean Batten Jane Gardner Batten (15 September 1909 – 22 November 1982), commonly known as Jean Batten, was a New Zealand aviator, making a number of record-breaking solo flights across the world. She is notable for completing the first solo flight fro ...

and

Nancy Bird Walton Nancy Bird Walton, (16 October 1915 – 13 January 2009) was a pioneering Australian aviator, known as "The Angel of the Outback", and the founder and patron of the Australian Women Pilots' Association. In the 1930s, she became a fully ...

. The Airfield was closed by Greater Taree City Council in February 1989 but was subsequently re-opened on the order of the then state Minister for Natural Resources, the Hon.

Ian Causley Ian Raymond Causley (19 October 1940 – 27 April 2020) was an Australian politician. He was a National Party of Australia, Nationals member of the Australian House of Representatives, representing the Division of Page, New South Wales from 1996 ...

. On 1 January, 1995 Greater Taree City Council removed runway markers, flight strip markers and the wind sock, effectively closing the airfield. The markers and windsock are presently stored at

Taree Airport Taree Airport is an airport northeast of the city of Taree, New South Wales, Australia. Taree is on the Mid North Coast, less than a four-hour drive from Sydney. The airport no longer maintains any scheduled services. Airport facilities Tare ...

. Prior to the site's heritage listing in February 2000, the council proposed to convert the airstrip site to playing fields and a skateboarding rink, with only token "special occasion" landings on what would become sporting fields. In 2000 a 1.2m high post and wire fence 200m long was constructed at the airstrip's southern end. The 60m wide southern end is also to be fenced, as required by Council's insurers. This will allow the airstrip to be used for landings and take-offs without risk of any vehicle or person crossing the airstrip at the critical moment.Heritage Branch report, 20/8/2000

Description

Old Bar Airstrip is located near Old Bar Beach and is now surrounded by recreation facilities, caravan park and residential subdivision. The Old Bar airfield is situated at the southern end of Old Bar Park immediately west of Old Bar Beach and adjoining Old Bar Road. While in their beginnings such fields initially accepted aircraft landings from a range of directions the terrain and remnant native vegetation suggest strongly that the current airstrip developed early in the airfield's history. The airstrip is grassed on a compacted clay base, follows a north-south alignment and is approximately 675 metres in length by an average 60 metres in width. Adjoining the airstrip to the west is an area of native wet heath vegetation containing the vulnerable plant species, Austral toadflax, (Thesium australe) and to the north and west are native eucalypt woodlands. Various ephemera such as markers, fuel

shed A shed is typically a simple, single-story roofed structure that is used for hobbies, or as a workshop in a back garden or on an allotment. Sheds vary considerably in their size and complexity of construction, from simple open-sided ones de ...

and windsock have been removed over the years. Of these the windsock and runway and flight strip markers are being stored at Taree Airport. A concrete slab at the south eastern end of the runway may be the

foundation Foundation may refer to: * Foundation (nonprofit), a type of charitable organization ** Foundation (United States law), a type of charitable organization in the U.S. ** Private foundation, a charitable organization that, while serving a good cause ...

slab for the 1940s pump (National Trust of Australia (NSW) 1998) It was reported to be in excellent physical condition with medium archaeological potential as at 19 July 1999. It was believed that the underground fuel tank may still be on site and intact; however, subsequent investigations have found no trace and local informants recalled that they were removed sometime in the 1960s.. There may also be remnants of the former fuel pump. Old Bar Airfield is largely intact. It was always a simple grassed airstrip in a native vegetation setting and it remains in this condition to the present day. Ephemera such as the windsock and fuel tanks have been re-sited but the windsock is in storage and could be reinstated.

Heritage listing

The Old Bar Airfield has national historic significance as a rare intact and representative example of a key "aerodrome" from the earliest days of Australian aviation which has direct and important links with the nation's major aviation pioneers Sir Charles Kingsford-Smith, Captain C. T. P. Ulm, Jean Batten and Nancy Bird Walton. The Airfield was a vital component in the development of Australia's air mail and aerial passenger services, was the site of an historic 1930 air pageant and was utilised by the RAAF during the Second World War for refueling and coastal mapping and surveying. The Airfield has significance for its ability to contribute to an understanding of the cultural history of Australia's earliest development of an aviation industry including air mail, passenger services and associated joy flight/aerial pageantry activity. The Old Bar Airfield has social significance to the aviation community throughout Australia and also to the local community particularly older residents who have witnessed the town's growth in association with the airfield and who for many years have campaigned for the Airfield's permanent protection. The Airfield has high aesthetic significance when viewed from the air because of its coastal setting immediately adjoining the coastline within a bushland setting and with the backdrop of the

Manning River Manning River (Birpai language, Biripi: ''Boolumbahtee''), an open and Breakwater (structure), trained mature wind wave, wave dominated estuary#Lagoon-type or bar-built, barrier estuary, is located in the Northern Tablelands and Mid North Coast ...

Estuary. The Airfield has landmark qualities for the town of Old Bar Old Bar Airfield was listed on the

on 25 February 2000 having satisfied the following criteria. The place is important in demonstrating the course, or pattern, of cultural or natural history in New South Wales. The item is historically significant because of its key role in the development of Australia's air mail and aerial passenger services, its direct association with aviation pioneers Sir Charles Kingsford-Smith, Captain C.T.P Ulm, Jean Batten and Nancy Bird Walton, as the site of an historic air pageant in 1930 and its military use during World War II as a refueling and coastal mapping and surveying station for the RAAF. The place is important in demonstrating aesthetic characteristics and/or a high degree of creative or technical achievement in New South Wales. The item has high aesthetic significance when viewed from the air because of its setting immediately adjoining the coastline, within an area of native heath vegetation, fringed by eucalypt woodland and with the backdrop of the Manning Estuary and from the aerial perspective the airfield is the predominant landmark with strong sensory appeal in the town of Old Bar. The place has strong or special association with a particular community or cultural group in New South Wales for social, cultural or spiritual reasons. The item is socially significant because both the local community and the aviation community throughout Australia have recognised and are directly associated with its long history and have campaigned vigorously over many years for its recognition and conservation. The place has potential to yield information that will contribute to an understanding of the cultural or natural history of New South Wales. The item has major significance for its ability to contribute to an understanding of the cultural history of Australia's earliest development of an aviation industry and its role in air mail, aerial passenger services and joy flight/aerial pageantry activity. The place possesses uncommon, rare or endangered aspects of the cultural or natural history of New South Wales. Old Bar Airfield is a very rare example of an historic airfield in a coastal town setting, similar airfields have been upgraded with tarmac and facilities or have been closed for redevelopment. The place is important in demonstrating the principal characteristics of a class of cultural or natural places/environments in New South Wales. Old Bar Airfield represents the typical grassed airfield of the 1920s/1930s that were utilised by Australia's newly founded aviation industry. Its coastal setting with river backdrop, its overall size, runway length and low grassed appearance are compatible with and reminiscent of the 1920s/1930s Kingsford-Smith Airport in Sydney.(National Trust of Australia (NSW) 1998)

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