Point Cook sale

By Rebecca Codey

AT A GLANCE

Point Cook will be sold this financial year. The Commonwealth retains the RAAF Museum and a RAAF Heritage Precinct. The precinct incorporates buildings, hangars and aprons on the airfield side of Williams Road. The airfield remains an operating airfield for civilian use and for RAAF Museum historic flying displays. The RAAF Museum will have the room to expand its display area. Many of the old Bellman hangars, the cadets quarters, married quarters, workshops, stores sheds, the seaplane jetty and other historic assets in the areas to be sold will be included on the Victorian Heritage Register.

THE Federal Government has announced the freehold sale this financial year of RAAF Base Point Cook, Australia’s oldest air base, but the heritage of the Air Force will not be lost with the Commonwealth retaining ownership of the RAAF Museum and a RAAF Heritage Precinct.

The decision, announced by Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Defence Fran Bailey, follows 12 months of consultation.

CAF Air Marshal Angus Houston has assured the men and women of the Air Force that Point Cook, which he described as the Service’s “ancestral home”, would never be forgotten.

“We are one of the oldest air forces in the world with a strong history of service and sacrifice,” AIRMSHL Houston said.

“Our history is important to us, and Point Cook holds a symbolic place in the history of the Royal Australian Air Force – it is the foundation on which we have built the organisation we are today.

“We will continue to build on that past, and move forward into the future with pride.”

AIRMSHL Houston said the excision of a RAAF Museum and separate RAAF Heritage Precinct would ensure that tangible reminders of the past endure.

Ms Bailey said the move would allow the Defence family and the broader community to continue to enjoy these valuable facilities.

The Department of Defence established the Project Steering Committee (PSC) in 2001 to oversee the disposal of RAAF Base Point Cook after it was assessed as surplus to Defence requirements. Chaired by Don Hayward, the PSC consulted with the local community and relevant government agencies.

A plan that ensured Point Cook would continue as an operating airfield, that the RAAF Museum would remain at Point Cook, and the heritage aspects of the base would be preserved had the in-principle support of the Federal, State and local governments throughout the consultation process.

According to CAF, the Museum precinct will essentially encompass the buildings, hangars and aprons on the airfield side of Williams Road.

He said the majority of hangars and buildings within the precinct had the potential to be a showcase that would be open to the public in the future.

Through consolidating archives and using dedicated storage facilities at Laverton, the RAAF Museum will have the room to expand its display area.

The RAAF Heritage Precinct will include the Sergeants’ Mess, Sergeants’ accommodation buildings, the Australian Flying Corps memorial, the former Base Squadron headquarters, the flagpole, dais and the parade ground.

“Retention of many of the buildings in this precinct could well be justified on heritage grounds alone, however the intention is to continue to make use of them in support of the Australian Air Force Cadets,” AIRMSHL Houston said. “This provides a very important link between our illustrious past and our bright future.”

Minor refurbishment of some of these buildings will be necessary to meet OH&S requirements.

“Many of the old Bellman hangars, the cadets quarters, married quarters, workshops, stores sheds, the seaplane jetty and other historic assets in the areas to be sold will also be afforded protection by their inclusion on the Victorian Heritage Register for the Point Cook RAAF Complex,” AIRMSHL Houston said.

Point Cook’s airfield will remain as an operating airfield for both civilian use and for RAAF Museum historic flying displays.

A public information day will be held at Point Cook on Saturday, October 4, from 10am to 4pm. This is an opportunity for the public to review the project activity to date, the preliminary information regarding the sale process, the site’s environment and heritage protection measures, and the State and local government planning controls.

Museum looks to a confident future

By Rebecca Codey

IT’S business as usual for the RAAF Museum Point Cook with news the Museum and heritage aspects of the base will not be sold.

Museum Director David Gardner said employees and volunteers alike were pleased the Commonwealth Government will retain ownership of the RAAF Museum Precinct and a RAAF Heritage Precinct in recognition of the site’s important heritage value.

“We now know what the future holds and we look forward to continuing to preserve and promote the history of the Royal Australian Air Force,” Mr Gardner said.

He said the consultation process was transparent from the outset, therefore the impending sale of Point Cook was well known.

Mr Gardner also said staff could carry on with confidence following the announcement. He believes the excision of the Museum and other heritage aspects from the freehold sale of Point Cook is proof the Air Force is serious about preserving its heritage.

CAF Air Marshal Angus Houston expressed his support for the Museum, saying it “was doing an excellent job in ensuring the preservation of vital aspects of our history and will continue to do so”.

The RAAF Museum comprises 400,000 objects, 1 million photographs and 4 million negatives, making it the largest collection of material relating to Australia’s rich military aviation history.

It boasts more than 100,000 visitors each year and more than 80 volunteers dedicated to the preservation of the Air Force’s heritage.

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