G-APXX/"
VH-FDT" de Havilland DHA.3 Drover II ..arrived 05/08/13 from Wycombe Air Park
"VH-FTD" de Havilland Aircraft DHA-3 Drover Mk.2 SWWAPS, Lasham Airport, 22/11/2006.
Drover c/n 5014 was built at Bankstown Airport, NSW and delivered to Qantas Empire Airways as VH-EAZ in July 1952. Officially re-registered VH-EAS in August 1958 in a re-allocation of their fleet, it didn't have the registration applied and was stored pending sale.
Air Navigation & Trading Co. Ltd. (Blackpool, UK) purchased the aircraft in December 1959 and it was registered G-APXX.
It finally arrived by road at Blackpool Airport from Liverpool Docks in September 1961, still in Qantas colours as VH-EAZ.
It remained dis-assembled at Blackpool until May 1967 when it was roaded to the British Historic Air Museum at Southend.
Initially displayed in Qantas colours, it was painted in Royal Flying Doctors Service livery as "VH-FDT" in early 1973.
Sold to Doug Arnold in 1983 following the closure of the Southend museum, it was stored at Blackbushe. In July 1985 it was loaned to the Second World War Aircraft Preservation Society (SWWAPS) at Lasham Airport, remaining on display there until the end of 2009. It was dismantled in 2010 and moved to Wycombe Air Park for storage.
In August 2013 it was acquired by the South Wales Aviation Museum and is now stored at St. Athan pending restoration.
