Tocumwal Aviation Museum

Name: Tocumwal Aviation Museum
Address: 205 Burma Road, Tocumwal, NSW, 2714, AU
Telephone: +61358950602
Rating: 5

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Tocumwal Aviation Museum

To engage, educate and inspire visitors to foster an appreciation for Tocumwal’s unique and significant aviation history and heritage.
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18/06/2026

On this day, 19 June 1944. A Beaufighter of Number 5 Operational Training Unit, based at RAAF Station Tocumwal, crashed while undertaking air-to-ground gunnery practice at the air-to=ground gunnery range located on the property known as Kilnyana, approximately 25km east of Tocumwal.

Flying Officer James Houston (Pilot) and Pilot Officer Edward Levy (Navigator) were killed when their aircraft struck a tree while pulling out too low from a dive, damaging the aircraft and making it uncontrollable, resulting in a crash.

On the 25th of April 1987, a memorial to the crew was erected in what is known as the "Target Paddock" on the Kilnyana property by the Sloane family and officially unveiled by Tim Fischer, the local MP, along with remains of a propeller from the aircraft.

Flying Officer Houston and Pilot Officer Levy are interred in the Commonwealth War Graves section of the Tocumwal General Cemetery.

Discover more of Tocumwal's SECRET past at the Tocumwal Aviation Museum, open from 10am daily at the Tocumwal Historic Aerodrome.

14/06/2026

If you've ever wondered what's under the skin of Tocumwal's iconic timber hangars, this post from the B 24 Liberator Memorial - Werribee gives you some idea of the complex matrix of timber under the facade.

This particular hangar, of the same construction as those at Tocumwal, is located at the former WW2 airfield at Werribee and is in the process of being dismantled and relocated by Melbourne Water to become the future home of the B-24 Memorial.

This is a hugely ambitious project and the first time in 84 years that the bare structure of one of these hangars has been exposed.

04/06/2026

An insight into one of the training missions undertaken by crews of Number7 Operational Training Unit at RAAF Station Tocumwal.

The below Operation Form, recently provided by the son of Flight Lieutenant Victor Fitcher (B-24 Pilot), provides details on training exercise number 9 for B-24 crews on the 14th of January 1945. The flight was a formation of B-24s, taking off from RAAF Station Tocumwal, flying in formation to Cape Otway, undertaking 30 minutes of "splash gunnery" in Bass Strait, then flying via Benalla to the Berrigan bombing range for 30 minutes of bombing practice before returning to RAAF Station Tocumwal.

The flight path was approximately 1,300km and was indicative of a training flight during the latter part of the 8 week operational conversion course.

We're extremely gratefuly to Victor's son, Alex, for visiting us and sharing his father's service history with us, particularly the time he spent with Number 7 Operational Training Unit, RAAF Station Tocumwal.

Discover more of Tocumwal's SECRET past at the Tocumwal Aviation Museum, open from 10am daily at the Tocumwal Historic Aerodrome.

27/05/2026

Repurposed and relocated engineering, then and now.

Known as the Igloo Hangar, this dome shaped hangar was originally constructed in 1944 at RAAF Station Tocumwal for use by Number 7 Operational Training Unit. The hangar was located adjacent to where the museum is today.

Following the end of the war, and the transition of the base to aircraft storage and disposal facility, Hangar 2 was used to store surplus aircraft including B-24 Liberators, Beaufighters, Wirraways and Oxfords.

Following the closure of the base in Ocotber 1960, the Igloo Hangar sat abandonded. In December 1960, R.J. Cornish & Co of Cobram contacted the Department of Interior wishing to purchase the building for their orchard operations. Over the next 3 years the hangar was used to store grain and hay.

In 1963 the Department declared the hangar surplus and it went to auction. Ultimately R.J. Cornish & Co. were successful in bidding on the building and relocated it to their site at Cottons Road in Cobram East to be used as a packing shed. Over 60 years later, the Igloo Hangar remains in use at the Cornish orchard.

Discover more of Tocumwal's SECRET past at the Tocumwal Aviation Museum, open from 10am daily at the Tocumwal Historic Aerodrome.

07/05/2026

Abandoned engineering, then and now.

Building Number 110 was the RAAF Station Tocumwal Motor Transport building, located within the Depot Area of the base.

The base had hundreds of vehicles to service and maintain, including trucks, jeeps, cars and motorbikes. The workshop expanded over time as the number of personnel and vehicles continued to grow until the peak of operations in mid-1945 and included two underground petrol tanks for refuelling all those vehicles.

Only the concrete slab, incorporating workshop pits, remains today as a reminder of what once stood there.

Discover more of Tocumwal's SECRET past at the Tocumwal Aviation Museum, open from 10am daily at the Tocumwal Historic Aerodrome.

28/04/2026

Not quite abandoned engineering.

The concrete water tower located on the corner of Hennessy St and Emily St was constructed for the Tocumwal Air Depot project during April and May 1942 and has a capacity of 300,000 Imperial Gallons which is about 1.36 million litres...that would fill about half an Olympic size swimming pool.

The initial purpose of this water tower was primarily to provide water to the 5,500 personnel who lived in the Camp Area. The tower served the various Officer and Airman's messes (catering), fire services, and numerous toilet and shower blocks located within this area. Water from this tower also served the Operational Training Unit area (where the museum and terminal buildings are located today).

Ultimately this tower was used to supplement the town's water original supply tower (located adjacent to the Recreation Reserve) and capacity was expanded with the addition of a larger steel tank.

Discover more of Tocumwal's SECRET past at the Tocumwal Aviation Museum open from 10am daily.

24/04/2026

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them

At the Tocumwal Aviation Museum, we’re proud to showcase Tocumwal’s significant wartime history and heritage, to ensure current and future generations remember the service and sacrifices of our service personnel.

Lest we forget.

14/03/2026

Then and now, Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation CA-12 Boomerang A46-54 in storage at RAAF Station Tocumwal and now at Toowoomba Airport, where it completed it's first post-restoration flight this week.

Following the end of WW2, Boomerang A64-46 was received by Care and Maintenance Unit Tocumwal for storage pending disposal. That process took nearly 10 years. In 1955 the aircraft was sold to R. H. Grant Trading Company who were the primary contractors engaged by the Disposals Commission to scrap surplus aircraft stored at Tocumwal.

Owner Greg Batts has been restoring the aircraft over many years and the first flight has been a long time in the making. It is incredible to see an aircraft which was stored for disposal at Tocumwal in 1946, return to the air 80 years later. Hopefully we'll see Boomerang A46-54 return to Tocumwal at a future airshow.

Images via Tocumwal Aviation Museum collection and Lenn Bayliss.

Discover more of Tocumwal's SECRET past at the Tocumwal Aviation Museum, open from 10am daily at the Tocumwal Historic Aerodrome.

06/03/2026

Abandoned Engineering - Target Paddock.

On the eastern side of the Berrigan-Mulwala Road is a property called Kilnyana. During the war, 4600 acres of this and neighbouring properties were taken over by the Royal Australian Air Force for an air to ground gunnery range. Initially for use by Number 5 Operational Training Unit, it was also used by Number 7 Operational Training Unit and remained active until the early 1950s.

Standing alone in what is known as Target Paddock, there are two concrete structures. These were the air to ground range huts, used by personnel for protection from fire while aircraft used the range. They would also observe firing runs and communicate with the aircraft on accuracy and fall of shot.

Discover more of Tocumwal's SECRET past at the Tocumwal Aviation Museum, open from 10am daily.

** Please note, Kilnyana is private property, please refrain from entering private property **

21/02/2026

One of our primary visions when we created the museum was to create a place where families of veterans who served at RAAF Station Tocumwal could learn more about their service history.

We were recently contacted by Lisa who was researching her grandfather's service history at RAAF Station Tocumwal. Her grandfather, Laurence Westwood, had a long service career, from the late 1930s to the mid 1960s. Laurence spent many years at RAAF Station Tocumwal, from 1944 when he was first posted to Number 7 Aircraft Depot, through to 1950. In 1959 he was once again posted to Tocumwal as the senior airman at the base and was here to see the closure of the base in October 1960 - we even found him in a photo of the closing ceremony and parade we have in our collection!

Laurence's career saw the Air Force transition from relatively simple aircraft of the 30's, the rapid advancement of technology during WW2 and the introduction of the first jet trainers, fighters and bombers. He was also at Tocumwal during the peak of operations and activity during WW2 and it's transition to a storage and disposal facility for aircraft of WW2 and the Korean War.

Discover more of Tocumwal's SECRET past at the Tocumwal Aviation Museum, open from 10am daily at the Tocumwal Historic Aerodrome.

Address

205 Burma Road
Tocumwal, NSW
2714

Telephone

+61358950602

Website

https://www.tocumwalaviationmuseum.com.au/

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