Banner Tow This Morning

[Grahame Hutchison]

This morning around 1145 I saw a southbound aircraft off Mona Vale towing a letter advertising banner similar to those seen along the Northern Beaches in the late 60s or early 70s. The aircraft looked lite a tail dragger.

I was driving at the time and could not see what the ad was for, however it brought back memories from Jan 5 1969 (I checked the log book) when I was holding for takeoff in Cessna 150 VH-KPQ at Hoxton Park, waiting for a Cessna to do a low pass to pick up the banner.

They used two tall poles on the grass area at Hoxton Park, with a wire between them connected to the banner, which was folded on the ground. A wire and hook trailing from the aircraft would pickup the cross wire between the tops of the poles, and the banner would shoot vertically into the air at a great pace. A couple of passes were needed some times. When they returned they would do a low pass and drop all the banner rig onto the grass.

I was just interested to know where they may have done the banner pick for the flight today, probably not Bankstown, Camden maybe ?

These were the good old days when Eric Greathead would fly the Mustang and Sea Fury out of the Illawarra Hanger at Bankstown.

[Nigel C]

Curtis Aviation at Camden used to do banner towing (and possibly endorsements too???) in the Citabria many years ago when I was learning to fly (as per Adam's post below, maybe it was the Maule? There's been a few beers between then and now!). It was spectacular to watch them pick the banner up.

There is nothing on their website to suggest they still do this type of flying. IIRC, it was former owner Steve Curtis who did the flying on the occasions that I saw them do it.

[Adam P.]

I've seen Jim dropping off banners, flying along the grass runway at CN, in the Maule every now and then

[Robert Zweck]

I think there is a fair bit of drag with a banner and you probably need a minimum of a Cessna 182 to do it, I couldn't imagine a Cessna 172 being suitable.

There is banner towing around AAMI Stadium here in Adelaide at most matches during the footy season, they use a C182 flying fairly slow and with about 10 degrees flap set.

For many years they used a Callair A-9