An Aviation Journey: And a Love Affair with the Boeing 747

By Peter Marosszéky FRAeS

From the end of the nineteenth century to the beginning of the twenty first century spanning a period of 168 years and growing the world has seen an incredible advancement in technology associated with man’s efforts to conquer flight and ultimately space.

The first ascent of a hot air balloon powered by a propeller to the latest development in rocketry and the intervening discoveries and developments in between one has to be in awe of not only what has transpired but also the speed at which these occurred.

This book reflects a period of 60 years that the writer has experienced in that time, the changes in technology and the way we have adapted to these changes is inspiring resulting in a world where the yoke of distance and time has been harnessed.

The greatest challenges that now face the aviation world is the ability to teach and understand the new and in some cases the old technologies to the young aviators. Airlines and aircraft operators are faced with a constant challenge of not only obtaining the right people for the myriad of tasks but also to provide them with the appropriate levels of training regulatory compliance.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris AU
• Release date: Jul 19, 2023
• ISBN: 9798369491539

Book preview

Copyright © 2023 by Peter Marosszéky, FRAeS. 853502

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Xlibris

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Library of Congress Control Number: 2023908889

Rev. date: 05/15/2023

CONTENTS

Foreword

Dedication

Acknowledgements

Chapter 1 Introduction to the Family

Chapter 2 Qantas Airways Ltd

Chapter 3 Pan American World Airways Inc

Chapter 4 American Airlines Inc.

Chapter 5 Return to Pan American World Airways Inc

Chapter 6 United Airlines Inc.

Chapter 7 Ansett International Airlines Ltd

Chapter 8 Return to Qantas Airways Ltd

Chapter 9 University of NSW

Chapter 10 Aerospace Developments Pty Ltd

Chapter 11 Australian Army

Chapter 12 Historic Aircraft Restoration Society (HARS)

Chapter 13 The Adventure Continues . . .

Travel Log - 1968–2017

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FOREWORD

There are many interesting stories of people in all walks of life, be it personal, professional, or just about their lives. The following is my story on how my world developed from an early age.

The first powered flight occurred in 1852 by Henri Giffard, a Frenchman, in a Dirigible powered by a 3HP steam engine, then in 1903, the Wright Brothers flew at Kitty Hawk in a monoplane called the Wright Flyer powered by a four-cylinder water-cooled four-stroke internal combustion engine.

Of these 168 years of flight, I have been privileged to have participated for 60 of those years in aviation.

This book provides an insight into the life of an aviator/engineer and how his career evolved from a migrant refugee into an Australian citizen and became an engineer in one of the most demanding and exacting industries—aviation.

How it all started and its genesis is described in chapter 1, where the family background is the impetus to enter into the field of aircraft engineering and flight operations.

I have included my family life as it was a most rewarding contribution to my approach and understanding of human nature. Being raised in the bush with very limited wealth and resources was humbling and made me appreciate what we had.

On reflection, the opportunities presented to the family were remarkable, given we did not bring any special qualifications, except Dad’s pilot’s licence as a graduate officer from the Ludowika Military Academy in Budapest. Mum’s graduation diploma from the Pápa Reformed Church Technical High School (she was the only girl in the school) had topped the year and came first in a class of 42 to start a new life with. Australia was truly a land of opportunity and hope that put us all in good stead.

The defining moment of my life was the introduction into service of the Boeing 747 series aircraft in 1969, with Pan American World Airways Inc. This was the start of a 51-year experience with this magnificent aircraft, which continues today, and gave my life a special meaning and, I daresay, a privilege to be part of its history. How time flies. Tempus fugit.

DEDICATION

I would like to dedicate this work to the memory of my mother and father, who endured difficulties not always appreciated nor understood at the time. They stand as the pillars of my life.

I also dedicate this to my family and hope that the memories will provide satisfaction and understanding of how this family evolved.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to thank my young brother Dani for his patience and perseverance in searching and providing the photos; my brothers András and János who contributed to my work by critiquing and providing edits where it was needed; and my longtime friend and fellow colleague Doug Nancarrow, MRAeS, who has a distinguished career in aviation as an editor, pilot, and communicator and is also the general manager of the Royal Aeronautical Society of Australia.

I would also like to acknowledge Capt Richard de Crespigny, AM FRAeS, for his expertise and insights into the recording of information and presenting it as the written word.

I would also like to acknowledge a colleague, Les Fisher, for the assistance in compilation and printing of the draft manuscript.

A special thanks to my wife Dagnija for her tolerance and understanding for the commitment I put into producing this document.

CHAPTER 1

Introduction to the Family

The good fortune throughout my life has been manifested by many serendipitous events, starting with the family’s migration to Australia primarily because of economic necessity and forward thinking on behalf of our parents Jenó and Viktoria Marosszéky. It was a very adventurous move and fraught with difficulties associated with migration after the Second World War from war-ravaged Europe and the leaving of a homeland that is steeped in history with very close and well-developed family bonds.

This came about because some happenstance and opportunities presented themselves in the aftermath of the war, and the desperate times made life and existence extremely difficult, especially for a family with very young children born on the road, so to speak, in Germany.

I was born on 7 January 1946 in the township of Bád Aibling, in the middle of a very deep winter. There were 2 m of snow outside the farm barn where Mum and Dad were billeted.

Mum was about to give birth to me, so Dad went off to find a friend who was an obstetrician. Unfortunately, because of snow build-up, he did not make it back in time, so the farmer’s wife delivered me. Bád Aibling was a small spa town with Roman baths, hence the name Bad, on the main road between Münich and Salzburg. It also had a large airfield, where the surrendering Luftwaffe had to demobilise their aircraft.

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Mum and I, Hilperting – 1946

Soon after this, we moved to Hilperting, where my younger brother András was born on 17 February 1947. The need to relocate again came from the need to find work and suitable living quarters, and this was to the town of Wurzburg, where my sister Viktoria was born on 18 October 1948.

At the end of the war, Dad, being a pilot, felt he had to relocate to the west to escape the spectre of falling under communist-controlled Eastern Europe. He was also joined by some of his brothers and cousins.

My parents, who were from military families, came from Hungary. These families were to endure the brunt of the terror of communism where they controlled parts of Europe, including Hungary. Our parents made the decision to flee Hungary after the war, eventually deciding to migrate to Australia with two of Dad’s brothers and three cousins, along with their young families.

The decision on the part of Dad was made in the town of Wurzburg, where he happened upon a ‘queue in the street’ outside the Australian consulate, where the Australian government was seeking suitable migrants to come to Australia to work.

Dad joined the queue, and when it was his time to be interviewed, obvious questions were asked, specifically relating to military background and any possibilities of war crimes committed. This was dealt with, and when Dad revealed his military service and his career as a pilot and he presented his credentials, the interviewing officer was impressed and suggested to Dad that Australia was looking for experienced pilots.

With his qualifications and experience accepted, they issued him with a travel authority for passage as a migrant for the family. Also, a letter of introduction to Qantas Airways was offered as the airline was in need of experienced pilots. Dad consulted with Mum, and they decided to jump at the chance, despite the fact that Australia was a mystery to them.

Dad was actually looking for an opportunity to go to the USA, Canada, or South America to work as a pilot. However, this was an unexpected genuine job offer. This also resulted in his brothers Emil and Alexander, who were also in the military, to apply for migration; Emil was also a pilot, and Alexander was a naval officer, a captain. Dad’s three cousins, Daniel Ügray, Emil Vásárhelyi and wife Bórcsa, and Lászlo Takáts, along with their young families, also signed up to migrate.

These families were to come out on different ships, some before and some after our journey.

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Capt Alexander Marosszéky – 1943

The families, along with hundreds of other refugees, relocated to Naples in Italy, where they embarked on their journey.

It was not any easy journey. There were young children on board, and many of whom suffered and died because of a combination of lack of medical aid, poor food, infections, and disease. And as it turned out, there was no doctor as the individual who claimed he was medico did so under false pretences.

My parents felt the same level of opportunities in this new country, as well as the USA, Canada or South America were an unknown quantity due to the number of migrants wanting to go there. With sponsored passage, they travelled aboard the US transport ship SS Gen R M Blatchford, a liberty ship designed to carry troops and cargo during the war.

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US transport liberty ship, Gen R M Blatchford

Arrival in Australia

For us, this was not only an adventure but also a new world. We arrived in Darling Harbour, Sydney, on 17 February 1950, third birthday of András. From there, we boarded a train at Central Railway and transported to Bathurst, where a migrant camp with old army Nissen huts had been set up.

Dad’s brothers were transferred to Greta Camp near the town of Maitland. Dad’s cousin Daniel also went to Greta Camp; whereas, Emil and Ferdinand were disembarked in Melbourne and sent to the Bonegilla migrant camp.

Our family was relocated to Macquarie Fields near Sydney and offered housing in a corrugated tin shed next to the Georges River. The dwelling had a dirt/clay floor with hessian sacks covering the walls and newspapers spackled onto the sacks. There was an open fireplace used for cooking and heating in winter and wall dividers for two bedrooms and an open living-come-kitchen area. We were told this was a temporary arrangement until a more suitable place became available.

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From left: Cousin Dani, Cousin Eva, Sister Viktoria, Brother Andy, and myself – 1951

The area was rich in wildlife, especially birds, snakes, and lizards, a totally new experience for Mum and Dad. However, our concerns for safety were somewhat allayed as the property came with a feral cat, a very large and overgrown domestic cat born and raised in the bush.

These cats were renowned hunters and could be quite vicious. This one was well known by the property owner, Mrs Stanford, who gave us instructions on how to deal with it. It was a large cat.

The cat was not to be petted or cuddled because it would strike you. However, it would regularly kill a snake or lizard and bring it into the house for some sort of recognition. The dead animal would be placed under the bed, and we could not retrieve it until ‘Donny Cica’ (Hungarian for pussycat), as we named the cat, would leave and go wandering in the bush. We would then pick up the dead reptile, mostly red-bellied black snakes or brown snakes, and place it on a large ‘meat ants’ nest, where the dead creature would be completely consumed in a day or two.

The other benefit of this cat’s protection was from packs of feral wild dogs as they had been dumped in the bush. Donny Cica would make very short work of these dogs, so they rarely bothered us.

Dad’s Job-Hunting

Dad, very shortly thereafter, went to Qantas in George Street, Sydney, with a letter of introduction and job offer to Qantas, where he was promptly rejected on the basis that there were hundreds of wartime Australian pilots out of work, so why offer a position to a person who was on the ‘other’ side?

This was humiliating to Dad, who found it incomprehensible that he could be so misled in his quest for work. ‘This is not how an officer gentleman should be treated’.

To pay back the cost of the passage from Naples, Italy, Dad had to accept a labourer’s job on the Warragamba Dam site for three years; after which time, he would be released from his indenture, and he could seek employment wherever he chose.

After the three years, he approached the Royal Aero Club at Bankstown Aerodrome seeking work, where they offered him a job undertaking tarmac duties. He promptly applied to the local Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) to obtain a pilot’s licence as he knew this was essential if he had any desire to continue flying. This, he succeeded in and almost instantaneously as the airman examiner declared Dad’s flying skills far exceeded his own.

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Dad at Bankstown Airport – 1953

Dad’s brother Emil also applied for a pilot’s licence and was rejected on medical grounds, and unfortunately, this somehow was reflected on Dad’s licence as this disqualified him from a commercial pilot’s licence. This error was later corrected, but it was too late, and as Dad had to support the family, it was too expensive to pursue.

Dad received his flight crew pilot’s licence, no 7088, on 12 May 1953. These were very difficult circumstances that lived with Dad for the rest of his life. He was already in his 40s.

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In his efforts to return to commercial flying, he entered the 1954 Around-Australia REDeX¹ trial, where he would prove his skills by demonstrating his ability to navigate and fly in hostile and primitive parts of the country in a vintage aircraft. The trial was originally referred to as an ‘air race’ after the Around-Australia REDeX automobile race sponsored by the Royal Automobile Club and REDeX Motor Oil Company of Britain. However, DCA would not give permission for an ‘air race’ as the risks were too great. So the Royal Aero Club, one of the major sponsors, agreed to refer to the event as a ‘trial’, and to add to the guarantee of standards, it was to be under the direct operational auspices of the Fédération Aéronautiqe Internationale (FAI), the international organisation governing the standards of competition. Dad’s FAI competitor’s licence below.

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Hence, the event came to be referred to as the REDeX Reliability Trial, and this satisfied DCA and, subsequently, made appropriate data and maps available for the contestants. The pilots also had to apply and register to the FAI for qualification to enter and participate in the race. The details and maps associated with this event now reside in the National Library in Canberra and are available for viewing.

Because of an unfortunate incident, sabotage, in Darwin during a monsoonal downpour, his aircraft, a de Havilland Tiger Moth DH.82 built in 1938, the oldest aircraft in the trial, was moved out of the hangar, and for this, he lost points, which put him in the back of the field when he was the highest scorer on points from the Sydney-to-Darwin leg. This deed was perpetrated by another competitor, who shall remain anonymous, prejudiced against people from Germany. This person pulled out of the trial in Brisbane as he was flying a P51 Mustang, which had a handicap that would not allow him to win.

Dad and his co-pilot were the only Europeans in the trial. Pierre Allard was a young 25-year-old Frenchman, a son of an admiral, and had met Dad at the Royal Aero Club. He went onto commercial flying in the USA and was a pilot for one of the Australian airlines briefly.

Dad refused to personally protest as he felt it was up to the scrutineers, and he was too proud to do so, even though it was his responsibility. At the end of the trial, Dad came in third place, for which there was no prize money. This had a devastating impact on our family finances as Dad had to borrow a lot of money, £1,500, to enter the trial.

In 1955, Dad managed to secure a job as an aircraft mechanic with Butler Air Transport at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport. This was short-lived as Butler was bought out by Ansett Airlines, and Dad was made redundant. He then managed to get a job with Crest Flour Mills at Guildford, and a year later, he secured a position as a mechanic and fitter with Atlas Copco in Auburn, where he remained for five years.

He then started up a watch-repair business after receiving some training from his younger brother Emil, who owned and operated a jewellery shop and watch-repair business in Cardiff. This, he continued until he retired when he was 68 years old; at which time, he went on the old-age pension.

Mum and Dad never had any desire to travel or to go back to Europe and visit the family. They felt it would be too difficult to cope with the emotion as they had left a lot of good memories they did not want to destroy.

However, I did convince Dad to come with me on one of my daily trips to Melbourne on Pan Am flight 815/816 Sydney-Melbourne-Sydney so he could have the opportunity to fly on the Boeing 747SP flight deck with the crew who hosted him and were very generous with their hospitality.

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Dad sitting in the pilot’s (captain) seat, Pan Am Boeing 747SP aircraft N538PA

In 1981, security issues in place today did not exist and access to the flight deck by passengers was permitted if the captain approved access.

Dad had a wonderful time and was regaled by the first officer, who also happened to be a collector of Second World War German aircraft. They had a great conversation and entertained each other during the flight and in transit.

Move to Evelyn Street

In 1952, we moved to Evelyn Street, Macquarie Fields, and Mum managed to find work as a dressmaker. In all this time, our mother held a very positive outlook, contributing to the family income by producing dresses and bowties for a fashion house. This was not easy work, and every week she would bundle the dresses and bowties into a suitcase and walk 3 mi to Macquarie Fields train station for her trip to Five Dock to deliver the finished articles and pick up the new batch of materials.

Her drive and sense of purpose was an inspiration to all of us, and we were quite often co-opted to assist in the production of ties and bowties.

Her cooking skills were almost legendary, and we would have visitors almost every weekend, where a great deal of social discourse was enjoyed by all, not to mention the consumption of vast amounts of wine (‘plonk’).

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Evelyn Street – János, Cousin Eva, Viktoria, Cousin Dani, András, and I with Uncle Dani’s VW –1953

As children, these moments were enjoyed, and a great deal of family history was learnt from the stories related. As we lived in the middle of the Australian bush, it was also a very popular place for us children and that of our visitors’ children.

As Dad’s brothers and cousin were located in Newcastle, we would have exchange programmes every year in the summer holidays, where we would travel up on the Newcastle Flyer, Steam Engine 3801, one year, and the next, the cousins would travel down to Sydney and stay with us. These times were enjoyed by parents and cousins. It kept us very close as an extended family in the ensuing years.

As migrant children, we found assimilation into the isolated communities with other children quite good, except for school. When Mum took me to school, Ingleburn public school to enter Kindergarten, I could not speak English, and Mum was still developing her language skills. The headmaster and headmistress, Mr and Mrs Fuller, reluctantly accepted me as I was the first migrant child to enrol, and to make matters worse, I could not speak English. They were also known to have a dislike for migrants from Germany.

I made lifelong friends at Ingleburn, including David Hazlett, who sadly passed on this January, Bobby Kyle, John Czadrik, Beth Watson, Prunella Dobson, Robin Simpson, Les Smith, Philip Rogers, Bobby Webster, Robby Van Beek, to mention a few; and we continue to gather annually for a lunch and share tall tales and true. It’s most rewarding. The irony was some of these children were my greatest antagonists and bullied me in those formative years.

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Kindergarten, Ingleburn Public School, 1951 –

I am in the front row, fourth from the right.

Fortunately, András and I had two very kind and caring teachers. Mine was Big Miss Brown, and András had Little Miss Brown. They had an enormous impact on our school lives.

My mother was quite distressed as she could not understand why I would come home crying. She would meet me at the gate, which was quite a feat for her with two small children travelling 6 miles (9 kilometres) from home, partly on foot and then by bus. Bullying was a common feature in those times, especially if you were different, which I endured to some extent with András and Viktoria who followed me until 1955, when the Greeks and Italians came, and then the attention turned to them.

Macquarie Fields, Ingleburn, Glenfield, and Minto were poorly developed and were of a low socioeconomic background primarily consisting of families of returned servicemen and women in addition to a large army camp at Ingleburn and Holsworthy. However, we did find some very kind families who readily accepted us into their homes, and we made very good friends with their children, such as the Alchins and Kellys.

We lived very close to the Georges River, and that, along with the very rugged Australian bush, became our playground, which we enjoyed very much. It was a blessing for Mum as she could see the physical and psychological benefit this had on us children.

Going to School

When I started at Ingleburn public school, it was a quite a journey as to get there. We had to walk approximately a mile (1.64 kilometres) to the bus stop on the corner of then Saywell Road and Bensley Road, which were dirt roads. In those days, roads were not surfaced with bitumen. Also, it was a walk through the bushland. For a young five-year-old, this was quite daunting, so Mum would walk with me, bringing along András and Viktoria. Along the way, we would meet up with some neighbours with their children.

The bus, which was primarily a school bus, would then go 6 miles (9 kilometres) to Ingleburn. The bus driver was Max, a kind and understanding gentleman. The return trip in the afternoon was the same.

I got used to this, and in the following years, András and Viktoria would accompany me. It was an adventure in itself as it was not uncommon to come across some feral dogs, mainly Alsatians, and the occasional snake sunning itself on the road. There was no vehicular traffic to speak of, so the only road hazards were wildlife creatures that presented us with the odd daunting moments.

Mum would quite often come up the road to escort us home. It was very comforting.

New Additions to the Family

In 1952, we moved from First Avenue to Evelyn Street, Macquarie Fields, to a larger and more comfortable home made from Fibro. We had electricity but no town water, so we relied on tanks, which had to be filled at times of drought by water tankers. This was also the year our brother János was born, on 6 December 1952.

This was a difficult birth for Mum as János was born with diphtheria, which was then considered a life-threatening disease, which resulted in Mum and János remaining in Liverpool Hospital for three months. During this period, my brother András and I were farmed out to very close friends, the Jani family, who had children of the same age. They had been employed at a seminary, St Gregory’s Campbelltown, and our sister Victoria was billeted with another family, the Goor’s, in Lidcombe, who had a daughter the same age. Fortunately, János survived.

On 15 August 1956, we became naturalised Australian citizens at a ceremony held in the Campbelltown town hall. I remember the pride and relief Mum and Dad experienced as they were now Australians.

On 13 February 1958, our brother Dani was born in Crown Street Women’s Hospital, followed by our sister Zsüzsi, born on 7 November 1961 at Liverpool Hospital. Once, when we had visitors, they were taken aback to see this little baby in a cardboard box for crib. We had regular visitors on weekends, despite the fact we lived in the bush 3 mi from Macquarie Fields railway station. The close bonds families, in particular migrant families, had in those days really made for pleasant living. There was no evidence of depression or other social ills as most migrants were grateful of their new home and environment.

Over the years, many annual Hungarian and old friend’s picnics were held at our place, including the Hungarian University Student’s Association, bringing some very diverse and entertaining activities. The Georges River was a big attraction.

Dad’s Divorce – 1941

Dad had married twice and had a son from his first wife Hédi. Jenó (Bence) was born on 28 August 1938 and remained in Hungary after the war with his mother. His mother was a doctor from a prominent family. Her mother, being the first female dentist in Hungary, enjoyed considerable largesse from the communist regime. They were allowed to keep the family car and a chauffeur—a rare privilege.

Dad’s divorce from Hédi was a major event as in Catholic Hungary, divorce was not sanctioned by the church. The only way a divorce/annulment could be approved was if the pope gave give his consent, and this was next to impossible, but not for Hédi and Dad. Dad was of the Reformed (Reformatus) Church, and Hédi’s mother, being a staunch Catholic, was very close to the primate of Hungary, Cardinal Mindszenty.

Citing irreconcilable differences, they made a very good case for the annulment. Dad was a very active military pilot and away a great deal, whilst Hédi was a very attractive and sociable woman, and she found it difficult to stay with Dad. Hédi and Dad loved playing bridge, were good at it, and made excellent partners. They had to continue playing bridge as partners, a condition placed upon the divorce documents. It turned out later Hédi had fallen in love with the family chauffeur and got married. This later turned out to be essential for Hédi and Laci, her new husband, to gain permission to migrate to the USA without children.

Many years later, in the 1970s, Hédi decided to visit Australia and connect with Bence and her ex-husband. This was an interesting time, perhaps for another book.

Brother Jenó (Bence)

Bence was a nickname he was given in Hungary. On October 1956, the Hungarian Revolution erupted, when Jenó was a first-year medical student at the University of Budapest, and he joined the student uprising as a freedom fighter against the Russian occupying forces. When it was clear the uprising had failed, Jenó had to escape for fear of being executed as a revolutionary, which