Past Projects
Pay's Flying Museum
Vintage Fighter Restorations (VFR) is the new identity for Pay’s Warbirds. Under the Pay’s brand, numerous aircraft restorations have been completed including Australia’s original warbird restoration, Mustang VH-AUB. Many of these iconic aircraft now reside in Pay’s Flying Museum under the care of VFR.
HAWKER HURRICANE MK.XII / IIB VH-JFW
Hawker Hurricane, Serial No 5481 C/N 60372, C-FDNL, Mk XII / IIB arrived in Australia on the 7th of April 2014 from Canada after a lengthy boat trip via the Panama Canal and New Zealand. The aircraft has undergone an extensive refurbishment program by Vintage Fighter Restorations at Scone, NSW..
SPITFIRE MK.VIII VH-HET
Although not Australia’s first Warbird, ex-RAAF Supermarine Spitfire Mk VIII VH-HET was one of the Warbird pioneers and is surely the most famous – restored by the late Col Pay, it is universally known as the “Pay Spitfire”.
CA-18 MK.21 MUSTANG VH-AUB
CAC CA-18 Mk21 Mustang, A68-107 / VH-AUB is one of Australia’s most famous and oldest Warbirds, having been restored and registered by Pay’s and put on the Australian register in 1980. The aircraft was previously in private hands from 1958 to 1966 with Titus Oates..
CURTISS P40E KITTYHAWK VH-KTH
Col Pay was a visionary in the Australian Warbird movement long before Warbirds were common place in Australia, with a string of firsts including Mustang VH-AUB and Spitfire VH-HET. Another of his firsts was the first Curtiss P-40 Warbird in Australia.
CURTISS P40E KITTYHAWK VH-KTY
The second Kittyhawk to be restored by Pay's / Vintage Fighter Restorations, VH-KTY resides in the Pay's collection at Scone.
NORTH AMERICAN HARVARD VH-HAJ
North American T-6G Harvard Serial #: 49-3186 Construction #: 168-290, Civil registration VH-HAJ was purchased by the late Col Pay in 1984 from Steven Seghetti, Vacaville CA, USA and has been with the collection at Scone ever since. The Harvard, a former Oshkosh award winner is in excellent condition and flies regularly.
DH82 TIGER MOTH VH-PCL
DH aircraft, DH82 Tiger Moth serial 3786 VH-PCL takes center stage in the hanger and is immaculate and a favourite of Ross Pay. VH-PCL was Col Pay’s first spraying aircraft back in 1959 and is still in excellent condition and mechanically sound. It no longer is a working aircraft but an important part of Pay’s history.
DE HAVILLAND DHC1 CHIPMUNK VH-AMV
The Chipmunk was acquired in 2005 as a trainer for tail wheel instruction and for joy flights. It is a warbird in its own right having served with the RAF, and is a highly regarded training aircraft with over 1200 having been produced in Canada, the UK and Portugal.
CESSNA A-37 DRAGONFLY
In the late 1980s Col Pay traveled through South East Asia where he acquired a number of Cessna A-37 Dragonfly twin jet counter-insurgency (COIN) aircraft. The aircraft are a highly desirable warbird having excellent performance, dual controls, and are fairly easy to come to grips with as a private aircraft type.
CESSNA 01 BIRD DOG
Recovered by Col Pay from South East Asia, Bird Dog VH-LQS has been a stalwart of the Pays Warbird fleet. Still a working aircraft in its own right, performing Joy Flights, Aerial Photography and Fire spotting duties.
SIAI MARCHETTI SM1019
Pays Air Services imported 8 SIAI Marchetti aircraft into Australia in the early 2000’s with most finding new homes in Australia. VH-PAI was shipped to Scone in 2002 after being operated by the Italian Army as MM57217. The SIAI Marchetti is an Italian adaption of the Cessna 305A/O-1 Bird Dog with a new turboprop engine and a revised tail unit.
