THE Uiver memorial plane is set to be returned to its former glory.Albury aviation business, Smartair, has approached the council to restore the DC-2 plane and put it on display.
Cr Neville Hull, an affiliate with the Uiver committee, said the council was almost certainly going to take up the offer and invite the community to get in on the project over several years.
“At the moment it’s looking very positive,” he said.
“The way I see it is that will probably be element of the journey of people going out to the Hume Weir, they can pop into the airport and acquire the Uiver.
“It would produce positive display out there.”
In 2001, the Uiver was removed from its stand at the airport for safety reasons and remains out of public viewing.
But Cr Hull said the 1933 airliner seemed to be in “excellent condition” given its age and the fact it turned out it was kept outside.
“It just needs some work and tender loving care now,” he said.
“It’s got issues with the support frames to the motors, but they’re jobs that could be easily fixed with the help of volunteers.”
Smartair managing director Ivo Mol yesterday confirmed the family business seemed to be in talks with council about the plane, but declined to inquire into specific details.
“Smartair has wanted to restore the aircraft, but there are many of prerequisites that need to be achieved before any work can be done,” he said.
“There’s been loads of false starts with this project and I’m a lttle bit cautious about raising any false hopes until I’m certain it might be delivered.”
The Mol family originate from the Netherlands, the nation that was represented by the Uiver in the London-to-Melbourne air race in 1934.
Albury Council were being because of discuss the long run of the Uiver, as well as the Cumberoona paddlesteamer and oz.e wildlife sanctuary, at a workshop last month.
Councillors will now decide the long run of the plane at a full meeting of council soon.
“Council officers are working through a number of alternatives and expect to present an options paper to council within the next couple of months,” the council’s director of engineering Brad Ferris said.
