Some Titbits from Dave Grainger (continued)

The then Melbourne radar, the RC33 crammed full of valves which had to be at their maximum emission, was a Mitsubishi creation of which only two were ever made. One was on top of the Redmond Barry building at the University of Melbourne with remote control to the Commonwealth Centre; the other was installed on Mount Fuji for a few months before they pushed it over the edge in despair. The Bureau persisted with the RC33 until the installation of a second WF44 radar at Laverton.

The maintenance of equipment at the training annexe at Bowes Avenue in Niddrie was another of the duties of the Victorian Region. This equipment consisted of, over the years, a 277F radar, two WF2 radars, a radiotheodolite and several radiosonde recorders.

During a sojourn at Laverton as resident 'tech' I was introduced to the game of 'folf', a corruption of foot and golf. Invented at Laverton it was played with a tennis ball, the object being to kick the ball between two 'holes' consisting of at one end the side of a small hut about 150 metres down the track, and at the other the open door of the balloon filling room. Graham Quinn, the Laverton permanent fixture, even composed the Folfing Song sung to the tune of Champagne Charlie.

Mildura was maintained from Melbourne, by road for routine matters and by air in emergencies. In the early 1970s Peter Broughton decreed that it was a one man trip both by air and by road. On one of my trips I recollect that I came back with my tail up in five and a quarter hours, and that was with three stops for fuel and coffee. One's foot tended to become heavier and heavier as the trip progressed, and one had to look out for DCA's low flying traps. Eventually Peter was persuaded that it was much safer to make it a two man trip by road. On one occasion Peter Broughton and Mark Mackenzie left Mildura Airport at 9 am on a Friday morning only to be flagged down by the police in Ouyen with the message that the radar was not working and would they please come back to fix it. The equipment at Mildura then included the WF2 radar, Dines anemograph, cloudbase searchlight, solar radiation receptors (global and diffuse), tipping bucket raingauge, Fielden remote temperature sensors and display, and weatherfax.

Another responsibility of the Victorian Region was the East Sale meteorological office, a three or four day trip depending on whether there were any faults or whether it was just routine. The OIC in the 1970s was Arthur Woolcock; Ted Desmond was another of the meteorological officers. Ted seemed always to be making wooden toys for his grandchildren. When he retired, Arthur was replaced by Meteorologist Joe Pirronello. The equipment at East Sale at the time comprised Fielden remote temperature sensors and display, Dines anemograph, cloudbase searchlight and two weatherfax receivers.

Bureau of Meteorology