VH-EAA Boeing 707-338C

VH-EAA. Boeing 707-338C. c/n 19621-652.

Was also registered as: OO-YCK; P2-ANB; TF-AEB; 5Y-AXA; N733Q; N526SJ; AF90-0175.

This aircraft was ordered new by Qantas Airways - ?

Rolled off the Boeing production line at Renton, Washington - October 26, 1967

First flown at Renton as VH-EAA - November 20, 1967

Entered onto the Australian Aircraft Register as VH-EAA - December 08, 1967

Registered to Qantas Airways Ltd, Sydney

The aircraft was named 'City of Toowoomba'

Accepted by B. Langevad for Qantas Airways at Seattle (Boeing Field) - December 08, 1967

This was the 25th Boeing 707 airliner delivered new to Qantas Airways

It was also the 25th Boeing airliner delivered to Qantas

Departed Seattle (Boeing Field) on the delivery flight to Australia via London as QF502D - December 08, 1967

Operated its first revenue service London - Colombo - Sydney as QF702/002 (freighter) - December 10, 1967

It arrived at Sydney (09:15 local) on completion of the delivery flight (Captain A. A. E. Yates) - December 12, 1967

Ferried Sydney - London to have wing life modifications performed by BOAC - January 19, 1972

Returned to Sydney (Kingsford Smith) following the modification work - February 25, 1972

Departed Melbourne (Tullamarine) for a scenic flight to Antarctica as QF144/009 - February 19, 1977

Flight crew: Captain K. Devenport

This was the first Qantas Antarctic scenic flight to depart from Melbourne (Tullamarine)

The aircraft flew to 74 degrees 38 minutes south and some 1,500 kms from the South Pole

140 passengers were carried on this first charter flight

Operated its final revenue service - ?

Sold to ITEL Capital Services Corp - April 27, 1977

It had flown 34,398:49 hours with 10,698 cycles to date

Cancelled from the Australian Aircraft Register - April 27, 1977

Entered onto the Belgian Aircraft Register as OO-YCK - April 1977

Registered to ITEL Capital Services Corporation

Leased to Young Cargo, Belgium as the registered operator - May 06, 1977

Departed Sydney (Kingsford Smith) on the ferry flight to Belgium in the standard Young livery - May 06, 1977

Returned to ITEL at the end of the lease - June 1979

Ferried Ostend - Tel Aviv for overhaul in preparation for lease to Air Niugini - ?

Entered onto the Papua New Guinea Aircraft Register as P2-ANB - June 27, 1979

Registered to ITEL Capital Services Corporation

Leased to Air Niugini as the registered operator

Departed Tel Aviv, Israel on the ferry flight to Air Niugini following overhaul - September 11, 1979

Operated its first Air Niugini revenue service Sydney (Kingsford Smith) - Port Moresby - September 28, 1979

Sold to GATX Booth but continued on lease to Air Niugini - December 1980

Sold to Air Niugini - December 1984

Withdrawn from use and stored at Port Morseby - February 01, 1985

Sold to TRATCO - April 01, 1985

Ferried Port Moresby - Brussels, Belgium for storage - April 12 - 13, 1985

Cancelled from the Papua New Guinea Aircraft Register - ?

Leased to Air Artic Iceland - July 01, 1985

Entered onto Icelandic Aircraft Register as TF-AEB - ?

Sub-leased to Kenya Airways - July 04 to September 09, 1985

Returned to TRATCO at the end of the lease - September 1985

Leased to Air Maldives - November 1985 to February 1986

Sold to Zakani Aviation Services (ZAS), Egypt - February 1986

Cancelled from the Icelandic Aircraft Register - April 18, 1986

Leased to African Express Airways - April 18, 1986

Entered onto Kenyan Aircraft Register as 5Y-AXA - ?

Departed Stansted on delivery to African Express in a partial Air Niugini livery - April 21, 1986

Returned to Zakani Aviation Services - January 1987

Sold to Croix Holdings Inc, San Antonio, Texas - February 1987

Entered onto the United States Aircraft Register as N733Q - ?

Rolled out at Miami in the standard CF Air Freight livery - February 26, 1987

Leased to CF Air Freight - March 01, 1987

Reregistered as N526SJ - ?

Sold to Jetran Inc, San Antonio, Texas but continued on lease to CF Air Freight - August 1988

Sold to Capital Air Inc, San Antonio, Texas but continued on lease to CF Air Freight - December 1988

Sold to Grumman Aerospace Corp for conversion to J-STARS test aircraft - June 1990

Observed stored at Miami - 1991

Overhauled by Boeing Military Company, Wichita, Kansas - 1991

Ferried Wichita - Lake Charles for conversion to E-8C - 1992

Converted to E-8C FSD-3 Test Bed and owned by Northrop Grumman - March 1994

Airworthiness test flight performed - August 01, 1995

It was allocated the United States Serial Number 'AF90-0175'

Participated in Operation Joint Endeavour in Bosnia - October 1996

The aircraft had flown 55,205 hours - October 1996

Redesignated TE-8C J-STARS trainer - ?

Cancelled from the United States Aircraft Register (revoked enforcement) - January 12, 2000

Transferred to the United States Air Force - January 12, 2000

Registered to Hanscom Air Force Base, Hanscom, MA

Re-engined with Pratt & Whitney JT8D-219 engines and rolled out at Melbourne, Florida - December 17, 2008

Test flown at Northrop Grumman's Melbourne, Florida facility - December 21, 2008

Retired from service at Northrop Grumman (Melbourne, USA) facility - October 2013

Ferried Melbourne - Davis Monthan AFB - January 14, 2015

This was a one time flight waiver involving a 4.5 hour flight

Aircraft stored at Davis-Monthan

VH-EAA. Qantas Australia - 'Toowoomba' in the 'V-Jet' livery at Mexico City Airport, May 1968.

(R. N. Smith Collection Copyright Image 4604-142.)

VH-EAA. Qantas Australia - 'Toowoomba' in the 'V-Jet' livery at London Heathrow Airport, January 1971.

(R. N. Smith Collection Copyright Image 4604-574.)

VH-EAA. Qantas Australia - 'Toowoomba' in the 'V-Jet' livery at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport, date unknown.

(Qantas Heritage Collection Copyright Image 4604-712.)

VH-EAA. Qantas Australia - 'Toowoomba' in the 'ochre' livery at Brisbane Airport, November 1974.

(R. N. Smith Collection Copyright Image 4604-973.)

VH-EAA. Qantas Australia - 'Toowoomba' in the 'ochre' livery at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport, January 14, 1975.

(R. N. Smith Copyright Image 4604-013.)

VH-EAA. Young - in the standard livery at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport, April 20, 1977.

(R. N. Smith Copyright Image 4604-575.)

VH-EAA. Young - in the standard livery at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport, April 22, 1977.

(R. N. Smith Copyright Image 4604-327.)

VH-EAA. Young - in the standard livery at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport, April 24, 1977.

(R. N. Smith Copyright Image 4604-386.)

OO-YCK. Young - in the standard livery at an unknown airport, October 1977.

(R. N. Smith Collection Copyright Image 4604-580.)

OO-YCK. Young - in the standard livery at an unknown airport, June 1978.

(R. N. Smith Collection Copyright Image 4604-581.)

OO-YCK. Young - in the standard livery at Brussels Ostend Airport, June 10, 1979.

(N. Louis Collection Copyright Image 4605-460.)

P2-ANB. Air Niugini - in the standard livery at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport, December 11, 1979.

(E. Favelle Copyright Image 4605-344.)

P2-ANB. Air Niugini - in the standard livery at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport, February 1980.

(R. N. Smith Copyright Image 4604-603.)

P2-ANB. Air Niugini - in the standard livery with additional 'South Pacific Festival Of Arts' titles at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport, April 1980.

(R. N. Smith Copyright Image 4604-585.)

P2-ANB. Air Niugini - in the standard livery with additional 'South Pacific Festival Of Arts' titles at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport, April 1980.

(R. N. Smith Copyright Image 4604-586.)

P2-ANB. Air Niugini - in the standard livery with additional 'South Pacific Festival Of Arts' titles at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport, April 1980.

(R. N. Smith Copyright Image 4604-508.)

P2-ANB. Air Niugini - in the standard livery with additional 'South Pacific Festival Of Arts' titles at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport, April 1980.

(R. N. Smith Copyright Image 4604-587.)

P2-ANB. Air Niugini - in the standard livery with additional 'South Pacific Festival Of Arts' titles at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport, April 1980.

(R. N. Smith Copyright Image 4604-599.)