The Nhill Aviation Heritage Centre was established to commemorate the existence of the RAAF Base and WWII air school at the Nhill Aerodrome and the history of civil aviation in Nhill.
The RAAF training base was first established in 1941 as No2ANS, Air Navigation School. Following on to N1 Operations Training Unit and No 97 Reserve Squadron and then to AA&GS, Air Armament and Gas school which included gunnery, bombing and chemical warfare. Finally came CMU Nhill, Care and Maintenance Unit before its closure in 1946.
During this time, approx. 12,000 young men and women were trained at Nhill before being sent wherever needed to assist the war effort.
Some of the main aircraft training units stationed at Nhill during this time were Avro Ansons, Wirraways, Tiger Moths and Link trainers. They have all returned to the NAHC.
An original Flight Office has been refurbished and an original Bellman hangar still remains in use. Remnants of many other buildings of the base are still visible and a heritage walk has been established around the site.
The rare civil aviation Air Radio Station also on the Aerodrome, is being restored.
Photos: Roderick Eime
ABOUT NHILL
The name of this town is possibly derived from the Aboriginal word 'nyell' meaning 'white mist on water'. A small wheat town on the Western Highway exactly half-way between Melbourne and Adelaide, it claims to have the largest single bin silo in the southern hemisphere. Of interest: The cottage of John Shaw Neilson, lyric poet, in the Shaw Neilson Park, also the Draught Horse Memorial in Goldsworthy Park, built to the memory of the famous Clydesdales who were so indispensable in the opening up of the Wimmera region. Nhill's Post Office, built in 1888, is classi- fied by the National Trust. In the area: Nhill is in easy reach of the Little Desert National Park and Lake Hindmarsh, the largest freshwater lake in Victoria, 45 km north. Accommodation: 2 hotels, 4 motels, 2 caravan/camping parks.
Map ref. https://maps.app.goo.gl/zdCzgA429QiNbnbx8
More at Aussie Towns: Nhill VIC
