SAAM Engines

SAAM has a large and historically significant collection of Aircraft Engines. Many are in storage but if you visit SAAM, you will be able to see some of them on display. Once or twice a year, SAAM holds an engine run and open cockpit day, where visitors could see (and especially hear) some of these engines run and also sit in some of the cockpits normally closed to the public. Check our facebook page for latest news. Also look at the videos of our 'runners' doing their thing (below).

On 13 March 1910, Carl (Bill) Wittber was conducting taxiing trials in a paddock at Bolivar in a Bleriot X1 monoplane imported by Adelaide businessman Fred Jones, when the aircraft rose about 5 feet and travelled for about 40 yards. This was the first aircraft flight in Australia. The Bleriot, piloted by Fred Custance, crashed 4 days later. Bill Wittber bought the wreck and was planning to use the Anzani engine in a bi-plane he was building but it was not powerful enough. He built a 6 cylinder engine based on the 3 cylinder Azani design. The engine was completed in 1915, but the government stepped in and banned any further civilian attempts at flying. This so disheartened Wittber that he burnt the timber frame and covering of his aircraft and sold the engine. In his retirement, however, he did seek out the remaining parts of his engine, and reconstructed it. You can see this engine at in Hangar 1 at SAAM.