PBY Catalina in Indian aviation

[tracker]

Dear colleagues !

Somewhere on the Net I read the information, that at least 2 x PBY Catalina aircraft were registered and used in India:

1) VT-DEX.

2) VT-DID.

Who have more information about those Indian Catalinas ?
If somebody have any images (photos, profiles, drawings) of these Catalinas, I shall pleased to see those pictures.

Wait for the answers from You.

Regards,
Tracker.

[camcat]

Hello Tracker, I'm calling you from France...
Nice to meet you.
David Legg, from England, wrote an awsome book about the post-war Cats (Consolidated PBY Catalina - The Peacetime Record).

Here is his account in reply to your question :
(But no picture available under Indian registration)

"Two Catalinas appeared on the Indian civil register during the 1950s. Little is known of either operator, although the aircrafts themselves are reasonably well documented.
The first to arrive was owned by Kalinga Airlines of Calcutta, a company that also flew C-47s. Their Catalina VT-DEX was registered to them in December 1950, having previously operated in Hong-Kong. It cannot have spent very long in India as, by the end of 1951, it was at Croydon Airport in England as SE-XAD, being overhauled for a new owner in Sweden.
The other Indian PBY was VT-DID. This was registered to Airways (India) Ltd in 1955 and stand with them until August 1961, when it was damaged beyond repair in an accident on the 22nd of that month. It had previouvly been registered in China and Thailand."

Both were Canadian built (in Cartierville) by Vickers as USAAF OA-10A.

VT-DEX (CV-593) Bu68046 ntu (USNavy), 44-34082 (USAAF).
> PI-C258 > VR-HDS > VT-DEX (Kalinga Airlines).
Then to Sweden as SE-XAD, 1951> SE-BUB > VP-KKJ > N1508V.
Ultimate fate unknown.

VT-DID (CV-519) Bu67972 ntu (USNavy), 44-34008 (USAAF).
> HS-PC205 > HS-POD > VT-DID (Airways Ltd.).
Damaged beyond repair 22/8/1961.

If you needed to contact David, here is his URL pby5 (@) btinternet.com
You should also join the dedicated PBY Yahoo-group of which we both are members to ask any question.
Best regards.
J-Christophe.