The x-Portugal water-bomber is expected to arrive in Darwin any time soon and will then fly down to Sydney's Bankstown airport aiming for an arrival by the 7th December The Catalina will be used as a flying memorial to the crews who operated the aircraft during World War II - the RAAF had 168 of the type with 320 OZ aircrew lost in war-time action

	"The Catalina’s exploits were the stuff legends are made from including finding the German ship Bismarck in the mid-Atlantic and the 'local' Coral Sea Battle"
It also played a vital role in mine-laying and communications along with numerous rescues of downed aircrew