When visitors step into Sunbury resident Vincent Bezzina’s shed, they can quickly tell that he loves all things aviation.
His enormous collection contains memorabilia, uniforms, model aircraft, and even a black box, presenting decades of aviation history.
Mr Bezzina started his career as a ground staff member with Ansett Australia in his late 20s, and after a long career of working as a ground staff member with several major airlines, retired two years ago while working for Rex Airlines.
“Ansett has always been my favourite. That’s the company I … started with … and I loved working for them. There was never a day when I got up in the morning and said ‘Oh, I’ve got to go work,’ … whatever we did, it was fun,” Mr Bezzina said.
Beginning with ashtrays, he said that he started collecting airline memorabilia 40 years ago and that his love of collecting influenced him in choosing his current house in Sunbury.
“The house that I’ve got has this massive shed behind it … so that was a godsend … I actually bought the shed – the house was a bonus!” he said.
Although it is a private collection, Mr Bezzina said he often offers his collection to be used by charities for fundraising purposes on weekends.
With many vintage airline uniforms in his collection, Mr Bezzina said that he prefers the look of these to today’s standard airline attire.
“I like the older [ones] like Pan Am, British Airways … because the uniforms these days aren’t as imaginative – they’re not [as] professional as they were back in the ’80s and ’90s” he said.
When considering his whole collection, Mr Bezzina said that his favourite pieces are his Air India memorabilia, a black box, and a series of vintage Qantas flags.
Oscar Parry
