After celebrating his birthday earlier this month Mr Naldrett was given a ticket to the joy flight as a present.

"It's something I can tick off the bucket list for sure. My birthday was this month and it was a present for that," he said.

In an hour the Naldrett's and other passengers were taken on a scenic flight south of Port Macquarie to Crowdy Head where they followed the picturesque coastline.

Unlike most commercial aircrafts the DC3 cabin was not pressurised, but Mr Naldrett said it was an enjoyable experience.

"The aircraft is actually older than me," he laughed.

"The experience wasn't actually too bad, I thought the plane might have rattled a bit more than it did."

There was one significant difference passengers noticed after boarding the aircraft.

Unlike modern day aircraft, the nose of the Douglas Dakota DC3 pointed to the sky at a slight angle.

Mr and Mrs Naldrett said they had been in Port Macquarie for more than 15 years and in that time had seen the area from the sky, but had not seen as much of the coast line.

"It was much noisier than a commercial flight, but it was really enjoyable," Mr Naldrett said.

"We've been in Port for 15 years and the one thing about this flight is that it enabled us to see more of the coastline than you do for commercial flights because they go inland a lot earlier."

Former air hostess Robin Garnett made the trip from Coffs Harbour to Port Macquarie and said she had fond memories of the area.

"I've come here for holidays a few times and it really is a wonderful part of the world," she said.