In 1919 the Australian government offered a prize of £A10,000 for the first Australians in a British aircraft to fly from Great Britain to Australia. Of the six entries that started the race, the winners were pilotRoss Smith, his brotherKeith Smith as co-pilot, and mechanics James Bennett and Wally Shiers, in a modifiedVickers Vimy bomber.
In early 1919, the Commonwealth Government of Australia offered a prize of £A10,000 for the first flight from Great Britain to Australia, under specific conditions. In May 1919,Billy Hughes,Prime Minister of Australia, and SenatorGeorge Pearce,Minister for Defence (Australia), in consultation with theRoyal Aero Club, stated that valid aircrews must all be Australian nationals, the aircraft must have been constructed in theBritish Empire, and the journey must be completed within 720 consecutive hours (30 days) and be completed before midnight on 31 December 1920. The departure point must be eitherHounslow Heath Aerodrome (for landplanes) orRNAS Calshot (for seaplanes and flying boats), with reporting points atAlexandria andSingapore, and final destination in the region ofDarwin. Each flight was to take place under the competition rules of the Royal Aero Club, that would supervise the start, and control the competition generally.[1]
At 11.44 a.m. on 21 October 1919, Captain George Campbell Matthews AFC as pilot, and Sergeant Thomas D. Kay as mechanic, took off from Hounslow Heath Aerodrome in aSopwith Wallaby (G-EAKS). Bad weather caused delays atCologne andVienna, then they were imprisoned as suspectedBolsheviks inYugoslavia, with further delays due to snow atBelgrade. A cracked engine cylinder atConstantinople, and bad weather atAleppo caused more delays. Finally, on 17 April 1920, the Wallaby crashed on landing at Grokgak, onBali. Matthews was slightly injured.[2][3][4]
Vickers entered a convertedVimy bomber (G-EAOU) (the registration being whimsically said to stand for "God 'elp all of us"), crewed by CaptainRoss Macpherson Smith with his brother LieutenantKeith Macpherson Smith as co-pilot and mechanics Sergeant W.H. (Wally) Shiers and Sergeant J.M. (Jim) Bennett. The Vimy left Hounslow Heath at 8.30 am on 12 November 1919.[5] It flew viaLyon,Rome,Cairo,Damascus,Basra,Karachi,Delhi,Calcutta,Akyab,Rangoon racecourse,Singora (Songkhla) (inSiam unscheduled in heavy rain), Singapore,Batavia andSurabaya where the aircraft was bogged and had to make use of a temporary airstrip made frombamboo mats, reaching Darwin at 4.10pm on 10 December 1919. The flight distance was estimated as 17,911 kilometres (11,123 mi) and total flying time was 135 hours 55 minutes (131.8 km/h or 81.9 mph). The prize money was shared between the Smith brothers and the two mechanics. The Smith brothers each received aknighthood for this exploit, and the company presented their aircraft to the Australian government. It is now displayed atAdelaide Airport.[3]
On 13 November 1919, Lieutenant Roger M. Douglas,MCDCM and Lieutenant J.S.L. Ross took off from Hounslow Heath in anAlliance P.2 Seabird (G-EAOX) named 'Endeavour'. It crashed in an orchard inSurbiton; Ross was killed outright, and Douglas died soon after of his injuries.[3]
A team with aBlackburn Kangaroo (G-EAOW) had selected as navigator the Australian aviatorCharles Kingsford Smith. Smith withdrew from the contest, and CaptainHubert Wilkins MC and bar took his place. On 21 November 1919, the Kangaroo took off from Hounslow Heath, piloted by Lieutenant V. Rendle with Captain Wilkins, Lieutenant D.R. Williams and Lieutenant Garnsey St. C. Potts as crew. Problems were experienced with the engines, and the plane was forced down overFrance. Repairs were made and the flight continued, still with engine problems. On 8 December 1919, the aircraft crash-landed atSuda Bay,Crete, ending up against the fence of a mental hospital. The crew escaped without injury.[3]
On 5 December 1919, CaptainCedric E. Howell and LieutenantGeorge Henry Fraser left London in aMartinsyde Type A Mk.I (G-EAMR) aircraft. On 9 December, the aircraft disappeared nearCorfu. The wreckage and Howell's body were found offshore, but Fraser's body was never found.[3][4]
On 8 January 1920,Airco DH.9 (G-EAQM), piloted by LieutenantRay Parer, with co-pilot Lieutenant John C. McIntosh, took off from Hounslow Heath. The aircraft completed the flight, the first by a single-engined machine, 206 days later on 2 August 1920, earning Parer the sobriquet "Battling Ray". Although outside the time limit, the crew was awarded a consolation prize of £A1,000, second only to the Vimy. The DH.9 has been restored and placed on display at theAustralian War Memorial atCanberra.[3][6] The story is detailed in the book "Flight and Adventures of Parer and McIntosh" written by Emily Charnwood and first published in 1921. The machine is labelled PD after its sponsor, millionaire Peter Dawson, a whisky manufacturer, who financed the purchase of the machine and much of the journey. Parer later took part in a similar journey, theMacRobertson Trophy Air Race in 1934.
See: Long Flight Home by Lanie Anderson (2019)