England-Australia Flights

-Flight - EA 1919

England-Australia, 1919.—Capt. Ross Smith and Lt. K. M. Smith, with Sergeants W. H. Shiers and J. M. Bennett, on a Vickers "Vimy" biplane (two 350 h.p. Rolls-Royce "Eagle VIII").

Left Hounslow November 12 (9.10 a.m. G.M.T. Arrived Port Darwin December 10 (5 a.m. G.M.T.).

Time 4 weeks 2 days. Distance 11,294 miles.

-Flight - EA 1920

England-Australia. 1920.—Lt R Parer and Lt. J. Mclntosh on a D.H.9 biplane.

Left Hounslow January 9. Arrived Port Darwin August 2.

Ray Parer and John Cowie Macintosh persuaded Scottish millionaire distiller Peter Dawson to give them the money for an aeroplane, but only dared ask enough for an F.E.2b (although they would have preferred a DH.9). When Mr Dawson heard this, he scolded them and gave them another cheque. Battling their way through delays, innumerable forced landings and hair-raising exploits, they finally arrived nearly 8 months later, skint and with empty fuel tanks, only the second crew ever to make the journey. They missed out on the £10,000 prize for the first flight in under 30 days, but were given £1,000 as a consolation.

-Flight - EA 1926

England-Australia, 1926.—Sir Alan Cobham and A. B. Elliott on a D.H.50J biplane seaplane (385 h.p. Armstrong Siddeley "Jaguar").

Left Rochester June 30. Arrived Port Darwin August 5. Time 5 weeks.

At Basra Elliott was fatally shot by an Arab. Flight continued with Sgt. Ward, R.A.F.

At Darwin wheels were fitted and machine flown to Melbourne and back.

-Flight - EA 1926

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Australia-England, 1926

Sir Alan Cobham, Sergt. Ward and C. S. Capel. Return flight.

Left Darwin September 4. Arrived Thames, Westminster, October 1.

Time 3 weeks 6 days. Total 28,000 miles in 78 days.

-Flight - EA 1927

England-Australia, 1927-28.—Capt. William Newton ('Bill') Lancaster and Mrs. Keith ('Chubbie') Miller, on an Avro "Avian" (32 h.p. "Cirrus ").

Left Croydon October 14. Crashed Muntok, D. East Indies, January 10, 1928.

Resumed flight March 12, 1928. Arrived Port Darwin March 19, 1928.

Bill Lancaster was killed in April 1933, flying Kingsford Smith's Avian 'Southern Cross Minor' VH-UQG after a forced landing in the Sahara; the aeroplane, and his mummified remains, were only discovered 29 years later. He had kept a diary of the 8 days following the crash. The aircraft remains are now on display in Australia.

-Flight - EA 1928

England-Australia (solo), 1928.-—Sqn Ldr Bert Hinkler on an Avro "Avian" (30-80 h.p. "Cirrus").

Left Croydon February 7 (0.48 a.m.). Arrived Port Darwin February 22 (6 a.m.).

Time 15 days. Distance 11,000 miles. Record.

-Flight - EA 1929

Australia-England, 1929.—Sqd. Ldr. C. E. Kingsford-Smith, C. T. P. Ulm, T. McWilliams and H. A. Litchfield, on a Fokker monoplane Southern Cross (three Wright " Whirlwind").

Left Sydney June 25. Arrived Croydon July 10.

12,000 miles in 12 days 14 hr. 18 min.. (Ex. Derby.) Record.

-Flight - EA 1929

England-Australia, 1929.—Fit. Lt. S. James Moir and P/O. Harold C. Owen (both RAAF) on G-EBYX, a Vickers " Vellore" (460 h.p. Armstrong- Siddeley "Jaguar"). Left Brooklands March 18. Arrived Cape Don Lighthouse, N. Australia, May 26. Moir and Owen either mistook the Cape Don lighthouse for Port Darwin, or were forced down by engine failure, and landed there in the dark on May 18th with shark-filled seas on one side and crocodile-infested lagoons on the other. They then lived at the lighthouse until they were found on May 26th.
They had also had a bit of an incident in Egypt on March 23rd, making a forced landing at Mersa Matruh, about 160 miles west of Alexandria. Here is Owen (I think) examining some broken bits,
and a view of the machine at a somewhat unconventional attitude.
However, "A new wing and undercarriage were sent out to North Africa, and the machine was transported to Cairo. On May 1 it left Cairo."

-Flight - EA 1929-30

England-Australia (solo), 1929-30 —Francis C. Chichester on a D.H. "Moth" ("Gipsy").

Left Croydon December 20. Arrived Port Darwin January 25 (or 27).

Time 5 weeks.

The "bespectacled, adventurous, somewhat gauche but determined young man" was suprised by the fame the flight brought him. "I was only trying to achieve a private target which I had set myself"

-Flight - EA 1930

England-Australia, 1930 —F/O Harold L. Piper and F/O C Kay on a Desoutter monoplane ("Cirrus Hermes").

Left Croydon February 9. Arrived Port Darwin March 23.

Time 7 weeks.

-Flight - EA 1930 AJ

England-Australia (solo), 1930.—Amy Johnson on "Jason", a D.H. "Moth" ("Gipsy").

Left Croydon May 5. Arrived Port Darwin May 24.

9,900 miles in 19 days.

Amy's first long-distance flight (she had gained her RAeC certificate only the previous June, and hadn't flown more than 200 miles before this). She bought a second-hand Moth from Wally Hope, painted it green and called it "Jason".

She crashed a few times on the way - mostly because her landings were "often atrocious", but became the world's heroine.

-Flight - EA 1930 CKS

England-Australia (solo), 1930 —Wing Cmdr C. E. Kingsford-Smith on an Avro "Avian Sports" ("Gipsy II" ) , Southern Cross Junior.

Left Heston October 9. Arrived Port Darwin October 19.

10,000 miles in 9 days 21 hr. 40 min. Record.

-Flight - EA 1930 CWH

England-Australia (solo), 1930

Flt Lt Cedrick Waters Hill, from RAF Henlow, on a D.H. "Moth" ("Gipsy").

Left Lympne October 5. Crashed near Atamboea October 17.

Resumed flight December 9, reached Port Darwin December 10.

Time 7 weeks 5 days.

His Gypsy Moth, G-ABEN, was sold in Australia the following March and became VH-UPV; Mrs Lores Bonney then used it to make a solo Australia-England flight 10.4.33-21.6.33.