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On this day 100 years ago, G-EAOU, a converted World War I Vickers FB.27 Vimy Bomber, landed in Darwin at the conclusion of a stunning international flight, the first England-Australia flight and the world’s longest flight to date, in the Great England to Australia Air Race, 1919 – the achievement of which has been recently compared to no less than the Apollo Moon missions! The aircraft was flown by an experienced crew consisting of Captain (later Sir) Ross Macpherson Smith with his brother Lieutenant Keith Macpherson Smith as co-pilot and mechanics Sergeant W.H. (Wally) Shiers and J.M. (Jim) Bennett.
By Dion Makowski.
Skip forward to 1994, at the time of the 75th Anniversary, the Vimy 19/94 England to Australia flight, crewed by retired Australian Army Captain, Lang Kidby and American aviator, Peter McMillan recreated the journey in their replica Vimy, NX71MY.
Very early on Remembrance Day, 11th November, shortly after sunrise in fact, they departed Melbourne Vic on their final leg to land in Adelaide SA. commemorating the World War One service of the original crew a low fly-by of the appreciative crowd gathered below, including our photographers Dion and Sonia, shooting the only film available to them at short notice – Kodachrome ISO 25!
At Aviation Report, we have always respected this achievement and we were at Moorabbin Airport, to cover the event for the Aviation Historical Society of Australia. Today also, we salute Melbourne aviator Mike Smith’s arrival in Darwin in his SeaBear aircraft, the Southern Sun, for the Great Air Race Centenary.
The RAAF airshow at RAAF Base Edinburgh in November, 2019, also celebrated this achievement.
Aviation Report has recently been granted extraordinary access to the original aircraft which remains on display at Adelaide International Airport. We will bring you this report during 2020.
We hope the attached photos (vintage 1919 and 1994) pay tribute to the aviators and their fine and inspiring achievement, 100 years to the day (First published December 10, 2019).
This article was originally published by The Aviation Report.
Podcasts about the first 1919 England to Australia flight
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