An artist’s impression of the Alliance Airlines Fokker 70 paying tribute to the 1919 Great Air Race winners. (Alliance Airlines)
Alliance Airlines said it would paint a Fokker 70, due to be delivered to Australia in December, with a special livery that features the winners of the 1919 Great Air Race. The aircraft, VH-NUY, will honour pilots Ross and Keith Smith, along with mechanics Sergeants Walter Shiers and James Bennett, who won the competition in their Vickers Vimy G-EAOU. The aircraft took off from Hounslow aerodrome in West London on November 12 1919 and landed at Fannie Bay in the Northern Territory 29 days later. Countries they flew through before reaching Australia included France, Italy, Greece, Egypt, Iran, Pakistan, India, Myanmar, Singapore and Indonesia before reaching Australia. Alliance Airlines said VH-NUY would recreate the route from London to Darwin, aiming to touch down exactly 100 years to the minute at 15 40hrs on 10th December 2019. The livery was designed by Netherlands-based Lila Design.
The crew of the Vickers Vimy that won the 1919 Great Air Race – Keith Smith, Ross, Smith, James Bennett and Walter Shiers. (Photo - State Library of South Australia)
And there was only one winner.
On the morning of November 12 1919, pilots Ross and Keith Smith, along with mechanics Sergeants Walter Shiers and James Bennett, took off in their Vickers Vimy G-EAOU from Hounslow aerodrome in West London. Over the next 29 days they passed through countries including France, Italy, Greece, Egypt, Iran, Pakistan, India, Myanmar, Singapore and Indonesia before touching down at Fannie Bay, Northern Territory. The realisation that it was possible to fly from Australia to Great Britain was part of the inspiration that spurred the founding of Qantas, by Paul McGinness and Hudson Fysh, in 1920.
Now, a hundred years after the Great Air Race, aviation enthusiasts and scholars around the world will be able to more easily get an insight into the thoughts of Sir Ross and Sir Keith from a century ago after the State Library of South Australia added the pair’s personal records to its digital collection. The collection offers access to flying records and service records related to the air race, including photographs, newspaper cuttings, correspondence and the diary of Ross Smith, the State Library said in a statement on March 22. This includes the log book for the Vickers Vimy biplane, photographs during the flight and letters written to their parents throughout the journey, as well as a letter from Dame Nellie Melba congratulating the brothers on the successful journey. “The story of the Great Air Race, the men and the plane has strong South Australian connections with global importance,” State Library of South Australia director Geoff Strempel said. “It is with great pride that the Library has been able to make this internationally significant collection available online and provide world-wide access. “The website is the result of many hours of hard work involving staff across the Library and ensures the preservation of the original records.” The digital collection can be accessed for free on the State Library of South Australia website. In addition to digital display, the History Trust of South Australia will hold an exhibition at the State Library called Heroes of the skies: The Smith Brothers and the Great Air Race of 1919 due to open in November 2019.
To celebrate the centenary of the Great Air Race in 1919, a new Great Air Race is being held later in 2019. The Great Air Race 2019 will be for electric-powered aircraft, with batteries to be charged using renewable energy sources such as solar and wind, or by hydrogen fuel cells, with the hydrogen to be produced by renewable energy. And competitors will have to complete the journey within 30 days.
More details can be found at greatairrace.com.au.
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