Q a n t a s’
Early
Ye a r s
Service (RFDS) which, like Qantas, has become synonymous
with life in the Australian outback.
By the end of the 1920s the company had grown into an
established aviation business and in April 1929 it moved
headquarters yet again, this time to the State capital of Brisbane.
The move started a major period of expansion for Qantas, which
would set it on the path to becoming a major player in world
aviation affairs.
In 1931 Qantas entered into an agreement with Britain’s
Imperial Airways to fly mail from Darwin to Brisbane. The
service was part of an experimental route between Britain
and Australia, which would see the British carrier fly the mail
to Darwin and then transfer it across to Qantas for onward
shipment to Brisbane.
In turn this would lead to the establishment of Qantas Empire
Airways, which saw Imperial Airways and Qantas each take a
50% share and Hudson Fysh appointed as Managing Director.and Mckinlay – but the 304-mile (489km) flight didn’t initially
go as planned. Fysh wrote in his memoirs: “When I opened the
throttle with a roar we started moving hastily towards a fence,
the revs were down and we were not getting the usual lift; I
pulled back on the throttle and taxied back for another try.
After three attempts we taxied back to the hangar and changed
aircraft, [Armstrong Whitworth FK.8] G-AUDE being available
from its previous service; we transferred our load and set out
for another try, this time with more success; my passenger was
enthralled by the whole event.”
By 1924, Qantas had made its first major fleet upgrade and
a de Havilland DH.50A was pressed into service. The larger
aircraft was a welcome relief for the fledgling carrier and it had
an enclosed cabin with room for four passengers plus a single
pilot. The airline later started constructing a second aircraft with
Maintenance Director Arthur Baird taking full responsibility
for its assembly.Aeromedical
During the late 1920s Qantas was to play a key role in
pioneering aeromedical services and in May 1928, Australian
Aerial Medical Service signed a contract with the airline to
operate on-demand medical flights with one of its DH.50As.
The first medical flight departed Cloncurry on May 17, 1928
and very soon the facility became known as the Flying Doctor
Service. In time this would become the Royal Flying DoctorB •
One of Qantas’
f irst aircraft was R AF
BE.2c C6986. It had
been built for the
Royal Flying Corps
and was the f ifth civil
aircraft registered in
Australia. It was used
until 1926.B - Qantas’ first
Avro 504K, seen at
rest between f lights in
- The aircraft is
f itted with an inline
Sunbeam Dyak
engine and would
later be registered as
G-AUBG.
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