use Consolidated PBY Catalina flying boats to operate from
Crawley Bay on the Swan River in Perth, Western Australia to
Koggala Lake in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). Radio silence had to
be maintained and navigation was carried out using
just the stars as waypoints
With the Perth-Ceylon sector covering over 3,480
miles (5,600km) flying times could exceed 32 hours.
As such, the aircraft needed to carry so much fuel
that it was often the case that only three passengers
and a small amount of diplomatic and military mail
could be carried.
Nonetheless, by the end of hostilities in 1945
Qantas’ war effort service had been used by more
than 600 passengers. In recognition of the fact
that they had been airborne for over 24 hours,
passengers were awarded the title ‘The Rare and
Secret Order of the Double Sunrise’.
Post War Expansion
In 1947 – and after a long public debate
- the carrier was nationalised by the Labour
government. By then, orders had already
been placed for the new Lockheed L-749
Constellation for international routes and
Douglas DC-3s for shorter inter-state sectors.
The service to the UK was quickly reinstated, with the
Constellations initially providing a weekly service via
intermediate stops in Asia and the Middle East. The journey
took four days but when the early Constellations were replaced
by higher performing L-1049 versions in 1956, it cut up to 20
hours off the route in some cases.
With the acquisition of routes from British Commonwealth
Pacific Airlines (BCPA) in the early 1950s, Qantas found itself
able to offer services across the Pacific Ocean to North America
and through Asia to Mainland Europe.
In April 1954, Chief Executive C O Turner flew to London to
discuss partnership options with BOAC’s Chief Executive Sir
Miles Thomas. The collaboration would lead to a
combined BOAC/Qantas round the world service
and during the meeting Turner outlined Qantas’
plans to buy six Bristol Britannias for delivery in- Sadly, the order never materialised and the
type never saw service in Qantas colours.
The Jet Age
The Britannia was ultimately to lose out to the jet-
powered Boeing 707, which first flew in July 1954- just three months after Qantas had announced its
interest in the British turboprop.
Sparked by a large 707 order by Pan Am there was a
rush by major airlines to order new jet equipment and
while Qantas came under increasing pressure from the
British Government to order the de Havilland Comet,
the management board in Sydney had other ideas.
Although it was undercapitalised following the
purchase of the new Super Constellations and the
acquisition of BCPA, Qantas really needed to enter
the jet age.
Turner considered it was time to review the airline’s
capital position and submitted an expenditure plan to the
Government for the 1956 fiscal year.
By 1956 the Qantas fleet stood at 14 L-1049 Super
Constellations, five Douglas DC-4 Skymasters, eight Douglas
DC-3s, four de Havilland Beavers, two Consolidated PBY
Catalinas and a single DHA-3 Drover. However, in addition
to jetliners Qantas also needed another L-1049 (to stabilise
Due to growing
demand, larger
aircraft were needed
by 1938 and Qantas
ordered C Class
Empire f lying boats
from Short Brothers,
which were operated
in conjunction with
Imperial Airways.During World War
Two a number of
Qantas pilots were
to play key roles in
R AAF operations in
Papua New Guinea.
The f lying boats,
DH.86s and newly
acquired Lockheed
Lodestars (illustrated)
were also pressed into
use by the military.Lockheed L-1049
Super Constellation
VH-EAM poses for a
publicity photograph.
It was f lown by
Qantas from 1956
until 1962.
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