In 1919 the Australian Prime Minister Billy Hughes announced the now famous ‘AIR RACE’. A prize of £10,000 was to be awarded for the first machine to fly from London to Australia in 30 days or less. Taking up the challenge, Ross Smith applied to the British company Vickers to supply a Vickers Vimy bomber for the race, and the Smith brothers flew their way into Australian folklore.
Landing ...
Continue Reading →Yesterday I had cause to visit sunny Adelaide, the South Australian capital.
In my wanderings, I was able to visit the preserved aircraft of Sir Ross and Sir Keith Smith. In 1919, they undertook the epic flight from England to Australia, winning a highly publicised air race in the process. The aircraft is a re-fitted World War One bomber; the Vickers Vimy.
Standing beside it one could almost here the endless roar of the engines and the thrashing rain experienced in a ...
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