AHSA Newsletter Vol. 32, No. 3, July 2016 – Aviation Historical Society of Australia

1909 The first Australian to make an untethered 'heavier than air' flight was George A. Taylor who made a series of glider flights at Narrabeen on 5 December 1909. On this day he made several flights on Narrabeen beach, north of Sydney, with the longest glide reported as 110 yards (100.6 metres). George’s wife, Florence, also had a fly in the Voisin-inspired biplane glider with its Hargrave box-kite tail, although the stout gentlemen attending the glider held on to the tethers attached to the wing tips lest she fell into the ocean. Even with this attachment, her flight was recorded as 90 yards (82.3 metres) in length and she could rightly claim to be the first woman to pilot a heavier-than-air craft in Australia. About a hundred people came to watch the aerial antics of the small group of people, friends and associates of George and Florence Taylor, as they took their turn to fly along the beach. Sources: State Library of NSW; Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences, NSW.

1911 William Hart was the first pilot to obtain an aviator's licence in Australia. The licence was issued on 5 December 1911 by the Aerial League of Australia. The ALA was recognised as the official body covering the field of aviation, and examined aviators and issued licenses in accordance with the requirements of the Royal Aero Club, London. Source: Parnell, N. and Boughton, T., Flypast, A Record of Aviation in Australia, Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra, 1988.

1921 Australia’s first scheduled airmail service, operated by Western Australian Airways Ltd, made its first delivery run when three Bristol Tourer biplanes departed Geraldton for Derby in the north-west of Western Australia. Tragedy struck when one of the aircraft, G-AUDI, crashed at Murchison House Station, 150km north of Geraldton, killing the pilot Robert (Bob) Fawcett and mechanic Edward Broad. Source: Museum of Geraldton; Parnell, N. and Boughton, T., Flypast, A record of aviation in Australia, Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra, 1988.

1996 The Government response to the Plane Safe report was tabled by the Minister for Transport and Regional Development the Hon John Sharp MP on 5 December 1996 (refer to 14 December 1995). It included a monthly CASA update on safety breaches. The Government response largely agreed with the recommendations and noted work on aviation safety indicators and the creation of an independent advisory panel to review regulations. The Senate decided to investigate the purchase of Australia's new search and rescue equipment after faults were found. Source: Minister for Transport, Media Statement TR167/96; Australian, 6 and 9 December 1996; Age 6 December 1996. via aph.gov.au website