CAC Woomera – Aviation Historical Society of Australia

DerekB30/11/202223/11/2024

Australian aviation history digital archive

In its mission to preserve and promote Australia's aviation heritage, the AHSA hosts the following digital archives. Click on the image to go to...

DerekB27/04/202204/06/2023

The Aircraft Projects of Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation

This new book by author and AHSA member Joe Vella has just been published (April 2022). Joe began writing this book in 1983 when...

DerekB29/09/202027/12/2022

Australian-built Aircraft and the Industry (Vol 2) by Keith Meggs

The latest book released by author Keith Meggs Volume 2 of this encyclopaedic work (containing only one chapter, being chapter 15, spread across two...

1914 French pilot, Maurice Guillaux set out on the first official airmail flight in Australia on 18 July 1914, departing from Melbourne showgrounds with the final destination of Sydney. Guillaux was flying a Blériot XI monoplane, which is now preserved at the Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences in Sydney (known as the Powerhouse Museum). His cargo included 1,785 post-cards, some official letters (from the Governor of Victoria to the Governor of NSW and from the French Vice-Consul in Melbourne to the French Consul-General in Sydney), as well as a quantity of Lipton tea and bottles of OT Cordial products (OT and OT Lemon Squash) that were consigned to the Commercial Travellers’ Club, Sydney. The tea and cordial thus became the first air cargo flown in Australia. As the Bleriot only carried enough fuel for about 2 hours’ flying time, the route for the airmail flight was planned with regular refuelling stops, the first of which was at Seymour, 98km north of Melbourne. He also stopped in Albury, Wagga and Harden where he stopped overnight due to strong headwinds. Source: Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences

1952 Hawker Sea Fury VW622 operated by 805 Sqn FAA RN crashed at RNAS Nowra, NSW on 16 July 1952. The aircraft crashed on the runway when control was lost during a practice low altitude roll. The Commanding Officer of 805 Squadron, Lt-Commander D.R. Hare was killed in the accident. Source: aviation-safety.net website