Qantas History

The name Qantas Airlines may evoke images of cute and cuddly koala bears, but in actual fact Qantas has a long and distinguished history that’s inextricably linked with the history of Australian aviation.
In March of 191, W. Hudson Fysh and Paul McGinness, two officers from the Australian Flying Corps, decided to enter an aviation race that not only offered £10,000, but also the chance to make history as the first Australians to fly from Great Britain to Australia within 30 days. Although they couldn’t get funding, their interest led them to act as surveyors and suppliers over a portion of the race route from Queensland to the Northern Territory. As they travelled the dusty roads of the Outback in a Model T, they became convinced that Australia needed a domestic air service to link the Outback with the rest of the country.
Aided by seed money from investors, in 1920 the two aeronautical entrepreneurs purchased their first aircraft and adopted a company name, the Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services Limited — which was shortened to its acronym, “QANTAS.”
Within the year, Qantas flew a total of two airplanes — an Avro 504K (which sometimes fell to pieces in mid-flight) and a Royal Aircraft Factory BE2E. A total of 871 passengers flew Qantas in this first year — with no serious accidents.
During the 1920s, Qantas gradually extended its flight operations to cover much of Australia. By 1929, Qantas opened a new headquarters in Brisbane, where the company not only built the first private hangar in the city but also created the Brisbane Flying School. Within the next year, Qantas had logged one million miles, and had also carried a total of 10,400 passengers.
The 1930s heralded a large number of airmail contracts for the growing airline, including several with links to British carriers. In 1931, the company made a pivotal airmail run, carrying 25,000 letters from Australia to England. By 1934, Qantas began the first scheduled airmail service from Brisbane.
With the beginning of World War II, Qantas played an important part in the Allied war effort by continuing its route from Australia to England, a route that soon became a crucial line of communication. Qantas also continued its thrice-weekly services to Singapore until the very moment in 1942 when the island nation was captured by the Japanese, after which the last Qantas flying boat barely escaped back to safety. Throughout the war, Qantas crews continued to fly on dangerous missions throughout the islands of the Pacific.
When the war ended, Qantas began the next chapter of its history by modernising its aircraft; this overhaul began with a $5.5 million purchase of four long-range pressurized airplanes from Lockheed. The company also began using DC3 aircraft for domestic routes throughout Australia and nearby islands. In 1947, Qantas was sold to the Australian government, thus continuing its role as Australia’s first and foremost overseas air fleet.
The next several decades saw continued expansion for the airline, which culminated in the 1990s when the company won a $400 million bid for another company, Australian Airlines; at this point, the Australian government elected that the entire Qantas group would be privatised. This move also motivated Qantas to launch several branches, including Jetstar, a lower-cost airline, and Tasman.
Today, Qantas looks forward to the year 2020, when the distinguished airline will have completed 100 years as the pivotal force behind the history of Australian aviation.