Charles Kingsford Smith
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Sir Charles Edward Kingsford Smith (9 February 18978 November 1935), nicknamed Smithy, was an Australian aviation pioneer. He piloted the first
transpacific flight A transpacific flight is the flight of an aircraft across the Pacific Ocean from Australasia, East and Southeast Asia to North America, South America, or ''vice versa''. Such flights have been made by fixed-wing aircraft, balloons and other t ...
and the first flight between Australia and New Zealand. Kingsford Smith was born in
Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...
. He grew up in
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
, leaving school at the age of 16 and becoming an engineering apprentice. He joined the Australian Army in 1915 and was a motorcycle
despatch rider A despatch rider (or dispatch) is a military messenger, mounted on horse or motorcycle (and occasionally in Egypt during World War I, on camels). In the UK 'despatch rider' is also a term used for a motorcycle courier. Despatch riders were use ...
on the Gallipoli campaign. He later transferred to the
Royal Flying Corps The Royal Flying Corps (RFC) was the air arm of the British Army before and during the First World War until it merged with the Royal Naval Air Service on 1 April 1918 to form the Royal Air Force. During the early part of the war, the RFC sup ...
and was awarded the
Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level until 1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) Other ranks (UK), other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth of ...
in 1917 after being shot down. After the war's end, Kingsford Smith worked as a barnstormer in England and the United States before returning to Australia in 1921. He subsequently joined West Australian Airways as one of the country's first commercial pilots. In 1928, Kingsford Smith completed the first transpacific flight, a three-leg journey from California to Brisbane via Hawaii and Fiji. He and his co-pilot Charles Ulm became celebrities, together with crew members James Warner and Harry Lyon. In the same year he and Ulm completed the first non-stop flight across Australia from
Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
to
Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...
and the first non-stop flight from Australia to New Zealand. They subsequently established
Australian National Airways Australian National Airways (ANA) was Australia's predominant aerial carrier from the mid-1930s to the early 1950s. The Holyman's Airways period On 19 March 1932 Flinders Island Airways began a regular aerial service using the Desoutter Mk.I ...
, but the airline and Kingsford Smith's other business ventures failed to achieve commercial success. He continued to participate in
air race Air racing is a type of motorsport that involves airplanes or other types of aircraft that compete over a fixed course, with the winner either returning the shortest time, the one to complete it with the most points, or to come closest to a pre ...
s and to attempt other aviation feats. In 1935, Kingsford Smith and his co-pilot Tommy Pethybridge disappeared over the
Andaman Sea The Andaman Sea (historically also known as the Burma Sea) is a marginal sea of the northeastern Indian Ocean bounded by the coastlines of Myanmar and Thailand along the Gulf of Martaban and the west side of the Malay Peninsula, and separated f ...
while attempting to break the Australia–England speed record. He was fêted as a national hero during the
Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
and received numerous honours during his lifetime. After his death Sydney's primary airport was named in his memory and he was featured on the Australian twenty-dollar note for several decades.


Early and personal life

Charles Edward Kingsford Smith was born on 9 February 1897 at Riverview Terrace,
Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...
in
Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...
,
Colony of Queensland The Colony of Queensland was a colony of the British Empire from 1859 to 1901, when it became a State in the federal Australia, Commonwealth of Australia on 1 January 1901. At its greatest extent, the colony included the present-day Queensland, ...
, the son of William Charles Smith and his wife Catherine Mary (née Kingsford, daughter of Richard Ash Kingsford, a Member of the
Queensland Legislative Assembly The Legislative Assembly of Queensland is the sole chamber of the unicameral Parliament of Queensland established under the Constitution of Queensland. Elections are held every four years and are done by full preferential voting. The Assembly h ...
and mayor in both
Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...
and
Cairns Cairns (; ) is a city in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. In the , Cairns had a population of 153,181 people. The city was founded in 1876 and named after William Cairns, Sir W ...
municipal councils). His birth was officially registered and announced in the newspapers under the surname Smith, which his family used at that time. The earliest use of the surname Kingsford Smith appears to be by his older brother Richard Harold Kingsford Smith, who used the name at least informally from 1901, although he married in
New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
under the surname Smith in 1903. In 1903, his parents moved to Canada where they adopted the surname Kingsford Smith. They returned to Sydney in 1907. Kingsford Smith first attended school in Vancouver, Canada. From 1909 to 1911, he was enrolled at
St Andrew's Cathedral School St Andrew's Cathedral School is a multi-campus Independent school, independent Anglican Church of Australia, Anglican Mixed-sex education, co-educational comprehensive education, comprehensive and specialist Primary school, primary and Seconda ...
, Sydney, where he was a chorister in the school's cathedral choir, and then at Sydney Technical High School, before becoming an engineering apprentice with the Colonial Sugar Refining Company at 16. Kingsford Smith married Thelma Eileen Hope Corboy in 1923. They divorced in 1929. He married Mary Powell in December 1930. Shortly after his second marriage he joined the New Guard, a radical monarchist, anti-communist, and fascist-inspired organisation.


World War I and early flying experience

In 1915, he enlisted for duty in the 1st AIF (Australian Army) and served at
Gallipoli The Gallipoli Peninsula (; ; ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles strait to the east. Gallipoli is the Italian form of the Greek name (), meaning ' ...
. Initially, he performed duty as a motorcycle dispatch rider, before transferring to the
Royal Flying Corps The Royal Flying Corps (RFC) was the air arm of the British Army before and during the First World War until it merged with the Royal Naval Air Service on 1 April 1918 to form the Royal Air Force. During the early part of the war, the RFC sup ...
, earning his pilot's wings in 1917. In August 1917, while serving with No. 23 Squadron, Kingsford Smith was shot down and received injuries which required
amputation Amputation is the removal of a Limb (anatomy), limb or other body part by Physical trauma, trauma, medical illness, or surgery. As a surgical measure, it is used to control pain or a disease process in the affected limb, such as cancer, malign ...
of two toes. He was awarded the
Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level until 1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) Other ranks (UK), other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth of ...
for his gallantry in battle. As his recovery was predicted to be lengthy, Kingsford Smith was permitted to take leave in Australia where he visited his parents. Returning to England, Kingsford Smith was assigned to instructor duties and promoted to
Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...
. On 1 April 1918, along with other members of the Royal Flying Corps, Kingsford Smith was transferred to the newly established
Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...
. On being demobilised in England, in early 1919, he joined Tasmanian Cyril Maddocks, to form Kingsford Smith, Maddocks Aeros Ltd, flying a joy-riding service mainly in the North of England, during the summer of 1919, initially using surplus DH.6 trainers, then surplus B.E.2s. Later Kingsford Smith worked as a barnstormer in the United States before returning to Australia in 1921. Applying for a commercial pilot's licence on 2 June 1921, he gave his name as "Charles Edward Kingsford-Smith". The '' Cowra Free Press'' told how Kingsford Smith flew under the Lachlan road bridge at
Cowra, New South Wales Cowra () is a town in the Central West region of New South Wales, Australia. It is the largest population centre and the council seat for the Cowra Shire, with a population of 8,254. Cowra is located approximately above sea level, on the b ...
, with local motoring identity Ken Richards. It went on to recount how Kingsford Smith was preparing to also fly under the nearby railway bridge, but was warned by Richards of telegraph wires just in time to prevent a catastrophe. Richards, they added, was a mate of Kingsford Smith, and had flown with him several times in France. In this version of events, the feat was accomplished "just after the Armistice" (11 November 1918), but may have been in July 1921, when Kingsford Smith was hosting "joy flights" there, in an aircraft owned by the Diggers' Cooperative Aviation Company. Later accounts have embellished the story. He became one of Australia's first airline pilots when he was chosen by Norman Brearley to fly for the newly formed West Australian Airways, and piloted their
Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...
Type 28 Coupe Tourers plane (G-AUDF) that made bi-weekly mail drops to the astronomers during the 1922 Solar Eclipse expedition at Wallal, Western Australia. Around this time he began to plan his record-breaking flight across the Pacific.


1928 Trans-Pacific flight

In 1928, Kingsford Smith and Charles Ulm arrived in the United States and began to search for an aircraft. Famed Australian polar explorer Sir
Hubert Wilkins Sir George Hubert Wilkins MC & Bar (31 October 188830 November 1958), commonly referred to as Captain Wilkins, was an Australian polar explorer, ornithologist, pilot, soldier, geographer and photographer. He was awarded the Military Cross aft ...
sold them a Fokker F.VII/3m monoplane, which they named the ''
Southern Cross CRUX is a lightweight x86-64 Linux distribution targeted at experienced Linux users and delivered by a tar.gz-based package system with BSD-style initscripts. It is not based on any other Linux distribution. It also utilizes a ports system to ...
''. At 8:54 a.m. on 31 May 1928, Kingsford Smith and his 4-man crew left
Oakland, California Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...
, to attempt the first trans-Pacific flight to Australia. The flight was in three stages. The first, from Oakland to
Wheeler Army Airfield Wheeler Army Airfield , also known as Wheeler Field and formerly as Wheeler Air Force Base, is a United States Army post located in the City & County of Honolulu and in the Wahiawa District of the Island of O'ahu, Hawaii. It is a National H ...
, Hawaii, was , taking an uneventful 27 hours 25 minutes (87.54 mph). They took off from
Barking Sands The Pacific Missile Range Facility, Barking Sands is a U.S. naval facility and airport located five nautical miles (9 km) northwest of the central business district of Kekaha, in Kauai County, Hawaii, United States. PMRF is the world's l ...
on
Mana Mana may refer to: Religion and mythology * Mana (Oceanian cultures), the spiritual life force energy or healing power that permeates the universe in Melanesian and Polynesian mythology * Mana (food), archaic name for manna, an edible substance m ...
,
Kauai Kauai (), anglicized as Kauai ( or ), is one of the main Hawaiian Islands. It has an area of 562.3 square miles (1,456.4 km2), making it the fourth-largest of the islands and the 21st-largest island in the United States. Kauai lies 73 m ...
, since the runway at Wheeler was not long enough. They headed for
Suva Suva (, ) is the Capital city, capital and the most populous city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rew ...
, Fiji, away, taking 34 hours 30 minutes (91.45 mph). This was the most demanding portion of the journey, as they flew through a massive lightning storm near the equator. The third leg was the shortest, in 20 hours (84.15 mph), and crossed the Australian coastline near Ballina before turning north to fly to Brisbane, where they landed at 10.50 a.m. on 9 June. The total flight distance was approximately . Kingsford Smith was met by a huge crowd of 26,000 at
Eagle Farm Airport Eagle Farm Airport was a small airport located northeast of Brisbane in the suburb of Eagle Farm, Queensland, Australia. History An area located near Eagle Farm Racecourse was initially used as a landing field in 1922 and Eagle Farm Aerodro ...
, and was welcomed as a hero. Australian
aviator An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators because they a ...
Charles Ulm was the relief pilot. The other crewmen were
Americans Americans are the Citizenship of the United States, citizens and United States nationality law, nationals of the United States, United States of America.; ; Law of the United States, U.S. federal law does not equate nationality with Race (hu ...
radio operator A radio operator (also, formerly, a wireless operator in British and Commonwealth English) is a person who is responsible for the operations of a radio system and the technicalities in broadcasting. The profession of radio operator has become l ...
James Warner and
navigator A navigator is the person on board a ship or aircraft responsible for its navigation.Grierson, MikeAviation History—Demise of the Flight Navigator FrancoFlyers.org website, October 14, 2008. Retrieved August 31, 2014. The navigator's prim ...
and engineer Harry Lyon. The
National Film and Sound Archive The National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (NFSA), known as ScreenSound Australia from 1999 to 2004, is Australia's audiovisual archive, responsible for developing, preserving, maintaining, promoting, and providing access to a national c ...
of Australia has a film biography of Kingsford Smith, called ''An Airman Remembers'', and recordings of Kingsford Smith and Ulm talking about the journey. A stamp sheet and stamps, featuring the Australian aviators Kingsford Smith and Ulm, were released by Australia Post in 1978, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the flight. A young New Zealander named
Jean Batten Jane Gardner Batten (15 September 1909 – 22 November 1982), commonly known as Jean Batten, was a New Zealand Aircraft pilot, aviator who made several record-breaking flights – including the first solo flight from England to New Zealand i ...
attended a dinner in Australia featuring Kingsford Smith after the trans-Pacific flight and told him "I'm going to learn to fly." She later convinced him to take her for a flight in the ''Southern Cross'' and went on to become a record-setting aviator, following his example instead of his advice ("Don't attempt to break men's records – and don't fly at night", he told her in 1928 and remembered wryly later).


1928 Trans-Tasman flight

After making the first non-stop flight across Australia from Point Cook near
Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
to
Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...
in Western Australia in August 1928, Kingsford Smith and Ulm registered themselves as Australian National Airways (see below). They then decided to attempt the
Tasman Sea The Tasman Sea is a marginal sea of the South Pacific Ocean, situated between Australia and New Zealand. It measures about across and about from north to south. The sea was named after the Dutch explorer Abel Janszoon Tasman, who in 1642 wa ...
crossing to New Zealand not only because it had not yet been done, but also in the hope the Australian Government would grant
Australian National Airways Australian National Airways (ANA) was Australia's predominant aerial carrier from the mid-1930s to the early 1950s. The Holyman's Airways period On 19 March 1932 Flinders Island Airways began a regular aerial service using the Desoutter Mk.I ...
a subsidised contract to carry scheduled mail regularly. Davis, P., 1977, Charles Kingsford Smith: Smithy, the World's Greatest Aviator, Summit Books, The Tasman had remained unflown after the failure of the first attempt in January 1928, when New Zealanders John Moncrieff and George Hood had vanished without a trace. Kingsford Smith's flight was planned for take off from
Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...
, near Sydney, on Sunday 2 September 1928, with a scheduled landing around 9:00 a.m. on 3 September at Wigram Aerodrome, near
Christchurch Christchurch (; ) is the largest city in the South Island and the List of cities in New Zealand, second-largest city by urban area population in New Zealand. Christchurch has an urban population of , and a metropolitan population of over hal ...
, the principal city in the
South Island The South Island ( , 'the waters of Pounamu, Greenstone') is the largest of the three major islands of New Zealand by surface area, the others being the smaller but more populous North Island and Stewart Island. It is bordered to the north by ...
of New Zealand. This plan drew a storm of protest from New Zealand churchmen about the "sanctity of the
Sabbath In Abrahamic religions, the Sabbath () or Shabbat (from Hebrew ) is a day set aside for rest and worship. According to the Book of Exodus, the Sabbath is a day of rest on the seventh day, Ten Commandments, commanded by God to be kept as a Holid ...
being set at naught." The mayor of Christchurch supported the churchmen and cabled a protest to Kingsford Smith. As it happened, unfavourable weather developed over the Tasman and the flight was deferred, so it is not known whether or how Kingsford Smith would have heeded the cable. Accompanied by Ulm, navigator Harold Arthur Litchfield, and radio operator Thomas H. McWilliams, a New Zealander made available by the New Zealand Government, Kingsford Smith left Richmond in the evening of 10 September, planning to fly overnight to a daylight landing after a flight of about 14 hours. The planned route was only just over half the distance between Hawaii and Fiji. After a stormy flight, at times through icing conditions, the ''Southern Cross'' made landfall in much improved weather near
Cook Strait Cook Strait () is a strait that separates the North Island, North and South Islands of New Zealand. The strait connects the Tasman Sea on the northwest with the South Pacific Ocean on the southeast. It is wide at its narrowest point,McLintock, ...
, the passage between New Zealand's two main islands. At an estimated out from New Zealand, the crew dropped a wreath in memory of the two New Zealanders who had disappeared during their attempt to cross the Tasman Sea earlier that year. There was a tremendous welcome in Christchurch, where the ''Southern Cross'' landed at 0922 after a flight of 14 hours and 25 minutes. About 30,000 people made their way to Wigram, including many students from state schools, who were given the day off, and public servants, who were granted leave until 11 a.m. The event was also broadcast live on radio. While the New Zealand Air Force overhauled the ''Southern Cross'' free of charge, Kingsford Smith and Ulm were taken on a triumphant tour of New Zealand, flying in Bristol Fighters. The return to Sydney was made from Blenheim, a small city at the north of the
South Island The South Island ( , 'the waters of Pounamu, Greenstone') is the largest of the three major islands of New Zealand by surface area, the others being the smaller but more populous North Island and Stewart Island. It is bordered to the north by ...
. Hampered by fog, severe weather and a minor navigational error, the flight to Richmond took over 23 hours; on touchdown the aircraft had enough fuel for only another 10 minutes flying.


Australian National Airways

In partnership with Ulm, Kingsford Smith established
Australian National Airways Australian National Airways (ANA) was Australia's predominant aerial carrier from the mid-1930s to the early 1950s. The Holyman's Airways period On 19 March 1932 Flinders Island Airways began a regular aerial service using the Desoutter Mk.I ...
in 1929. The passenger, mail and freight service commenced operations flying between Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne, in January 1930, with five aircraft but closed after crashes in March and November the next year.


Later flights, the MacRobertson Air Race, the 1934 Pacific Flight

After collecting his 'old bus', ''Southern Cross'', from the
Fokker Fokker (; ) was a Dutch aircraft manufacturer that operated from 1912 to 1996. The company was founded by the Dutch aviator Anthony Fokker and became famous during World War I for its fighter aircraft. During its most successful period in the 19 ...
aircraft company in the Netherlands where it had been overhauled, in June 1930 he achieved an east–west crossing of the Atlantic from Ireland to Newfoundland in hours, having taken off from
Portmarnock Portmarnock () is a coastal town in County Dublin, Ireland, north of the city of Dublin, with significant beaches, a modest commercial core and inland residential estates, and two golf courses, including one of Ireland's best-known golf clubs. , ...
Beach (The Velvet Strand), just north of Dublin. New York gave him a tumultuous welcome. The ''Southern Cross'' continued on to Oakland, California, completing a circumnavigation of the world, begun in 1928. In 1930, he competed in an England to Australia
air race Air racing is a type of motorsport that involves airplanes or other types of aircraft that compete over a fixed course, with the winner either returning the shortest time, the one to complete it with the most points, or to come closest to a pre ...
, and, flying solo, won the event taking 13 days. He arrived in Sydney on 22 October 1930. In 1931, he purchased an
Avro Avian The Avro Avian is a series of United Kingdom, British light aircraft designed and built by Avro in the 1920s and 1930s. While the various versions of the Avian were sound aircraft, they were comprehensively outsold by the de Havilland Moth and ...
he named the '' Southern Cross Minor'', to attempt an Australia-to-England flight. He later sold the aircraft to Captain W.N. "Bill" Lancaster who vanished on 11 April 1933 over the
Sahara Desert The Sahara (, ) is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of , it is the largest hot desert in the world and the list of deserts by area, third-largest desert overall, smaller only than the deserts of Antarctica and the northern Ar ...
; Lancaster's remains were not found until 1962. The wreck of the ''Southern Cross Minor'' is now in the
Queensland Museum The Queensland Museum Kurilpa is the state museum of Queensland, funded by the government, and dedicated to natural history, cultural heritage, science and human achievement. The museum currently operates from its headquarters and general museu ...
. In the early 1930s, Smith began developing the
Southern Cross CRUX is a lightweight x86-64 Linux distribution targeted at experienced Linux users and delivered by a tar.gz-based package system with BSD-style initscripts. It is not based on any other Linux distribution. It also utilizes a ports system to ...
automobile as a side project. In 1933,
Seven Mile Beach, New South Wales Seven Mile Beach is a long beach with significant historical importance, located just south of Gerringong in the Shoalhaven area of New South Wales, Australia. History In 1933, Seven Mile Beach was used by Sir Charles Kingsford Smith as the ...
, was used by Kingsford Smith as the runway for the first commercial flight between Australia and New Zealand. In 1934, he purchased a
Lockheed Altair The Lockheed Altair was a single-engined sport aircraft produced by Lockheed Aircraft Limited in the 1930s. It was a development of the Lockheed Sirius with a retractable undercarriage, and was the first Lockheed aircraft and one of the first a ...
, the '' Lady Southern Cross'', with the intention of competing in the
MacRobertson Air Race The MacRobertson Trophy Air Race (also known as the London to Melbourne Air Race) took place in October 1934 in aviation, 1934 as part of the 1934 Centenary of Melbourne, Melbourne Centenary celebrations. The race was devised by the Lord Mayor o ...
.


Disappearance and death

Kingsford Smith and co-pilot John Thompson 'Tommy' Pethybridge were flying the ''Lady Southern Cross'' overnight from Allahabad (modern
Prayagraj Prayagraj (, ; ISO 15919, ISO: ), formerly and colloquially known as Allahabad, is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.The other five cities were: Agra, Kanpur, Kanpur (Cawnpore), Lucknow, Meerut, and Varanasi, Varanasi (Benar ...
), India, to
Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...
, as part of their attempt to break the England-Australia speed record held by
C. W. A. Scott Flight Lieutenant Charles William Anderson Scott, Air Force Cross (United Kingdom), AFC (13 February 1903 – 15 April 1946Dunnell ''Aeroplane'', November 2019, p. 46.) was an English aviator. He won the MacRobertson Air Race, a race from Londo ...
and
Tom Campbell Black Tom Campbell Black (December 1899 – 19 September 1936) was an English aviator. He was the son of Alice Jean McCullough and Hugh Milner Black. He became a world-famous aviator when he and C. W. A. Scott won the London to Melbourne Centenary ...
, when they disappeared over the
Andaman Sea The Andaman Sea (historically also known as the Burma Sea) is a marginal sea of the northeastern Indian Ocean bounded by the coastlines of Myanmar and Thailand along the Gulf of Martaban and the west side of the Malay Peninsula, and separated f ...
in the early hours of 8 November 1935. Aviator Jimmy Melrose claimed to have seen the ''Lady Southern Cross'' fighting a storm from shore and over the sea with fire coming from its exhaust. Despite a search for 74 hours over the
Bay of Bengal The Bay of Bengal is the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. Geographically it is positioned between the Indian subcontinent and the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese peninsula, located below the Bengal region. Many South Asian and Southe ...
by one person, British pilot Eric Stanley Greenwood,
OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
, their bodies were never recovered. Eighteen months later, Burmese fishermen found an undercarriage leg and wheel, with its tyre still inflated, which had been washed ashore at Aye Island in the
Gulf of Martaban The Gulf of Martaban () or the Gulf of Mottama is an arm of the Andaman Sea in the southern part of Myanmar (Burma). The gulf is named after the port city of Mottama (formerly known as Martaban). The Sittaung, Salween and Yangon rivers empty in ...
, off the southeast coastline of Burma, some south of
Mottama Mottama (, ; Muttama , ; formerly Martaban) is a town in the Thaton District of Mon State, Myanmar. Located on the west bank of the Thanlwin river (Salween), on the opposite side of Mawlamyaing, Mottama was the capital of the Martaban Kingdo ...
(formerly known as Martaban). Lockheed confirmed the undercarriage leg to be from the ''Lady Southern Cross''. Botanists who examined the weeds clinging to the undercarriage leg estimated that the aircraft lies not far from the island at a depth of approximately . The undercarriage leg is now on public display at the
Powerhouse Museum The Powerhouse Museum, formerly known as the Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences (MAAS), is a collection of 4 museums in Sydney, owned by the Government of New South Wales. Powerhouse is a contemporary museum of applied arts and sciences, explori ...
in Sydney, Australia. In 2009, filmmaker and explorer Damien Lay stated he was certain he had found the '' Lady Southern Cross''. The location of the claimed find was widely misreported as "in the Bay of Bengal". However, the 2009 search was in fact at the same location where the landing gear had been found in 1937, at Aye Island in the
Andaman Sea The Andaman Sea (historically also known as the Burma Sea) is a marginal sea of the northeastern Indian Ocean bounded by the coastlines of Myanmar and Thailand along the Gulf of Martaban and the west side of the Malay Peninsula, and separated f ...
. Kingsford Smith was survived by his wife, Mary, Lady Kingsford Smith, and their three-year-old son Charles Jnr. Kingsford Smith's autobiography, ''My Flying Life'', was published posthumously in 1937 and became a best-seller. Following The Joint Australian Myanmar Lady Southern Cross Search Expedition II (LSCSEII) in 2009, Lay conducted a total of ten further expeditions to Myanmar to recover wreckage from the site. In 2011, Lay claimed to have found the wreckage, but that claim has been widely disputed, and no evidence confirming the claim has been forthcoming. The location of the site, approximately 1.8 miles off the coast of Myanmar, has never been publicly released. Lay has worked closely with both the Kingsford Smith and Pethybridge families since 2005. The privately funded project was supported by the government and people of Myanmar. In December 2017 Lay was still searching for parts of the ''Lady Southern Cross''.


Honours and legacy

In 1930, Kingsford Smith was the inaugural recipient of the Segrave Trophy, awarded for "Outstanding Skill, Courage and Initiative on Land, Water rin the Air". Kingsford Smith was knighted in the 1932 King's Birthday Honours List as a
Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised Order of chivalry, orders of chivalry; it is a part of the Orders, decorations, and medals ...
. He received the accolade on 3 June 1932 from
His Excellency Excellency is an honorific style (manner of address), style given to certain high-level officers of a sovereign state, officials of an international organization, or members of an aristocracy. Once entitled to the title "Excellency", the holder ...
Sir Isaac Isaacs, the Governor-General of Australia, for services to aviation and later was appointed honorary
Air Commodore Air commodore (Air Cdre or Air Cmde) is an air officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes ...
of the
Royal Australian Air Force The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) is the principal Air force, aerial warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Australian Army. Constitutionally the Governor-Gener ...
. In 1986, Kingsford Smith was inducted into the
International Air & Space Hall of Fame The International Air & Space Hall of Fame is an honor roll of people, groups, organizations, or things that have contributed significantly to the advancement of aerospace flight and technology, sponsored by the San Diego Air & Space Museum. Sin ...
at the
San Diego Air & Space Museum The San Diego Air & Space Museum (SDASM) is an aviation and space exploration museum in San Diego, California. It is located in Balboa Park (San Diego), Balboa Park and is housed in the former Ford Building (San Diego), Ford Building, which is li ...
. The major airport of Sydney, located in the suburb of
Mascot A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, sports team, university society, society, military unit, or brand, brand name. Mascots are als ...
, was named Kingsford Smith International Airport in his honour. The federal electorate surrounding the airport is named the
Division of Kingsford Smith The Division of Kingsford Smith is an Divisions of the Australian House of Representatives, Australian electoral division in the state of New South Wales. It is located south and south-east of Sydney CBD, comprising most of the City of Randwick ...
, and includes the suburb of Kingsford. His most famous aircraft, the ''
Southern Cross CRUX is a lightweight x86-64 Linux distribution targeted at experienced Linux users and delivered by a tar.gz-based package system with BSD-style initscripts. It is not based on any other Linux distribution. It also utilizes a ports system to ...
'', is now preserved and displayed in a purpose-built memorial to Kingsford Smith near the International Terminal at
Brisbane Airport Brisbane Airport is an international airport serving Brisbane, the capital of the Australian state of Queensland. The airport services 31 airlines flying to 50 domestic and 29 international destinations, total amounting to more than 22.7 mill ...
. Kingsford Smith sold the plane to the Australian Government in 1935 for £3000 so it could be put on permanent display for the public. The plane was carefully stored for many years before the current memorial was built. Kingsford Smith Drive in Brisbane passes through the suburb of his birth,
Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...
. Another Kingsford Smith Drive, which is located in the
Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...
district of
Belconnen Belconnen () is a Lands administrative divisions of Australia#Australian Capital Territory, district in the Australian Capital Territory in Australia. The district is subdivided into 27 divisions (suburbs), sections and blocks. As at the , the ...
, intersects with Southern Cross Drive. Opened in 2009, Kingsford Smith School in the Canberra suburb of Holt was named after the famous aviator, as was
Sir Charles Kingsford-Smith Elementary School The Vancouver School Board (VSB), officially the Board of Education of School District No. 39 (Vancouver), is a school district based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. A board of nine elected trustees governs this school district that s ...
in
Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...
, Canada. He was pictured on the Australian $20 paper note (in circulation from 1966 until 1994, when the $20 polymer note was introduced to replace it), to honour his contribution to aviation and his accomplishments during his life. He was also depicted on the
Australian one-dollar coin The Australian one-dollar coin is the second most valuable circulation denomination coin of the Australian dollar after the two-dollar coin; there are also non-circulating legal-tender coins of higher denominations (five-, ten-, and two-hundre ...
of 1997, the centenary of his birth. Albert Park in
Suva Suva (, ) is the Capital city, capital and the most populous city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rew ...
, where he landed on the trans-Pacific flight, now contains the Kingsford Smith Pavilion. A memorial stands at Seven Mile Beach in New South Wales commemorating the first commercial flight to New Zealand.
Qantas Qantas ( ), formally Qantas Airways Limited, is the flag carrier of Australia, and the largest airline by fleet size, international flights, and international destinations in Australia and List of largest airlines in Oceania, Oceania. A foundi ...
named its sixth
Airbus A380 The Airbus A380 is a very large wide-body airliner, developed and produced by Airbus until 2021. It is the world's largest passenger airliner and the only full-length double-deck jet airliner. Airbus studies started in 1988, and the pr ...
(VH-OQF) after Kingsford Smith.Qantas's sixth A380 arrives
— ''
Australian Aviation ''Australian Aviation'' is an online and print aviation publication covering the aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' include fixed-wing and rotary-wing typ ...
''
KLM KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, or simply KLM (an abbreviation for their official name Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij N.V. , ),
named one of its
Boeing 747 The Boeing 747 is a long-range wide-body aircraft, wide-body airliner designed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in the United States between 1968 and 2023. After the introduction of the Boeing 707, 707 in October 1958, Pan Am ...
s (PH-BUM) after Kingsford Smith. A trans-Encke propeller moonlet, an inferred minor body, of
Saturn Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the second largest in the Solar System, after Jupiter. It is a gas giant, with an average radius of about 9 times that of Earth. It has an eighth the average density of Earth, but is over 95 tim ...
is named after him. Australian aviation enthusiast Austin Byrne was part of the large crowd at Sydney's Mascot Aerodrome in June 1928 to welcome the ''Southern Cross'' and its crew following their successful trans-Pacific flight. Witnessing this event inspired Byrne to make a scale model of the ''Southern Cross'' to give to Kingsford Smith. After the aviator's disappearance, Byrne continued to expand and enhance his tribute with paintings, photographs, documents, and artworks he created, designed or commissioned. Between 1930 and his death in 1993, Byrne devoted his life to creating and touring his ''Southern Cross'' Memorial.


In popular culture

* Kingsford Smith made a cameo appearance as himself in the feature film '' Splendid Fellows'' (1934) * A documentary was made about his life: '' The Old Bus'' (1934) * The 1946 Australian film '' Smithy'' was based on his life, with
Ron Randell Ronald Egan Randell (8 October 1918 – 11 June 2005) was an Australian actor. After beginning his acting career on the stage in 1937, he played Charles Kingsford Smith in the film '' Smithy'' (1946). He also had roles in '' Bulldog Drummond ...
as Kingsford Smith and John Tate as Ulm *His life was dramatised in the 1966 radio play '' Boy on an Old Bus'' by Richard Lane. * The 1985 Australian television mini-series ''
A Thousand Skies ''A Thousand Skies'' is a 1985 Australian mini series about the life of Sir Charles Kingsford Smith. It was based on the novel ''The Empty Sky'' by Tasman Beattie and was partly financed by Film Victoria. The budget was $4.5 million.Ed. Scott Mu ...
'', has John Walton as Kingsford Smith and Andrew Clarke as Ulm * New Zealand author and documentarian Ian Mackersey's 1998 biography ''Smithy: The Life of Sir Charles Kingsford Smith'' (hardback , paperback *
Bill Bryson William McGuire Bryson ( ; born 8 December 1951) is an American-British journalist and author. Bryson has written a number of nonfiction books on topics including travel, the English language, and science. Born in the United States, he has be ...
details Kingsford Smith's life in his book '' Down Under''. * Australian author
Peter FitzSimons Peter John FitzSimons (born 29 June 1961) is an Australian author, journalist, and radio and television presenter. He is a former national representative rugby union player and was the chair of the Australian Republic Movement from 2015 to 20 ...
's book ''Charles Kingsford Smith and Those Magnificent Men'' explores Smithy's life and aviation history (published by ''Harper Collins'', Australia. 2009; () * The songs "Kingsford Smith, Aussie is Proud of You" and "Smithy" (1928) by Len Maurice
National Film and Sound Archive The National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (NFSA), known as ScreenSound Australia from 1999 to 2004, is Australia's audiovisual archive, responsible for developing, preserving, maintaining, promoting, and providing access to a national c ...
of Australia: Songs about Kingsford Smith featured i
'Our Heroes of the Air'
* The songs "Smithy" and "Heroes of the Air" (1928) by Fred Moore * The songs "Smithy The King of the Air" and "The Southern Cross Monologue" by Clement Williams * Kingsford Smith is depicted on the cover art of the Icehouse album ''Code Blue'' which includes their song "Charlie's Sky" * The song "Charles Kingsford Smith" by
Don McGlashan Don McGlashan (born 18 July 1959) is a New Zealand composer, singer and multi-instrumentalist who is best known for membership in the bands Blam Blam Blam, The Front Lawn, and The Mutton Birds, before going solo. He has also composed for cin ...
is on his ''Lucky Star'' album * Kingsford's disappearance was the topic of episode 22, series 1, of the TV series ''Vanishings!'' on
Story Television Story Television is an American digital broadcast television network owned by Weigel Broadcasting that airs programming which is related to history, normally older programs which are licensed from other networks. The formation of the network ...
titled "Disappearance of Charles Kingsford Smith" first aired 25 October 2003. *In a comic book story produced in Australia,
The Phantom ''The Phantom'' is an American adventure comic strip, first published by Lee Falk in February 1936. The main character, the Phantom, is a fictional costumed crime-fighter who operates from the fictional African country of Bangalla. The char ...
finds the wreckage of the ''Lady Southern Cross'' in Burma. ("The Search for Byron", ''The Phantom'' #1131, published in 1996)


See also

*
History of Aviation The history of aviation spans over two millennia, from the earliest innovations like kites and attempts at tower jumping to Supersonic speed, supersonic and hypersonic flight in powered, heavier-than-air flight, heavier-than-air jet aircraft. ...
*
List of firsts in aviation This is a list of firsts in aviation. For a comprehensive list of women's records, see Women in aviation. First person to fly The first flight (including gliding) by a person is unknown. A number have been suggested: * In 559 A.D., several pr ...
*
List of people who disappeared mysteriously at sea Nile Kinnick Throughout history, people have mysteriously disappeared at sea. The following is a list of known individuals who have mysteriously vanished in open waters, and whose whereabouts remain unknown. In most ocean deaths, bodies are never r ...


Notes

An aircraft similar to the ''
Southern Cross CRUX is a lightweight x86-64 Linux distribution targeted at experienced Linux users and delivered by a tar.gz-based package system with BSD-style initscripts. It is not based on any other Linux distribution. It also utilizes a ports system to ...
'', the '' Bird of Paradise'', had made the first flight over (though not across) the Pacific, from
California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
to
Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...
for the
United States Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical ri ...
, in 1927.


References


Sources

* Grant, James Ritchie. "Anti-Clockwise: Australia the Wrong Way". ''Air Enthusiast'', No. 82, July–August 1999, pp. 60–63. * *


External links


The Pioneers – Charles Kingsford Smith




*[https://web.archive.org/web/20050718155122/http://www.screensound.gov.au/screensound/screenso.nsf/allDocs/RWP6B6F10B0FC63D1F1CA256CE70078D7F7?OpenDocument Sir Charles Kingsford Smith Sound Recordings and Newsreels]
Photographs from an album kept by Charles Ulm's wife, Mary, including many of Charles Kingsford Smith: National Museum of Australia

Austin Byrne and the Kingsford Smith Southern Cross Memorial

"Our Heroes of the Air" (audio recordings of Kingsford Smith and Ulm
on the
National Film and Sound Archive The National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (NFSA), known as ScreenSound Australia from 1999 to 2004, is Australia's audiovisual archive, responsible for developing, preserving, maintaining, promoting, and providing access to a national c ...
of Australia's website) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kingsfordsmith, Charles 1897 births 1935 deaths Military personnel from Brisbane Australian military personnel of World War I Australian Army soldiers Australian people of English descent Aviation pioneers Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents Australian Knights Bachelor Australian recipients of the Air Force Cross (United Kingdom) Australian recipients of the Military Cross Royal Flying Corps officers Royal Air Force officers Royal Australian Air Force officers Honorary air commodores of the Royal Australian Air Force Segrave Trophy recipients People educated at Sydney Technical High School Missing aviators 1930s missing person cases Australian aviation record holders Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1935 Airline founders Australian company founders New Guard members Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in international waters