Q. A. N. T. A. S.

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 421, 4 January 1933, Page 3

Q. A. N. T. A. S.

"Post").

PIONEER AIR LINE LINKS UP SERVICE OVER GREATER PART OF AUSTRALIA A PROGRESSIVE CONCERN

(Special to

Negotiations have been Tecently entered into by the principal Australian air transport companies to secure the Commonwealth Government's approval to the diversion of the subsidy paid to maintain internal serviees — some of which eompete with Stateaided railways to a co-operative seheme to establish an overseas mail serxice without which the existing lines cannot hope to augment their present turnover for some years to come. The Ministry of Defence has appointed a committee of enquiry which includes representatives of interested parties and, though no findings have yet been published, it can be taken as definite that financial support will only be given to an. Australian company and that the measure of support will be determined by the length of route beyond Australian limits that the elected company will operate. Meanwhile, Imperial Airways has signified its willingness to extend the existing London-Karachi service to Singapore if Australia will bridge the gap, and the Royal Dutch Air Line (K.L.M.) is anxious to carry the Am-sterdam-Batavia route through to Australia if an adequate surcharge on all mail is paid without prejudice to the development of a future imperial line. The situation is full of in1 terest. One of the stipulations that the Federal 'Government is certain to inipose on the chosen company is that the most direct route from the port of arrival to the eastern capital cities, Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, is followed and it is considered very probable that the port of entry will be Darwin, already known as the goal of so many long-distance flights, where an aerodrome fit for landing I large aircraft and usually unaffected by the monsoon rains already exists. It is therefore, of particular interest to examine the history of Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Serviees Ltd. a company that has now for a number of years been operating lightly subsidised passengei and mail serviees on sections of the route betwee.n Darwin and the eastern capitals. Formation of Service It was late in 1920 that Q.A.N.

T.A.S. was formed by two Western Queensland sheep squatters, Fergus McMaster and A. N. Templeton, and two pilots, P. J. McGuiness and Hudson Fysh, both late of the Australian Flying Corps. The Civil Aviation Department of Australia had not been formed, and there was no control of civil aviation and little or no Government assistance. The spectacle of widely dispersed communities served by indifferent and irregular means of communication, the absence of roads and bridges and the existance of three railways running inland from the coast- unconnected at their respective heads, seemed to provide an enterprising aircraft operator with a big* opportunity. The original capital of £6850 was small but enough to provide the two pilots with two machines which in 1921 were taken to Longreach to exploit the possibilities, by joyriding and taxi work in Western Yueensland. During the first year some 1200 joy riders and 79 taxi passengers were carried and encouraging support obtained. Meanwhile the idea of linking the rail heads had not been lost sight of, and by the end of the year the organisers had been suecessful in securing* a subsidy for a CharlevilleCloncurry service. The capital of the company was inereased to £31,620, and a tender submitted to the Government for the operation of the first regular route. On November 2, 1922, this was opened with three two-passenger Armstrong Whitworth machines and one D.H.4 all war surplus stock, but cheap to purchase, relatively easy to operate and adequate for an essentially experimental service. Within a short time these machines were sup-er-ee.ded by three-passenger D.H.90's, which in turn were replaced by fourpassenger D.H. 50's. As the success of the original route

of 557- miles was recognised, serviees* were extended from Cloncurry to Camooweal on the border of Nor- ■ thern territory on February 7, 1925 — a distance of 248 miles — and from Cloncurry to Normanton on the Gulf of Carpentaria on July 1, 1927 — a distance of 215 miles. The logical completion of the Cloncurry-Charle-ville route southwards was brought into being on April 17, 1929, when a service over the 444 miles separating the latter point from Brisbane was started with eight-passenger D.H. 61 aircraft. On May 7, 1931, the company commenced operating a bi-weekly passenger and freight service along the coast between Brisbane and Townsville (730 miles), but through the lack of support and because no subsidy was granted in respect of this service it was diseontinued on September 25. - Aerial . communication has proved of the greatesthenefit to settlers with in range of the outposts of Camooweal and Normanton, and by means of it both stations have been brought within one and a-half days' journey of Brisbane, as compared with 14 days, the shortest time taken before the air service existed. One of the main causes of the suecessful weekly operation of the service over the Brisbane-Longreach-Cloncurry-Camooweal and CloncurryNormanton routes is the fact that no other means of direct transport exist between the isolated settlements that are connected by air, and because of this isolation the scheduled serviees are constantly supplemented by taxi journeys, which fact aceounts largely for the size of the fleet operated. The company undertakes taxi flights throughout every state with the exception of Western Australia and Tasmania, and, in fact, Q.A.N.T.A.S. has taken a long lead over all other compteitors in this field of activity as, until recently it was the only aircraft i operating* company in the Commonwealth to show an exeess of passenger over machine miles. Work of The Company Other activities include the maintenance of an aerial ambulance at Cloncurry which is always available for the use of the doctor in charge of the Australian Inland Mission. The doctor can be summoned to any small station by radio call, and this machine has played an enormous part in the ensuring of speedy transport of medical aid, and, in many cases, the instruments necessary to perform imniediate operations. i Q.A.N.T.A.S. has started a flying school in Brisbane where the company took up a local agency for the

j Do Havilland Aircraft Company I whose machines they use exclusively. I In addition, it has played an impor- , tant part in the rescue of pilots who have come down in central districts, because of engine failure or loss of direction. To facilitate repair work and to ensure that this is done promptly, the company has established at Longreach, a centre point on the main route, complete workshops with a wood-working plant where wooden frames and wings can be rebuilt, and a building license has been obtained from De Havillands. The only subsidy payment the company receives is in respect of the Brisbane-Camooweal and CloncurryNormanton routes and this is paid under the terms of a 3-year contract from the 10th of June, 1930 at the rate of 2/9, 2/8, 2/7 per mile for the lst, 2nd and 3rd years respectively. In spite of the heavy financial depression, due to the prolonged drought that affected the usually prosp'erous districts, the company was able to show continued progress and this is direetly attributed to the public having been educated in the uses of air travel to their gaining confidence in its safety and recognising the value of time saved by using t. I Q.A.N.T.A.S. is already a fully de- ! veloped and enterprising concern, and j when the through conneetion from j Europe and Asia is 'established, a fillip will be given to the company's business, and it should reap the full henefit of its extensive pioneer work. It is worth recording that the Q.A.N.T.A'S. company has operated since its inception exclusively on Shell spirit. Since 1930 it has used, untl this year, Golden Shell Oil in the small and Shell Super Heavy Oil in the larger power units. The company has now turned over to Aero Shell, with entlrely satisfactory results in the latter engines; the Gipsies, however, still run on Golden Shell.