Many institutions hold objects related to the Smith crew and the 1919 Air Race. We’ll be adding to this section throughout the year.
If you have epic flight mementos that you’d like to showcase in our online collection, we’d love to hear from you too. Click here to contact us.
The Great Air Race of 1919 gripped Australia and the world – indeed, experts say that in its day the Vimy landing in Darwin was as awe-inspiring as man landing on the moon 50 years later. Many commemorative pieces were created to celebrate the epic achievement of Sir Ross Smith and his crew…
This collections relates to the lives of Ross and Keith Smith. After spending part of their childhood on Mutooroo Station, near Broken Hill, the boys were educated at Queen’s School in North Adelaide. In 1910, Ross joined the Australian Mounted Cadets and was selected to represent South Australia in an international tour. He enlisted in August 1914, joining the 3rd Light Horse Brigade, and fought in the Dardanelles and at Romani before transferring to the Australian Flying Corps. Keith joined the Royal Flying Corps in Britain in 1917.
