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| From Brisbane to Singapore 1937 Refueling at Daly Waters in the Northern Territory |
This image shows a refueling stop in Australia's Northern Territory. In 1937 when this photograph was taken aircraft has to stop several times on long flights to refuel. It was only two years earlier, on 7 April that Qantas operated its first overseas passenger flight from Brisbane to Singapore. It was a four-day trip in those days and the aircraft (partially pictured at right) was a four-engine DH86.
Demand for the service was such that two years after this journey was captured on film the DH86 was replaced by Short C Class Empire flying boats, which also operated out of Sydney.
1937 was clearly a watershed year in Singapore aviation as the Wearne Brothers launched the first commercial air service between Singapore and Malaya that year using a de Havilland Dragon Rapide aircraft called (quite appropriately) the Governor Raffles. It flew from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur and Penang.
It was also the year that Amelia Earhart departed from Lae in Papua New Guinea en-route to Howland Island. She never made it.
No Frequent Flyer points in those days and only the well-to-do could afford air travel. Qantas has also become an airline consigned to Singapore's history as it recently stopped flying there, preferring instead to go through Dubai.
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