Australia’s Centenary of Flight that began in December 2009 with Celebrations of Taylors first glider flight, is drawing to its close with the current celebrations of the flights of JJ Hammond.
First practical powered flights, and birth of civil aviation in Australia.
First Cross Country Flight in Australia – Altona to Geelong
First Passenger Flight in Australia
First Female Passenger Flight in Australia
First Paying Passenger Flight in Australia
First multiple Passenger Flight in Australia
These remarkable “firsts” are the birth of passenger and air travel flights in Australia, all previous flights were simply flights to and from the same location, and consisting of only a pilot on board.More remarkably, these flights all occurred within a 4 week period, all from Altona Bay in Victoria, all in 1911 just on 100 years ago, and all by one pilot – J J Hammond.
New Zealander J. J. Hammond, employed by the British and Colonial Aeroplane Co.(Bristol), accompanied two Bristol Box Kites to Australia, giving demonstration flights in Perth, Melbourne and Sydney, and offering the Box Kite aircraft for sale from the factory at ₤1000 and 50HP Gnome engines for ₤50.
He made his first Victorian flight at Altona Bay on 18 February 1911 for 31 minutes and up to a height of 3000 feet.
On 20 February 1911 He flew the first cross country flight between towns in Australia from Altona Bay to Geelong in Victoria, covering 40 miles in 55 minutes, returning the next day.
On 28 February at Altona Bay, Victoria, he undertook the first powered passenger flight in Australia, taking his mechanic Coles on a 7½ minute flight, and then took Mrs Hammond on a 12½ minute flight, the first woman passenger flight in Australia.
On 2 March 1911, again at Altona Bay, Hammond took J.Bailleau as the first paying passenger in powered flight in Australia covering 12 miles at 700 feet, while on 26 March 1911 Hammond flew with his assistants L.F. McDonald and Coles both as passengers to demonstrate the weight carrying performance of the Box Kite and gave many demonstration flights thereafter in Melbourne and Sydney.
Joseph Joel “Joe” Hammond was born in New Zealand in 1886, flew with the RFC in WW1 and was killed in a flying accident in 1918 in the USA.
Regards
Mark Pilkington
By: Errol Martyn - 28th February 2011 at 21:26
Mark,
The move to Sunshine was because there was no means of collecting admission money from the public at Altona.
My magazine article is primarily about the Australian tour, with just a summary of Hammond’s earlier and later careers, which are described in greater detail in my forthcoming history of early New Zealand aviation.
Errol
By: mark_pilkington - 28th February 2011 at 16:22
Errol,
Hammond, like many other contributors to Australia’s aviation history, are not getting much if any recognition on their centenaries, hence my post.
But of course corrections to record historical facts accurately are always welcomed, and I look forward to reading your serialisation with interest, particularly of the move to Sunshine in March?
Can you elaborate more on why and where that occured?, as this is the first reference I have seen of it?
As you would know, Bristol’s demonstration tour of Australia, and particularly the later demonstration flights for the Army in Sydney by McDonald on Hammond’s resignation, were a major influence on the birth of Military Aviation in Australia some 3 years later at Point Cook, with the order for the first 5 aircraft going to the Bristol and Colonial Aeroplane Company, and the first Military Flight being very appropriately undertaken in a Military Boxkite with extended upper wings but otherwise not changed from that demonstrated by Hammond in 1911.
Making for an interesting historical overlap with the 90th anniversary of the RAAF and the Centenary of Hammond all occuring in the one month.
As you would also know, Hammond went on to be an important early pioneer in his own country before the commencement of WW1, and hopefully your article is covering his later exploits through that period and to his unfortunate demise in the USA, or is it limited to the Bristol Demonstration tour of Australia?
I recently attended celebrations at the City of Hobsons Bay Library (Altona Bay) which sits opposite the original Laverton homestead and on the ground where the Boxkite was operated, and a number of locally sourced photos have come to light.
Regards
Mark Pilkington
By: Errol Martyn - 28th February 2011 at 15:07
A number of corrections, if I may:
“these flights all occurred within a 4 week period, all from Altona Bay in Victoria, all in 1911 just on 100 years ago, and all by one pilot – J J Hammond.”
The double-passenger flight took place at Sunshine, not Altona Bay. The Bristol party had moved there from Altona Bay by 15 March. ‘These flights’ took place over a 34 day period, not 4 weeks.
“50HP Gnome engines for ₤50.”
I don’t have the Gnome price off hand but it was certainly nothing like ₤50!
“On 28 February at Altona Bay, Victoria, he undertook the first powered passenger flight in Australia, taking his mechanic Coles on a 7½ minute flight, and then took Mrs Hammond on a 12½ minute flight, the first woman passenger flight in Australia.”
These flights took place on 23, not 28, February.
Ethelwyn Hammond went up first then Coles, not the other way round.
“his assistants L.F. McDonald and Coles both as passengers”
McDonald and Coles were both mechanics but McDonald also held an aviator’s certificate and also flew the Boxkite in Australia.
“flew with the RFC in WW1 and was killed in a flying accident in 1918 in the USA.”
Hammond was killed on 22 Sep 1918 as a captain with the RAF on the strength of the British Air Mission in the USA.
For those interested in learning more about Hammond and the Bristol Boxkite tour of Australia my serialised account appears in [I]New Zealand Aviation News[I] commencing with the February issue.
Errol
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February 22, 2011 at 9:18 pm