1953 London to Christchurch air race

The race winner WE139, competitor "3", an RAF English Electric Canberra piloted by Flight Lieutenant Burton, shown at RAF Abingdon, now on display at the RAF Museum in London

The 1953 London to Christchurch air race, the "Last Great Air Race",^[1] was about 12,000 miles (19,000 km) long, from London Airport (now London Heathrow) to Christchurch International Airport in New Zealand, and took place in October 1953 after Christchurch declared their airport as international in 1950. It was intended to mark the centenary of Christchurch, also in 1950, and 50 years since the Wright brothers' first powered flight.^[2]: 259

Race description

Wing Commander Cuming's RAAF Canberra B20, competitor "4", during a refuelling stop at Colombo, Ceylon

Squadron Leader Raw's RAAF Canberra B20, competitor "5", at London Airport awaiting the race

Canterbury International Air Race Council was formed in Christchurch in 1948 to plan the race, together with the British Royal Aero Club.^[3]: 4–5 It was divided into an outright Speed Section, and a Handicap Section for commercial transport aircraft. Each plane was allowed to select its own route, as long as it was generally south-east, and any necessary intermediate stops.^[4] Several planes dropped out before it began; this left five military jet bombers and three commercial propeller-driven planes.

The race started on Thursday 8 October at 16:30 GMT.^[2]: 260 The time in New Zealand was 12 hours ahead, as British Summer Time had ended four days earlier,^[5] and New Zealand didn't use daylight saving time then.^[A] The three commercial planes took off at five-minute intervals. The military jets followed, again at five-minute intervals, starting at 17:35;^[6] they were delayed by an hour, to avoid a photo finish in the dark about 24 hours later.^[7] Each plane was allowed 168 hours of elapsed time from the final plane's takeoff.^[3]: 22

The planes flew direct from London to the Middle East, except the DC-6A (via Italy) and the Hastings (via Greece). After that, most of the routes were broadly similar, flying in almost a straight line via Ceylon, Cocos (Keeling) Islands and southern Australia. Canberra number "1" even managed to fly past Cocos without stopping.^[2]: 261 However, the DC-6A flew further north, via West Pakistan, Burma, Indonesia and northern Australia. A great circle route would have been a few hundred miles shorter, over Finland and Japan.^[8]

The prizes for each Section were the same: 1st £10,000; 2nd £3000; 3rd £1000; 4th £500.^[3]: 22 These are New Zealand pounds, which matched UK pounds at the time. The Handicap Section, rather than a race, was intended to be a trial based on a formula aimed at rewarding commercial efficiency over a long-haul route.^[3]: 7

The Speed Section was won by a Royal Air Force English Electric Canberra PR3 flown by Flight Lieutenant Roland (Monty) Burton and navigated by Flight Lieutenant Don Gannon. The plane touched down at Christchurch (Harewood) Airport at 05:37 local time during a heavy storm, 40 minutes quicker than its closest rival, after 23 h 52 min, including 83 minutes on the ground. This record still held in 2024, and is equivalent to 494 mph (795 km/h) around a great circle separation of 11,791 mi (18,976 km).^[9] The Harewood Gold Cup was awarded to the winners, and the prize of £10,000 was paid to the RAF Benevolent Fund.^[10] Second in the Speed Section was Squadron Leader Peter Raw of No. 1 Long Range Flight RAAF in an Australian-built Canberra. The distance, by the route followed, was quoted as 12,270 miles (19,750 km),^[11] so that the speed in the air for all five jets was 544–548 miles per hour (875–882 km/h), with an average overall speed (including intermediate stops) of 402 mph (647 km/h).

The Canberras were all fitted with extra fuel tanks in the bomb bays.^{[12][2]: 260} To deal with the extra weight, the two PR3 planes' engines were tweaked to give more thrust, and larger main-wheel hubs and brakes fitted.^[12] Any wingtip fuel tanks or pods seen on the Canberras were absent during the race.^[1]

In the transport Handicap Section, a BEA Vickers Viscount finished first, followed by a Douglas DC-6A of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines which was declared the winner on handicap. A Royal New Zealand Air Force Handley Page Hastings also took part. The Viscount was fitted with extra fuel tanks in place of seats,^[13] enabling it to fly in five stages, as opposed to eight for the DC-6A; the Hastings had also expected to fly in eight stages.^[4] The handicap deductions were well-known before leaving London, but BEA welcomed the publicity from the race.^[14] The DC-6A's adjusted time was 49:57 − 44:30 = 5:27^[15] (this is often misquoted as 37:30, but that was the elapsed time to Darwin^[16]).

The Douglas DC-6A carried 64 passengers, including many Dutch women emigrating to marry or join their husbands. The same passengers left Schiphol (Amsterdam) for London on the day before, on a Douglas DC-6B. The race plane was labelled "DC-6A", built as a dual-purpose or convertible plane, with some seats, and cargo doors. It carried the name "DR. IR. M.H. DAMME", plus "TRADE WINGS" and "21". Dokter Ingenieur Marinus H. Damme was a Dutch engineer, aviation businessman and politician. DC-6A planes were also called "Liftmaster". A Dutch "bride flight" in July 1952 is sometimes confused with this one.

The Handley Page Hastings carried cargo for the New Zealand Air Force. After stopping at Athens (Greece), Shaibah (near Basra, Iraq) and Masirah Island (Oman), an engine was ruined by a storm near Ceylon, then the flaps were damaged while landing at Negombo (Ceylon), causing the plane to withdraw from the race. It remained stranded there for ten days.^[1] The Hastings has been described as the world's last four-engine tail-wheel transport giant.^[17]

The Vickers Viscount was loaned from the British Ministry of Supply to BEA,^[14] with BEA livery applied, and named "RMA Endeavour", for "Royal Mail Aircraft"^[18] and Captain James Cook's ship HMS Endeavour. It made four stops, averaging only 18 minutes each, at Bahrein, Negombo, Cocos and Melbourne (Australia). However, its lack of passengers and cargo led to it being declared second for this Section, behind the DC-6A. The Viscount was the world's first turboprop-powered airliner.

During the race, the time of arrival and departure of each plane at each airport was logged on a pair of "tally boards", located at the headquarters of Australia's Department of Civil Aviation in Melbourne. The press and public were present to witness the progress. Unfortunately the boards omitted five of the times.^[6]

The commercial planes being displayed at London Airport before the race

KLM's Douglas DC-6A was competitor "21" and carried a group of emigrants to New Zealand

Competitor "22", RNZAF Handley Page Hastings

Vickers Viscount in BEA markings as competitor "23"

Competitors

^[6][15][19]

							Time (h:min)		Speed (mph, km/h)[B]		(h:min)
Number	Result	Pilot	Operator	Aircraft	Identity	Stops	Elapsed	Ground	Overall	Flying	Note
Speed Section
1	4	Wing Commander Hodges	540 Squadron Royal Air Force	Canberra PR7	WH773	3	35:32	13:06	345 (555)	546 (879)	Bad generator at Perth (12:19)
2	3	Flight Lieutenant Furze	540 Squadron Royal Air Force	Canberra PR3	WE142	4	24:35	2:02	499 (803)	544 (875)
3	1	Flight Lieutenant Burton	540 Squadron Royal Air Force	Canberra PR3	WE139	4	23:52	1:23	514 (827)	545 (877)	The "speed" winner
4	5	Wing Commander Cuming	No. 1 Long Range Flight Royal Aus. Air Force	Canberra B20	A84-202	4	80:10[21]	57:47	153 (246)	548 (882)	Burst tyre at Cocos (55:00)
5	2	Squadron Leader Raw	No. 1 Long Range Flight Royal Aus. Air Force	Canberra B20	A84-201	4	24:32	2:05	500 (800)	546 (879)	Frozen nose wheel at Woomera (1:26)
Handicap Section
21	1	Captain Kooper	KLM	Douglas DC-6A	PH-TGA	7	49:57[19]	3:03	261 (420)	278 (447)	44:30 handicap deduction.[19] The "handicap" winner
22	_	Wing Commander Watson	41 Squadron Royal New Zealand Air Force	Handley Page HP.95 Hastings C3	NZ5804	_	_	_	_	_	35:00 handicap deduction.[19] Withdrew in Ceylon with a failed engine
23	2	Captain Baillie	British European Airways	Vickers Viscount 700	G-AMAV	4	40:42	1:12	301 (484)	310 (500)	No handicap deduction

Airports

Ground time durations (h:min)^[6]

Country	City	Airport[19]	1	2	3	4	5	21	22	23
UK	London	London	dep.	dep.	dep.	dep.	dep.	dep.	dep.	dep.
Italy	Rome	Ciampino[22]						0:22
Greece	Athens	Ellinikon							0:27
Iraq	Baghdad	Baghdad West Airport						0:17
Iraq	Basra	RAF Shaibah	0:30	1:10	0:30				0:29
Bahrein	Bahrein	Bahrein				0:12	0:15			0:15
Oman	Masirah	RAF Masirah							0:25[C]
West Pakistan	Karachi	Karachi						0:25
Ceylon	Colombo	RAF Negombo	0:17	0:30					end	0:18
Ceylon	Colombo	Ratmalana			0:14	0:14	0:14
Burma	Rangoon	Rangoon						0:31
(Indian Ocean)	Cocos (Keeling)	Cocos Island		0:11	0:22	55:00[D]	0:10			0:22
Indonesia	Djakarta	Kemayoran						0:26
Australia	Perth	Perth	12:19	0:11	0:17
Australia	Darwin	Darwin						0:25
Australia	Woomera	RAAF Base Woomera					1:26
Australia	Brisbane	Eagle Farm[24]						0:37
Australia	Melbourne	Essendon[14]								0:17
Australia	Melbourne	Laverton[E][21]				2:21[F]
New Zealand	Christchurch	Harewood	arr.	arr.	arr.	arr.	arr.	arr.		arr.

In popular culture

The film Bride Flight was released in 2008.^[26]

Notes

1. In reports, the time in Australia was GMT + 8:00 (western), 9:30 (central) or 10:00 (eastern); daylight saving time was not used then.
2. Calculated using 12,270 mi,^[11] except 13,064 mi for "21".^[20]
3. Tally board had only ETA.^[23]
4. Tally board departure was prefixed with "11", meaning "11 October".
5. Not to be confused with Laverton Airport, Western Australia.
6. Tally board arrival was prefixed with "11", meaning "11 October". Departure and final arrival were blank. Melbourne departure 09:20 eastern Aus. time = 23:20 GMT.^[25]

References

1. "The Last Great Air Race: London to Christchurch 1953". Air Force Museum of New Zealand. 2 October 2018. Retrieved 24 November 2024. 2nd picture shows the entire lineup.
2. Bennett, John (1995). Highest Traditions: The History of No. 2 Squadron, RAAF (PDF). Canberra: Australian Government Publishing Service. pp. 259–262. ISBN 0-644-35230-2.
3. "Christchurch City Council Archives CCC/ARC/700" (PDF). Christchurch City Council. October 1953.
4. "Air Race is Result of Five Years' Planning: Routes Planned". Examiner (Launceston). 6 October 1953. p. 2.
5. "When is British Summer Time (BST) in Force?". Greenwich Mean Time. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
6. "1953 London to Christchurch Air Race". Airways Museum. Retrieved 24 November 2024. Shows the tally boards.
7. "London - Christchurch Air Race Speed Section". The Queensland Times. 8 October 1953. p. 1.
8. "Great Circle Mapper". Retrieved 24 November 2024. London to Christchurch
9. "NAA Record Detail". Records Database. National Aeronautic Association. 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
10. "Flight Lieutenant Don Gannon". The Times. 24 October 2006. Archived from the original on 18 September 2011.
11. "British Military Aviation in 1953". Royal Air Force Museum. 2020. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
12. "BAC Canberra PR.3 WE139/8369M" (PDF). Royal Air Force Museum. 2017. p. 1.
13. "(untitled)". Vickers Viscount Network. Archived from the original on 16 November 2022. Retrieved 24 November 2024. Shows Viscount's extra fuel tanks.
14. "Viscount c/n3". Vickers Viscount Network. 2024. 11 October 1953. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
15. "Records Go In Air Race". The Chronicle (Adelaide). 15 October 1953. p. 7.
16. "KLM Racing to Brisbane". Sunday Times (Perth). 11 October 1953. p. 1.
17. Ballantine, Colin (1985). 40 Squadron RNZAF: To the Four Winds. Auckland: The Lodestar Press of New Zealand. p. 16. ISBN 0-86465-025-6.
18. "Douglas C-47A Skytrain (DC-3) - BEA - British European Airways". Airliners.net. 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2024.
19. "The Centenary Air Race, London To Christchurch" (PDF). The Airpost Journal. November 1953. pp. 44–45.
20. "50 This Golden Age of the Flying Dutchman" (PDF). Holland Herald. 1969. p. 32.
21. "Last Jet Finishes Air Race". The Northern Star (NSW). 13 October 1953. p. 5. Refers to previous day as "today" and "this morning". Tally board final arrival was blank.
22. "Air Race Canberras Flying at 700 M.P.H." Lithgow Mercury. 9 October 1953. p. 1.
23. "R.A.A.F. and R.A.F. Fight Out Air Race: Handicap Section". The Sydney Morning Herald. 10 October 1953. p. 1. As "Mesira".
24. "'Flying Dutchman' Wins Transport Section". Warwick Daily News (Qld). 12 October 1953. p. 1.
25. "Jet Missed Race Because of 1000/1 Chance". The Daily News (Perth). 12 October 1953. p. 9.
26. "Bride Flight". IMDb. Retrieved 24 November 2024.

External links

• Newsreel of the race. British Pathe (video).
• Presentation of prizes. British Pathe (video).
• Amateur film of the race. Christchurch Movie Club (video), re-edited 1997. Inaccurate editing and narration: it misidentifies planes; invents a Viscount stop at Athens, using Christchurch footage; then shows a non-race wingtip-tank Canberra.
• Account by a jet crew member. The Canberra Times, 9th October 1991.