Anzac and Aviator: The Remarkable Story of Sir Ross Smith and the 1919 England to Australia Air Race

by Michael Molkentin

"He was courageous. He was ambitious. He was skilled. He was visionary. He could be ruthless. He was someone born of a new nation. But he was of a time now long past. And yet in the language of a later generation it could be said he had the "right stuff" . . . Michael Molkentin captures [Ross Smith] brilliantly." —Andy Thomas, NASA Astronaut (Retired)

In the smouldering aftermath of the First World War a young Australian pilot and his crew prepare to attempt the inconceivable: a flight, half way around the globe, from England to Australia. The 18,000 kilometre odyssey will take 28 days and test these men and their twin-engine biplane to the limit. It is a trans-continental feat that will change the world and bring the air age to Australia. It will also prove to be the culminating act in the extraordinary and tragically brief life of its commander, Captain Sir Ross Smith.

Raised on a remote South Australian sheep station in the dying days of Australia's colonial frontier, there was little in Ross Smith's childhood that suggested a future as one of Australia's great pioneering aviators. He went to war in 1914, serving with the light horse at Gallipoli and in the Sinai before volunteering for the fledgling Australian Flying Corps. In a new dimension of warfare, Ross Smith survived two grueling years of aerial combat over Palestine to emerge as one of the most skilled and highly decorated Australian pilots of the war. In 1919 he served as a pilot on the first ever mission to survey an air route from Cairo to the East Indies before gaining international fame as the winner of the Australian government's £10,000 prize for the first airman to fly from England to Australia. An attempt to exceed this by circumnavigating the world by air in 1922 would end in disaster and tragedy.

Drawing on the rich and extensive collection of Ross Smith's private papers, Anzac & Aviator tells, for the first time, the gripping story of a remarkable aviator, the extraordinary times in which he lived and the air race that changed the world.

'Standing with Lindbergh, Earhart and Kingsford-Smith as one of the greatest pioneers of the air, Sir Ross Smith's life is brilliantly captured in this compelling biography." —Richard Champion de Crespigny AM, author and captain of QF32

Genres: Aviation, Biography, War, World War I

424 pages, Paperback

Published February 1, 2020

Reviews

[Lynda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Michael Molkentin's research and crisp clear writing is first rate. The checklist for the indomitable Sir Ross Macpherson Smith is amazing:
Remote outback upbringing in a loving South Australian family with Scottish roots
Joined the Australian Light Horse at the start of World War I
Gallipoli - survived
Palestine - survived
Observer, then pilot, in the fledgling Australian Flying Corps - survived
Promoted through the ranks, admired and appreciated by his fellow servicemen
An ever-devoted son and loving middle brother of three brothers
Cheeky, innovative, tenacious, intelligent, but humble
After five years of serving in World War I and postwar, Ross had still not reunited with his parents. He and his brother Keith decided on a daring impossible task - to accept the Australian government challenge for the first-ever flight from London to Australia in 30 days
In their freshly minted Vickers Vimy, they battled atrocious weather and constant flying over dangerous territory with few or no proper airfields or resources. Their two heroic, intrepid mechanics Walter Shiers and James Bennett, fellow servicemen of Ross, turned themselves inside out night and day to protect and reinvigorate the aeroplane.
How they did it at all is a wonder of the modern age.

[Diane Lester · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fact of history i knew nothing about. What an amazing achievement. Next time I am on a plane I will think of Ross Smith and his team.

[Adam Holloway · Rating 5 out of 5]

I grew up reading Biggles and playing ‘Red Baron’ on the PC and have always had a fascination with flying in the Great War. In more recent times I read a number of books on just how dangerous it was for the pioneer air fighters. They were courageous in just taking off in one of the earlier planes, let alone actually engaging with the enemy. I have great respect and admiration for them. As could be expected, my focus was on the Western Front aces and their exploits over the giant scar across the French landscape.

However, in Michael Molkentin’s ‘Anzac & Aviator’, I was very pleased to be introduced to the less glamorous and publicised air war over the Middle East through the amazing story of Sir Ross Smith. Smith’s early years are wonderfully presented and transport the reader into the society in which he grew up in before the war. The research is clearly impeccable given Molkentin’s academic credentials, but he presents it in a very readable and engaging way. More than once I laughed out loud or caught myself holding my breath.

Smith’s military exploits in the Light Horse and later the RFC are brilliantly told and provide yet another fine insight into these significant campaigns, which are largely unknown. Smith clearly had courage in abundance, tremendous dedication and the natural skills to successfully carry out dangerous missions on a regular basis.

It was these qualities that saw him not only survive the carnage, but to look beyond it to the possibilities that powered flight now brought. The story of his travels after the war to survey potential air routes are another amazing achievement by Molkentin as it is again another well-crafted period that held my attention. The enormity of the proposed undertaking was not lost on me and I believe this is due to the story telling.

There does not seem to have been any doubt in Smith’s mind that he could fly a Vimy to Australia in 30 days. The photographs of the Vimy are brilliant, but do not inspire the same confidence that Smith clearly had. I shook my head and wondered at the type of men these were. This was unprecedented and fraught with unimaginable dangers, yet there was no hesitation. Perhaps it was better not knowing.

My heart was in my mouth when they encountered poor weather in their relatively flimsy and open aircraft, yet they somehow got through. Not to mention the ‘airfields’ they landed on without ever surveying them. I occasionally had to remind myself that this was 100 years ago; without radar and instrument landing systems. I had to remind myself because Smith made it all seem so effortless.

Then there was the indomitable Bennett and Shiers. Thousands of miles from a workshop and undaunted at having to carry intricate repairs, and even fashion parts from scratch. To then get back in the aircraft and continue the flight demonstrates their courage and faith in their own workmanship, let alone Smith and his brother, Keith. This was a team effort, no doubt. Again, I cannot overstate that these were special men and Molkentin ensures that you invest in them.

I thoroughly recommend this book to everyone.

[Mark Green · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read in a day. So interesting