Anzac and Aviator

With special guest:

• Michael Molkentin
  … in conversation with Bill Kable

If we are looking for a genuine Australian hero then we need go no further than South Australian Sir Ross Macpherson Smith born in 1892. After he volunteered to enlist for the First World War Ross Smith had a very full but tragically short life.

His first experience of war was to wade ashore at Gallipoli, not in the first wave on 25 April 1915 and not on a horse as he might have expected having joined the 1^st Light Horse Brigade as an excellent horseman. His early experience in the War was mostly as an infantry man although he did have one engagement mounted on a horse.

However he found his real interest was in the then new-fangled airplanes operated by the Australian Flying Corps (a forerunner of the Royal Australian Air Force). Ross started off as an observer sitting in the back of a two seater bi-plane where he quickly established a reputation as one of the best. From there he was accepted into Flying School despite not having the usual social class required of British flyers. After only 14 hours flying he went solo and became what we would later describe as a flying ace with the number of enemy aircraft that he brought down in dog fights.

When the war ended in 1918 he had to confront a future where he was not living in the moment with lots of adrenaline. Ross had to work all this out for himself because although he was close to his parents they were on the other side of the world and communications had not developed to the stage where he could get counsel when he needed it.

Ross was also close to his elder brother Keith who had enlisted after Ross. When they reunited in 1919 they had not seen each other for 5 years and it was an emotional reunion. Ross had a project, a major one and he wanted Keith to be by his side as his navigator despite Keith having only limited experience of flying and less of navigating. Ross was already planning to fly from England to Australia when the Australian Prime Minister in a typical Australian manner announced a competition for the first Australian to fly from England to Australia in less than 30 days. There would be no assistance from the government in securing a suitable aircraft but the prize was £10,000 and international fame.

And so with two important team members namely the mechanics, Jim Bennett and Wally Shiers, Ross and Keith set off from Hounslow in England. After many adventures they arrived in Darwin with two days to spare. They received a hero’s welcome everywhere which went against the modest nature of Ross Smith. There was another emotional reunion when Ross saw his mother for the first time in many years after arriving back on Australian soil. Not long after this epic voyage Ross and Keith were back in England planning another trail blazing flight, this time around the world. However it was not to be after Ross died in a plane crash while testing an aircraft. Keith was watching in horror from the ground.

This is an amazing story that Michael Molkentin realised had to be told. In doing so Michael has gone to many sources including Ross’s own records. It is to be hoped that Michael’s work will lead to more research and more recognition of the achievements of Ross Smith.

If we look at a portrait of Ross Smith made when he was only 28 years of age he looks a lot older. He had a very full and adventurous life in his country’s service and for those few years afterwards when he became famous. Australia’s own dashing hero emerged from the cataclysm of World War One.

Michael Molkentin

Michael Molkentin is a teacher and historian with a particular interest in aviation and air power. He has a PhD in History from the University of New South Wales and in 2014 the Australian War Memorial awarded his doctoral research the Bryan Gandevia Prize for Military-Medical History. Michael’s first book, Fire in the Sky: The Australian Flying Corps in the First World War, was published by Allen & Unwin in 2010 and Highly Commended in the Fellowship of Australian Writers Sid Harta Literature Award for Non-fiction. His latest book, and first biography, is Anzac and Aviator: The Remarkable Story of Sir Ross Smith and the 1919 England to Australia Air Race.

Song selection by our guest: Tucson Train by Bruce Springsteen

Note: This program is an encore presentation of the one aired on 23 April 2020.

Podcast (mp3)