Australia's first jet airliner, a Boeing 707, returned home today to become part of the Qantas Founders Outback Museum at Longreach. Originally named the City of Canberra, the four-engine plane will join a Boeing 747 and Douglas DC3 at the museum, which celebrates the airline's history and early aviation.The 707, which Qantas sold in 1979 after 20 years' service, had been parked in England for six years, after finally operating as a VIP carrier for the Saudi Government.
Retired and holidaying Qantas engineers have spent the past five months ensuring the aircraft's airworthiness, and company crew still certified on the type flew it to Sydney today via the US mainland, Honolulu, and Fiji. The jet's final destination is Longreach.
Qantas chairwoman Margaret Jackson said the 707 had brought the world to Australia.
1 comment:
Southend was the home to this Venerable Airliner. It's a very nice and tidy aircraft now. I believe it is an original short fuselage (10ft shorter than standard) series 138B model. It is good that aircraft can be preserved for future generations, my particular favourite is the Douglas DC-3 which can still be seen operating from Coventry Airport in the UK. These are operated by Air Atlantique/ Atlantic Airways.
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