Image Aviator William Ewart Hart's biplane, 1911

TLF ID R3351

This is a 23.4 cm x 38.8 cm sepia-toned photograph of the homemade biplane of one of Australia's first aviators, William Ewart Hart (1885-1943), after its 1911 landing on the Sydney Showground, New South Wales. A crowd has gathered around the aircraft, obscuring Hart from view.





Educational details

Educational value
  • This asset shows a crowd of people gathered to welcome William Ewart Hart, the man credited as being 'Australia's first aviator' - Hart was a Sydney dentist who, in 1911, became the first Australian to be awarded a pilot's certificate by the Royal Aero Club in England, after teaching himself to fly and passing tests in Australia; Hart was later granted the first Australian pilot's certificate at Penrith, NSW and, during the First World War, he was a flying instructor for the Australian Flying Corps.
  • It shows the conclusion of one of Hart's pioneering flights - he had just flown from Penrith to Sydney to become the only person ever to land on the Sydney Showground and take off again; during the course of the journey, Hart reached a speed of almost 60 kilometres per hour and a height of 1,980 metres; previously, on 4 November 1911, Hart had made the first cross-country flight in Australia, flying from Penrith to Parramatta Park, and covering the distance of 18 miles in 12 minutes.
  • It features Hart's homemade biplane - it was fitted with a 37-horsepower engine; the seat was on the front of the machine, so the pilot had no defence against the weather; the fabric wings had been coated with a mixture of sago and hot water that tightened the material as it dried; although the plane was extremely difficult to fly because it was very slow, it flew for a total of about 16,000 kilometres; towards the end, however, it was crashing almost weekly.
  • It shows that Hart's machine appears very flimsy by today's standards, illustrating the dangers faced by early aviators - the small powered engines available at the time could not lift much weight, so there was no protection for pilots involved in crashes; in 1914, Hart was almost killed when his plane crashed from a height of about 90 metres, breaking both his legs and fracturing his skull.
  • It shows some of the buildings at the Sydney Showground, including an early grandstand.
  • It shows men's clothing, including trousers held up by suspenders - almost half the men appear to be dressed in white clothing, suggesting they may have been either playing or practising cricket prior to the appearance of Hart's aircraft.
Year level

2; 3; 4; 5; 6; 7; 8; 9; 10; 11; 12

Learning area
  • History
  • Studies of society and environment

Other details

Contributors
  • Author
  • Name: Sydney Morning Herald
  • Organization: Sydney Morning Herald
  • Description: Author
  • Contributor
  • Name: National Library of Australia
  • Organization: National Library of Australia
  • Description: Content provider
  • URL: http://www.nla.gov.au
  • Name: Sydney Morning Herald
  • Organization: Sydney Morning Herald
  • Description: Author
  • Name: Education Services Australia
  • Organization: Education Services Australia
  • Description: Data manager
  • Copyright Holder
  • Name: National Library of Australia
  • Organization: National Library of Australia
  • Publisher
  • Name: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Organization: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Description: Publisher
  • Address: VIC, AUSTRALIA
  • URL: http://www.esa.edu.au/
  • Resource metadata contributed by
  • Name: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Organisation: Education Services Australia Ltd
  • Address: AUSTRALIA
  • URL: www.esa.edu.au
Access profile
  • Colour independence
  • Device independence
  • Hearing independence
Learning Resource Type
  • Image
Rights
  • © Education Services Australia Ltd and National Library of Australia, 2013, except where indicated under Acknowledgements