Hart Aircraft Service Pty. Ltd. was an Australian aviation company registered at
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
in mid-1929 with directors James Hart, John Hider and Norman Charles Trescowthick. Director James Hart (c1891-1951) was a former
Royal Flying Corp
"Through Adversity to the Stars"
, colors =
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, march =
, mascot =
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, decorations ...
aviator who had flown as gunner for
Hereward de Havilland
Hereward de Havilland (2 December 1894 in Nuneaton, Warwickshire – 12 September 1976 in Australia) was a pioneer British aviator, test pilot and member of the de Havilland company. One of the three sons of Rev. Charles de Havilland, he was ...
.
Norman Trescowthick had served with distinction in the Australian Flying Corps' famous 4th Squadron with Arthur H. Cobby during the First World War.
History
Although intended as an aircraft manufacturing and repair business based at
Essendon Airport
Essendon Fields Airport , colloquially known by its former name Essendon Airport, is a public airport serving scheduled commercial, corporate-jet, charter and general aviation flights. It is located next to the intersection of the Tullamarine ...
, by late 1929 it owned a
De Havilland Gipsy Moth
The de Havilland DH.60 Moth is a 1920s British two-seat touring and training aircraft that was developed into a series of aircraft by the de Havilland Aircraft Company.
Development
The DH.60 was developed from the larger DH.51 biplane. ...
VH-UKV ''Diana'' that it used for charter flights. It serviced the aircraft of the first
Australian National Airways
Australian National Airways (ANA) was Australia's predominant aerial carrier from the mid-1930s to the early 1950s.
The Holyman's Airways period
On 19 March 1932 Flinders Island Airways began a regular aerial service using the Desoutter Mk.I ...
(ANA) when it began regular flights to Melbourne in 1930. The company became Australian agents for
Desoutter
The Desoutter Aircraft Company was a British aircraft manufacturer based in Croydon. It was founded by Marcel Desoutter and produced aircraft during the late 1920s and the 1930s.
History
The company was formed in December 1928 to manufacture t ...
aircraft, and one of these machines was used in the unsuccessful searches for ANA's missing
Avro 618 Ten
The Avro 618 Ten or X was a passenger transport aircraft of the 1930s. It was a licensed version by Avro of the Fokker F.VIIB/3m.
Development
In 1928 Avro came to an arrangement with Fokker to license production of its successful F.VIIB/3m fo ...
''Southern Cloud'' over several months in 1931.
In April 1933 the company began a regular passenger service between Melbourne and
Launceston, Tasmania
Launceston () or () is a city in the north of Tasmania, Australia, at the confluence of the North Esk and South Esk rivers where they become the Tamar River (kanamaluka). As of 2021, Launceston has a population of 87,645. Material was copied ...
(sometimes via
Flinders Island
Flinders Island, the largest island in the Furneaux Group, is a island in the Bass Strait, northeast of the island of Tasmania. Flinders Island was the place where the last remnants of aboriginal Tasmanian population were exiled by the colon ...
) using the
Avro 618 Ten
The Avro 618 Ten or X was a passenger transport aircraft of the 1930s. It was a licensed version by Avro of the Fokker F.VIIB/3m.
Development
In 1928 Avro came to an arrangement with Fokker to license production of its successful F.VIIB/3m fo ...
VH-UMG ''Tasman'', formerly ANA's ''Southern Star''. It was later authorised to carry airmails on this service. However, following its failure to be awarded a contract for this leg of the
Empire Air Mail Scheme
Empire Air Mail Scheme (EAMS) was an attempt by the British Air Ministry to regain leadership of world civil aviation in the late 1930s following the establishment of The Air Mail Route from Cairo to Bagdad in the early 1920s. Conceived in 1934 ...
early in 1934, it withdrew from the Tasmanian service in March of that year.
Hart Aircraft Service continued its aviation servicing business at Essendon Airport until 1938 when it sold its operations to
Victorian & Interstate Airways
Victorian or Victorians may refer to:
19th century
* Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign
** Victorian architecture
** Victorian house
** Victorian decorative arts
** Victorian fashion
** Victorian literature ...
.
[''The Herald'', 23 November 1938]
Fleet
*
De Havilland Gipsy Moth
The de Havilland DH.60 Moth is a 1920s British two-seat touring and training aircraft that was developed into a series of aircraft by the de Havilland Aircraft Company.
Development
The DH.60 was developed from the larger DH.51 biplane. ...
*
Avro 618 Ten
The Avro 618 Ten or X was a passenger transport aircraft of the 1930s. It was a licensed version by Avro of the Fokker F.VIIB/3m.
Development
In 1928 Avro came to an arrangement with Fokker to license production of its successful F.VIIB/3m fo ...
See also
*
List of defunct airlines of Australia
This is a list of defunct airlines of Australia.
See also
* List of airlines of Australia
* List of airports in Australia
References
Further reading
*
{{List of defunct airlines
*
#Australia
Airlines
An airline is a company ...
*
Aviation in Australia
Aviation in Australia began in the 1920s with the formation of Qantas, which became the flag carrier of Australia. The Australian National Airways (ANA) was the predominant domestic carrier from the mid-1930s to the early 1950s. After World War ...
References
{{Airlines of Australia
Defunct airlines of Australia