5. Sir Charles Kingsford Smith pilot's licence application
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Charles Kingsford Smith 'Smithy' is one of Australia's most famous pioneer 
aviators. His pilot's licence application is a prized National Archives of 
Australia record. 

Smithy's love of flying began at an early age, in 1916 he wrote to his parents, 
'I have discovered one thing about flying and that is that my future, for 
whatever it may be worth, is bound up with it'. 

Smithy went on to make history in 1928 when he and Charles Ulm made the first 
successful trans-Pacific flight. His other major aviation achievements include 
the first flight between Australia and New Zealand, and the first non-stop 
east-west crossing of the Australian mainland. Smithy's record-breaking 
endeavours were not only courageous, they were instrumental in the development of 
mail and passenger services both within Australia and abroad. Sadly, Smithy's 
adventurous spirit saw him disappear during an attempt to break the England 
to Australia speed record. His plane was last seen over the Bay of Bengal in 1935.

Australia's first aviation company the Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial
Services, better known today as QANTAS, owes much to the early pioneers of 
aviation. Established in 1920, as a way to link remote outback settlements, the 
early years of air travel proved costly and remained an option only for the 
wealthy and adventurous. However, this all changed on 7 June 1959 when QANTAS 
registered its first 707 jet aircraft, later named the City of Canberra. 707s 
transformed travel times dramatically, changing forever the way Australian's 
viewed their relationship to world - they reduced the Sydney to London trip from 
48 to 27 hours, and crossing the Pacific went from 28 to a much more managable 
16 hours.

The City of Canberra returned home to Australia in December 2006, with the support 
of the Australian Government. This heritage icon will be on permanent display for 
all Australians to enjoy at the Qantas Founders Outback Museum, Longreach, 
Queensland.