used for first interstate airmail flight Following World War I, Norman Brearley, who had served with the
Royal Flying Corps, returned to Australia in 1919. He brought with him two
Avro 504J aircraft. In May 1921, the
federal government advertised for tenders for a subsidised air-mail and passenger contract, operating a weekly service between Geraldton and
Derby. Brearley submitted multiple submissions and on 2 August 1921, was advised that one of his tenders had been accepted. Brearley then set about hiring five pilots; Val Abbott, Arthur Blake, Bob Fawcett,
Charles Kingsford Smith and
Leonard Taplin. On 5 December 1921, on the first flight as an airline, Ted Broad and Bob Fawcett in the
Bristol Tourer G-AUDI crashed north of Geraldton. Brearley suspended flight operations until 21 February 1922. On 3 December 1926,
Western Australian Airways changed its name to
West Australian Airways, though for the majority of its existence it was usually referred to as simply
Airways. On 2 July 1928, Australia's first interstate airmail contract, between
Perth and
Adelaide, was awarded to West Australian Airways, for five years. Services began on 26 May 1929. The service used four new
DH-66 Hercules aircraft with space for 16 passengers and a cruising speed of . A hot luncheon was provided at
Ceduna, dinner at the airline-owned hostel at
Forrest and catering at
Kalgoorlie. On 19 April 1934, the Federal Government awarded the five-year Perth
Daly Waters route contract to
MacRobertson Miller Aviation Co. This decision left West Australian Airways with only the now unsubsidised Perth–Adelaide route. In April 1936,
Adelaide Airways Ltd offered to purchase West Australian Airways and on 12 June the purchase was finalised for
£A25,000. On 1 July, Adelaide Airways and West Australian Airways became part of the new
Australian National Airways. ==See also==