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Charles Kingsford Smith Facts & Worksheets

Charles Kingsford Smith was a remarkable Australian aviator who broadened the horizons of commercial aviation in Australia.

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Charles Kingsford Smith was a remarkable Australian aviator who broadened the horizons of commercial aviation in Australia. He pioneered the paths that opened the door to Trans-Pacific and Trans-Tasman routes.

See the fact file below for more information on the Charles Kingsford Smith or alternatively, you can download our 26-page Charles Kingsford Smith worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

EARLY LIFE

  • Charles Kingsford Smith was born on February 9, 1897, in Brisbane, Australia. He was the family’s seventh child and fifth son.
  • His father, William Charles Smith, was a bank manager. His mother was Catherine Mary Kingsford.
  • In 1903, his father took the family to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. There, the family surname was changed to Kingsford- Smith instead of just Smith.
  • While in Canada, the family relied on William’s income from real estate. William, later on, became a clerk with the Canadian Pacific Railways.
  • Charles’ early education was obtained in Vancouver, Canada.
  • In 1907, 4 years after moving to Canada, the family returned to Sydney.
  • In Sydney, he was enrolled at St Andrew’s Cathedral School before he studied at Sydney Technical College to pursue his dream of becoming an electrical engineer.
  • By the time he was 16, he was an engineering apprentice at the Colonial Sugar Refining Company.
  • In 1915, after 2 years of being an apprentice, he enlisted in the First Australian Imperial Force to serve at Gallipoli as a dispatch rider in World War I.

WORLD WAR AND EARLY CAREER

  • He later on transferred to the Royal Flying Corps – the aviation arm of the British Army. In 1917, he earned his pilot’s wings.
  • In August 1917, he served with the 23rd Squadron of France, and just one month after earning his pilot’s wings, he was able to bring down 4 German machines and ground targets. He was shot down and received injuries, causing the amputation of 3 toes. Because of his bravery and service, he was awarded the Military Cross.
  • He was promoted to lieutenant in April 1918, and served as a flying instructor.
  • Smith was prohibited from joining the England to Australia air race. He was judged as lacking navigational experience.
  • After the war, he worked as a barnstormer in America, a stunt pilot that performed for entertainment.
  • In 1921, he returned from the States. Upon returning to Sydney, he once again worked as a barnstormer for the Diggers’ Aviation Company.
  • Later that year, he joined Australia’s first airline with regular flying schedules, Norman Brearley’s Western Australian Airways.
  • On June 1923, he married Thelma Eileen Hope Corboy. His marriage with Thelma ended in 1928.

PIONEERING THE AVIATION INDUSTRY OF AUSTRALIA

  • In 1924, Kingsford Smith formed a partnership with Keith Anderson, his fellow pilot. They bought 2 Bristol Tourers, and in 1927, partnered with Charles Ulm thus forming the Interstate Flying Services. Their launch was unsuccessful so they instead focused on launching demonstration flights.
  • Their first demonstration flight took place in June 1927. Kingsford Smith was accompanied by Ulm in completing a round-Australia circuit in only 10 days and 5 hours.
  • On May 31, 1928, Kingsford Smith, Ulm, 2 crewmen, Harry Lyon and Jim Warner, performed the first-ever trans-Pacific flight from California crossing the Pacific and landing in Brisbane, Australia on June 9.
  • Kingsford Smith used the Southern Cross, a three-engined Fokker plane.
  • Kingsford Smith was awarded the Air Force Cross. He was given the honorary title Air Commodore in the Royal Australian Air Force.
  • In August 1928, Kingsford Smith and Ulm once again took the Southern Cross and completed the first non-stop flight across Australia.
  • In September 1928, the same crew (Kingsford Smith and Ulm) again performed a record-breaking flight.
  • They wanted to demonstrate the possibility of regular passenger and mail service flights across the Tasman sea.
  • They once again used the Southern Cross to fly from Sydney, Australia to Christchurch, New Zealand. They flew blindly for most of the flight since storms kept recurring. Their radio also broke upon take-off.
  • In May 1929, he divorced Thelma Eileen Hope Corboy and remarried on December 10, 1930, to Mary Powell.
  • In 1930, he also broke the record for a solo flight from England to Darwin. He utilized what was known as the Southern Cross Junior, an Avro Avian Biplane made in the United Kingdom.
  • In January 1930, Kingsford Smith began the operation of his airline, Australian National Airways. Kingsford Smith piloted the Southern Cloud, one of the new Avro Ten planes. His airline, unfortunately, ceased operations in 1931 due to the crashing of 2 of its aircraft.
  • In 1933, he traveled solo from London to Wyndham. Because of this the Commonwealth government granted him £3000 and appointed him aviation consultant to the Vacuum Oil Co.
  • In October 1934, he and Sir Patrick Gordon Taylor flew Lady Southern Cross from Brisbane to San Francisco. This was the first west-east trans-Pacific flight.
  • In November 1935, he and John Pethybridge aimed to break the England-Australia speed record. Unfortunately, the Lady Southern Cross disappeared over the Andaman Sea on November 8, 1935.
  • The pilots’ bodies were never recovered, however,18 months after their disappearance an undercarriage leg and wheel, with its tyre still inflated, was found. It was confirmed to be a part of the Lady South Cross.
  • He and his significant contribution to the aviation industry will forever be remembered and celebrated as it broadened the horizons of human capacity.

Charles Kingsford Smith Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle which includes everything you need to know about Charles Kingsford Smith across 26 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Charles Kingsford Smith worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about Charles Kingsford Smith who was a remarkable Australian aviator who broadened the horizons of commercial aviation in Australia. He pioneered the paths that opened the door to Trans-Pacific and Trans-Tasman routes.

Complete List Of Included Worksheets

  • Charles Kingsford Smith Facts
  • The Search
  • Compare and Contrast
  • You’re Bluffing
  • Story Time
  • On Air
  • The Perfect Match
  • Puzzling
  • Time’s Up
  • Up, Up, Up, and Away
  • Air Mail

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Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

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