Airco DH9 aircraft

Airco DH9 biplane reconnaissance/bomber aircraft fitted with a single six cylinder water cooled Armstrong Siddeley Puma 230hp engine.

The DH9 was a late First World War modification of an earlier bomber, the DH4. The span, chord and length were the same in each case. The pilot's cockpit was moved from under the centre-section to aft of the trailing edge of the top-plane; the under-carriage was shortened, the nose built more along cigar-shaped lines, and the petrol tank capacity increased to 74 gallons from the 66 gallons of the DH4.

This example was modified for long distance travel during original use by removing the armament, and fitting a long range fuel tank. Its factory-issued radiator was damaged in a landing accident in Burma, with a replacement radiator modified from that of a Ford Overland truck.

Elements fitted during the aircraft's restoration include the top engine cowling, Irish linen wing and fuselage fabric, electrical fittings, windscreen fittings, padding around the cockpit edges, and tyres.

Lieutenants Ray J P Parer and John C McIntosh, Australian Flying Corps (AFC) flew this aircraft in a flying competition organised by the Commonwealth Government. The competition, announced in March 1919, awarded 10,000 pounds to the first Australian who successfully flew from England to Australia.

The principal conditions were; the flight must be accomplished in an aeroplane or seaplane in 720 consecutive hours, ie. 30 days; all competing aircraft and their component parts were to be constructed within the British Empire; the pilots and all the crew must be of Australian nationality; only one machine was to be used throughout the flight (though replacement parts and repairs to motors might be made en route); and the starting place must be Hounslow (England) aerodrome or Calshot (England) seaplane station, with the landing place 'in the neighborhood of Port Darwin'.

The offer remained open until midnight on 31 December 1920. Six crews, nearly all of whom were members of the Australian Flying Corps or Australians serving in the Royal Air Force (RAF), participated in the contest, which was won by a twin-engined Vickers Vimy flown by Ross and Keith Smith, and their mechanics Jim Bennett and Wally Shiers. A Frenchman (who was ineligible for competition) also started from France but did not complete the journey.

Parer and McIntosh had problems finding and funding a suitable aircraft until a Scottish Whisky Distiller, Peter Dawson, offered to support them. As a thanks to Peter Dawson for his generous sponsorship, the initials PD were painted on the side of the aircraft. Kodak supplied a camera and glass plates to record the flight.

By the time that the DH9 was ready to depart, the Vickers Vimy had already arrived in Australia and won the prize. The Memorial's DH9 aircraft, which had been modified for the flight, including the removal of armament, left Hounslow on 8 January 1920 and landed at Port Darwin on 2 August 1920. The flight had taken 208 days, with the aircraft in the air for 168 hours. It was the first single engined aircraft to complete the 20,800km flight.

Peter Dawson had asked the crew to deliver a bottle of his whisky to Prime Minister Billy Hughes. The bottle was carried in a small wicker basket attached to the inside of the aircraft.

The aircraft was acquired by the Australian War Memorial in 1923 and was displayed at the Melbourne Exhibition Building on 5 April 1925. The aircraft was restored between 1982 and 1990.


This DH9 has a special place in the Memorial's collection for a number of reasons: it is a rare survivor of the types of machines flown by Australian pilots during the First World War; it is one of four main types of aircraft to equip the RAAF when it came into being on 31 March 1921; it is closely associated with two significant individuals, Parer and McIntosh; and because of its role in opening up aerial communications and transport across the world. Today it is one of only four DH9s in the world.