| Airline: | Australian National Airways |
| Founded: | 1929 |
| Commenced: | January 1930 |
| Ceased: | 1931 |
| Fleet Size: | See Aircraft below |
| Key People: |
Australian National Airways, Ltd. (ANA) was a short-lived Australian airline, founded on 3 January 1929 by Charles Kingsford Smith and Charles Ulm.[1]
ANA began scheduled services on 1 January 1930.[2] It owned five Avro 618 Tens,[1] that were British license-built versions of Kingsford Smith and Ulm's famous Fokker VII/3m Southern Cross, which also flew as an ANA aircraft although was not owned by it.
The company operated a regular passenger and airmail service between Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne that was in January 1931 extended to Launceston and Hobart in Tasmania.[3] Unable to obtain a formal mail subsidy, the deepening Great Depression saw revenues fall, a situation that worsened after the crash of VH-UMF Southern Cloud in the Australian Alps between Sydney and Melbourne on 21 March 1931. ANA ceased scheduled services at the end of June 1931,[4] although it continued to operate joy flights mostly around New South Wales,[5] and offered pilot training services with a fleet of small aircraft.[6]
Late in 1931 ANA attempted to open an Australia-England airmail service with a special Christmas airmail flight that was interrupted by the crash of VH-UNA Southern Sun in Malaya. After lengthy efforts to interest the Australian Government in subsidising a regular Australia-UK airmail service failed, ANA went into voluntary liquidation in April 1933, and its remaining assets were sold off.[7]
VH-UMF Southern Cloud (crashed March 1931)
VH-UMG Southern Star. Sold March 1933 to Hart Aircraft Service of Melbourne to operate a regular Melbourne-Launceston service and renamed Tasman.
VH-UMH Southern Sky, sold to Keith Virtue's New England Airways.
VH-UMI Southern Moon. Sold 1933 to Charles Ulm, rebuilt as the long-distance flight aircraft VH-UXX Faith in Australia.
VH-UNA Southern Sun (crashed November 1931)
VH-USU Southern Cross, owned privately by Kingsford Smith and Ulm.
VH-UOB Avro Avian, used for flight training.[8]
VH-UKE Westland Widgeon, used for flight training.[9]
VH-UQG Avro 616 Sports Avian Southern Cross Minor, used by Kingsford Smith in attempted record flight 1931 then sold.
VH-UOL Avro 621 Tutor, used for flight training.[10]
VH-UIC De Havilland DH.60G Gipsy Moth, apparently used for flight training.