Qantas Founders Museum facts for kids
Entrance to the main museum building
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| Location | Longreach, Queensland |
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| Type | Aviation museum |
The Qantas Founders Museum is a special place in Longreach, Queensland, Australia. It's a museum that tells the amazing story of Qantas, Australia's national airline. The museum first opened its doors on June 9, 1996. It is located inside the historic Qantas Hangar, which Qantas built way back in 1922.
This museum helps visitors learn about Qantas from its very start in Outback Queensland in the 1920s. Qantas was officially registered on November 16, 1920. Its first meeting was in Winton in 1921, where they decided to move their main operations to Longreach. The Qantas Founders Museum has many cool displays and exhibits. They share the airline's many stories from its more than 100-year history.
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Explore Historic Qantas Aircraft
The museum is home to several real aircraft. You can see them up close and even take guided tours. These planes include a huge Qantas Boeing 747-200 and a Boeing 707-138B. There's also a Consolidated PBY-6A Catalina.
You can also see replicas of early planes like the Avro 504K and the de Havilland DH.50. Another replica is the de Havilland DH.61. The museum also has a former Qantas Douglas DC-3, known as VH-EAP.
The First Qantas Jet: Boeing 707
The Boeing 707-138B at the museum was Qantas's very first jet aircraft. It was a special short-body Boeing 707, originally named VH-EBA. This plane was made just for Qantas. It is also the only 707 in a museum that still looks like it carried passengers. Other preserved 707s were used by the military.
This Boeing 707-138B was carefully fixed up in England in 2006. It returned to Australia in December 2006, 47 years after Qantas first got it. Its journey back was over 31,500 kilometers long. It took eight days to fly from England, stopping in places like Ireland, the Canary Islands, and Fiji. The Australian government helped pay for its restoration.
The 707 at the museum is known as VH-EBA and was called "City of Canberra." Fixing up VH-EBA took 15,000 hours of work. This plane was the first of its kind for Qantas. It's like a sister plane to the last 707 Qantas ordered, which was owned by Qantas Ambassador John Travolta.
Restoring the Super Constellation
In September 2014, the museum bought an old Lockheed C-121 Constellation plane. This plane had been stuck at Manila International Airport for over 25 years. It was taken apart to be shipped to Australia. Over five years, volunteers and experts worked to restore the inside and outside of the Super Constellation. They made it look like the Qantas Super Constellation 'Southern Spray' VH-EAM. This amazing restoration was finished in 2019. The plane is now on display for everyone to see.
New Airpark Roof and Light Show
In September 2019, work started on a big project: a new Airpark Roof and Light and Sound Show. This project was funded by the Australian and Queensland Governments. The Airpark Roof now protects museum visitors and the large planes like the Boeing 747, 707, DC-3, and Super Constellation from the sun.
The Light and Sound Show uses cool technology. It projects lights and sounds onto the sides of the Boeing 747, Super Constellation, and Boeing 707. This show tells the history of Qantas in a very exciting way.
Captain Cook Lounges Exhibit
In April 2021, a new exhibit was opened at the museum. It's a special replica of the Boeing 747's Captain Cook Lounges from the 1970s. These lounges were a unique feature on the first Boeing 747-200s that Qantas used starting in 1971. They were a fancy place for passengers to relax until Qantas introduced its first Business Class in 1979.
See also
- Australian Stockman's Hall of Fame
- List of transport museums
- Qantas
