The Allplane Podcast #17 - The Qantas Founders Museum, with Nicole Kuttner
It’s a long way to Longreach, in the outback of Queensland, Australia, but this aptly named town should be on the bucket list of every aviation history enthusiast.
In addition to being the cradle of Qantas, the Australian iconic airline, which this year is marking its 100th anniversary, Longreach is the home of the Qantas Founders Museum, one of the world’s most interesting aviation museums.
Over the last quarter of a century and mainly through donations and volunteer work, the Qantas Founders Museum, which is a nonprofit that is independent from the airline, has assembled an amazing collection of historical aircraft that, at one point in time or another, have been in Qantas service: these include a Boeing 747, a Boeing 707 and a Super Constellation, miraculously salvaged from an aircraft graveyard in the Philippines.
I spoke with the museum’s communication manager, Nicole Kuttner, to learn more about the museum, what visitors can find there and their current projects, as well as the ways in which they are marking the Qantas centenary and, more generally, the practicalities of getting to Longreach and exploring the surrounding region.
Get ready for a tour through the history of one of the world’s oldest airlines!
Download this episode from:
Apple Podcasts / iTunes, Spotify, Google Podcasts or Stitcher
Things we talk about in this episode:
The history of the Qantas Founders Museum
The museum’s collection
The recent recovery and restoration of a Lockheed Super Constellation aircraft
Qantas’ centenary celebrations this year
Visiting Longreach: things to do and to see in the outback of Queensland
Resources:
My CNN piece about the Super Connie restoration project “Rebirth of an Australian Legend”
Article about the Qantas’ centenary celebrations
Qantas 100th Anniversary safety video featuring different episodes of the airline’s history, part of it was shot at Longreach and it features the museum’s 1920s hangar
Some pictures of the Qantas Founders and Outback Museum:
Podcast Music: Five Armies by Kevin MacLeod
Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3762-five-armies
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Interview Transcript (coming soon!)
(please note that, although we strive to make it as close as possible to the original recording, the transcript may not be 100% accurate)