Aviation History
Australian aviation is defined above all by Qantas, founded in outback Queensland in 1920 and now regarded as one of the world's oldest continuously operating airlines. Qantas partnered with Britain's Imperial Airways in the 1930s to extend services toward Europe, was nationalized in 1947, and later led Australia into the jet age. The airline was privatized in the 1990s as Australia deregulated its domestic aviation market, a shift that also produced the dramatic 2001 collapse of rival carrier Ansett Australia. Since then, low-cost flying (Jetstar, and later Virgin Australia and regional players) and ultra-long-haul routes such as nonstop Perth-London service have shaped a competitive and geographically demanding aviation market.
Qantas (Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services) was founded on 16 November 1920 in Winton, Queensland, by Hudson Fysh, Paul McGinness and Fergus McMaster.
Qantas Empire Airways was formed in partnership with Britain's Imperial Airways to extend air services from Australia toward England.
The Australian government nationalized Qantas in 1947, making it a state-owned enterprise for the following decades.
Qantas introduced Boeing 707 jets in 1959, becoming the first airline outside the United States to operate the type and ushering in Australia's jet age.
Qantas began a phased return to private ownership, listing on the Australian stock exchange in 1993 with full privatization completed by the mid-1990s.
Ansett Australia, the country's other major full-service carrier since 1936, ceased operations in September 2001 amid financial collapse, reshaping the domestic market.
Qantas launched Jetstar in 2004 as a low-cost domestic and, later, international subsidiary brand.
Qantas began the world's first regular nonstop commercial flights between Australia and the United Kingdom, Perth to London, in 2018.
Qantas · Jetstar · Virgin Australia · Ansett Australia (historical) · Rex Airlines
General aviation history sources (Wikipedia, Qantas corporate history, National Museum of Australia, Britannica); airline market-position claims (e.g., 'oldest airline') are contested and stated with that caveat.