Ballina and Sir Charles Kingsford Smith

If you spend any time in Ballina, you soon realise there’s a lot of place names that commemorate the flights of Sir Charles Kingsford Smith. He was a pioneering aviator who fly in the early days of powered flight. He broke the record a few times for the flight from London to Sydney. His most famous flight, however, was the first flight from the US to Australia. But what does this have to do with Ballina?

The main sporting field in Ballina is called the Kingsford Smith park. This is located on Kingsford Smith Drive. There is a local school called Southern Cross, in honour of his plane. The annual street parade was called the Kingsford Smith festival. What gives?

It turns out to be quite a disappointment. The answer is, that on his flight from the US, the place he made landfall was at Ballina. He recognised it from the two rivers that meet at the ocean and entered it into his journal.

He didn’t land though. Once he worked out where he was, he turned hard right and flew straight to Brisbane. It was there that he received his official reception. The flight is also recorded as Los Angeles to Brisbane. No-one remembers that Ballina connection except, of course, the people of Ballina.

I’m not sure what to make of this. One explanation is that the flight was such a monumental event, that even a passing connection was to be celebrated. The other, more probably, explanation, is that not much happens in Ballina. Either way, it adds a bit of local colour to the area.