1953 London to Christchurch air race

It was intended to mark the centenary of Christchurch, also in 1950, and 50 years since the Wright brothers' first powered flight.

[3]: 22 The planes flew direct from London to the Middle East, except the DC-6A (via Italy) and the Hastings (via Greece).

After that, most of the routes were broadly similar, flying in almost a straight line via Ceylon, Cocos (Keeling) Islands and southern Australia.

The Handicap Section, rather than a race, was intended to be a trial based on a formula aimed at rewarding commercial efficiency over a long-haul route.

[9] The Harewood Gold Cup was awarded to the winners, and the prize of £10,000 was paid to the RAF Benevolent Fund.

[12][2]: 260  To deal with the extra weight, the two PR3 planes' engines were tweaked to give more thrust, and larger main-wheel hubs and brakes fitted.

The Douglas DC-6A carried 64 passengers, including many Dutch women emigrating to marry or join their husbands.

[17] The Vickers Viscount was loaned from the British Ministry of Supply to BEA,[14] with BEA livery applied, and named "RMA Endeavour", for "Royal Mail Aircraft"[18] and Captain James Cook's ship HMS Endeavour.

It made four stops, averaging only 18 minutes each, at Bahrein, Negombo, Cocos and Melbourne (Australia).

During the race, the time of arrival and departure of each plane at each airport was logged on a pair of "tally boards", located at the headquarters of Australia's Department of Civil Aviation in Melbourne.

[6] [6][15][19] The "handicap" winner Withdrew in Ceylon with a failed engine The film Bride Flight was released in 2008.