No . 1 Long Range Flight RAAF No . 1 Long Range Flight was a temporary Royal Australian Air Force unit formed to participate in the 1953 London - to - Christchurch air race ( also known as the Christchurch Centenary air race ) . The flight was established in February 1953 and was equipped with three Canberra bombers , specially modified between June and August . Following extensive training , two Canberras departed for the UK in mid - September . The race began on 9 October , and one of the flight ' s aircraft placed second , with a total flying time of 22 hours and 29 minutes . The other aircraft was forced out of the race when one of its tyres burst while landing at Cocos Island to refuel , but completed its flight to Christchurch after being repaired . After a brief period in New Zealand both aircraft returned to Australia to be modified back to a standard configuration , and the flight was disbanded in November . History . Training . No . 1 Long Range Flight was formed at RAAF Base Laverton on 16 February 1953 to begin preparations for the RAAF ' s participation in the London - to - Christchurch air race . Squadron Leader Peter Raw became the unit ' s initial commanding officer 23 February , and held this position until May when the more senior Wing Commander Derek R . Cuming assumed command . Cuming had been the first man to fly a jet aircraft in Australia ( a Gloster Meteor in 1946 ) , and had previously commanded the RAAF ' s Aircraft Research and Development Unit ( ARDU ) . In announcing his appointment to command No . 1 Long Range Flight , Minister for Air William McMahon described Cuming as the " RAAF ' s outstanding test pilot " . The flight received its first aircraft , the Canberra bomber A84 - 307 , on 15 June 1953 . This aircraft had been built in Britain as the RAAF ' s first Canberra , and was flown to Australia by Wing Commander Cuming in July 1951 . The journey had been completed in 21 hours and 41 minutes , setting an unofficial record for the route . The flight ' s second aircraft , A84 - 201 , arrived on 1 July . This was the first Australian - built Canberra and was assigned to No . 1 Long Range Flight shortly after being completed . The second Australian - built Canberra , A84 - 202 , was also assigned to the flight in August . All three aircraft were modified for their specialised role by No . 1 Aircraft Depot . These modifications included fitting distance - measuring equipment in each of the aircraft and three fuel tanks in their bomb bay s . Wing Commander Cuming told journalists in August that the Australian - made Canberras were preferred to the British models on the grounds of national prestige and because the aircraft were fitted with superior navigation equipment . A84 - 307 was retained by the flight , however , as the reserve aircraft to be used if modifications to A84 - 202 were not completed in time for the race . No . 1 Long Range Flight undertook intensive training in the lead - up to the race . This involved making regular long range return flights between Laverton and Ceylon , Singapore and Christchurch via various air bases in Australia . These exercises were used to establish fuel consumption rates and practice the refuelling and navigation practices that would be used in the race . As part of this training the flight broke many Australian and New Zealand air speed records , setting the fastest time for crossing the Tasman Sea during a flight between RAAF Base Amberley and Christchurch on 16 August . An aeronautical engineer was attached to No . 1 Long Range Flight from the Department of Air to calculate the optimum route for the Canberras to take . On 2 September Cuming and Raw visited the Government Aircraft Factories facility at Fishermans Bend in Melbourne to thank the workers who were building Canberra bombers for the RAAF . Race and aftermath . Selected as Australia ' s entries in the London - to - Christchurch air race , A84 - 201 and A84 - 202 departed Laverton bound for the UK on 10 September 1953 , and arrived at RAF Lyneham on the 16th of the month . Detachments of No . 1 Long Range Flight ground crew were stationed in the UK , Bahrain , Ratmalana Airport in Ceylon , Cocos Island in the Indian Ocean and Chirstchurch . The first of these detachments departed Australia for the UK on 9 September . The detachments that were stationed at Bahrain and Ratmalana Airport left Laverton on board a RAAF Dakota transport on 25 September . Each of the detachments was led by a RAAF navigator , whose main role was to develop a flight plan for the next leg of the race and provide it to the aircrew to minimise the time they spent on the ground . The RAAF also supported its entrants and the aircraft from other countries by deploying an air traffic control team and specialised radar equipment to Christchurch , as well as stationing P - 2 Neptune long - range patrol aircraft at Cocos Island , Perth and RAAF Base East Sale for search - and - rescue coverage . The Royal Australian Navy aircraft carrier HMAS " Vengeance " and destroyer were stationed in the Tasman Sea to provide weather reports for the race . The London - to - Christchurch air race began on 9 October . A84 - 202 , which was piloted by Wing Commander Cuming , took off from London Airport at 3 : 50 am . A84 - 201 , piloted by Squadron Leader Raw , followed five minutes later . Each of the Canberras was also manned by a co - pilot and a navigator . The aircraft flew separately to Bahrain , where they made a brief refuelling stop , then continued to Ratmalana Airport and Cocos Island where they refuelled again . One of A84 - 202 ' s tyres burst while landing at Cocos Island , putting it out of the race . At this time A84 - 202 was two minutes ahead of A84 - 201 and 15 minutes ahead of any of the entrants from the Royal Air Force ( RAF ) . A84 - 201 continued and next landed at RAAF Woomera Airfield in South Australia to refuel . Its nose wheel locked up while landing due to ice accretion , but this was able to be repaired and the aircraft took off at 0 : 19 am , local time . The repairs delayed the aircraft by 83 minutes , however . A84 - 201 arrived at Harewood Airport in Christchurch at 4 : 32 am local time , and placed second in the race with a flight time of 22 hours and 29 minutes . The winning aircraft , RAF Canberra WE139 , completed its flight in 22 hours and 25 minutes . The £3 , 000 prize money awarded to Raw for placing second was later donated to the RAAF Welfare Trust Fund . On 10 October two replacement tyres were flown to Cocos Island to repair A84 - 202 . The aircraft departed on the 12th of the month and flew to Christchurch via Laverton ; its total flying time was 22 hours and 23 . 5 minutes . Cuming later told journalists that A84 - 202 ' s crew had drunk beer and gone for a swim while waiting for their aircraft to be repaired . Both Canberras later flew demonstration flights over Harewood Airport and RNZAF Base Whenuapai and returned to Laverton on 19 October . The aircraft were transferred to No . 1 Aircraft Deport on 2 November to be returned to standard configuration , and No . 1 Long Range Flight ' s overseas detachments had all returned to Australia by 6 November . The flight was disbanded on the 16th of the month . The total cost of the RAAF ' s entry in the air race was £ 50 , 000 , which Minister McMahon claimed was a " bargain rate " given the results of the air force ' s participation . After No . 1 Long Range Flight was disbanded , Wing Commander Cuming returned to the ARDU . He was subsequently appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire ( OBE ) on 31 December 1953 for leading the flight and participating in the London - to - Christchurch air race . Squadron Leader Raw was also awarded the Air Force Cross for his role in the race , the decoration being presented to him by Queen Elizabeth II at Brisbane on 10 March 1954 . Raw had assumed command of No . 2 Squadron on 18 December ; this was the first RAAF squadron to be equipped with Canberra bombers . Flight Lieutenant Francis Noel Davies , who had been Raw ' s co - pilot during the race , and two other airmen were killed on 16 June 1954 when A84 - 202 crashed near Amberley . Wing Commander Cuming presided over the four - man court of inquiry which investigated the cause of this accident . As of May 2011 , A84 - 201 was a gate guard at RAAF Base Amberley .