The Move to Brisbane
On 17 April 1929, Qantas brought two new DH61 aircraft into service to inaugurate the 710km Charleville-Brisbane service, the first direct link to the coast. This brought the total route network to nearly 2380km.
The airline moved its headquarters to Brisbane. For Hudson Fysh it was a momentous occasion, tinged with nostalgia, "It was on 22 June 1930 that I got my family aboard our DH61 at Longreach and we said a rather sad farewell to the town, the scene of over nine years' struggle to establish our young company." Qantas had just completed its first one million miles (1,600,000km) and had carried 10,400 passengers.
"It will be seen," commented Fysh, "that the progress of Qantas has been comparatively back to front, extending gradually from the outback posts of Queensland and emerging into the capital city 10 years after the Company was formed."