GEORGE ROBERTS, OAM

27 December 1909 - 24 August 2009

George Roberts poses proudly with the Qantas Hastings Deering stairs which he helped to design. George was an honoured guest at QAM on 1 July 2007 when he participated in the unveiling of the Wicko Cabin Sports replica. Seventy-six years earlier, George had assisted Geoff Wikner with the construction of the original aircraft. During his visit to QAM, George confided in the photographer his plans for his forthcoming 100th birthday. George was still driving on an unlimited licence at the time and he was hatching a plan to drive through the Sydney Harbour Tunnel on his 100th birthday - at 100 miles per hour! George's only concern was that he might not get caught, thus denying him the speeding ticket to prove it. At his age, the loss of his licence was not a concern. Sadly, George never got to implement his plan, passing away four months short of his centenary. Perhaps his maker had decided that it wasn't such a good idea after all.
Photo: Ron Cuskelly