“Qantas Empire Airways — Great Circle Courses”
Vintage Aviation Map Poster (c.1940)

Bold, visionary, and unmistakably of the jet-age threshold, this striking reproduction of the Qantas Empire Airways — Great Circle Courses poster captures a moment when aviation redrew the world. Issued around 1940, the map presents global air routes from an Australian viewpoint—placing Sydney at the centre and revealing the shortest paths to the four quarters of the Earth.

With sweeping great-circle arcs, ocean-spanning geometry, and the iconic long-range flying boat below, the poster celebrates precision, reach, and confidence in modern air travel.

The world, measured by flight.

✈️ Iconic Imagery from the Age of Travel

• A dramatic great-circle world map, centred on Australia

• Radiating arcs showing shortest air routes across oceans and continents

• The iconic long-range flying boat (Clipper-era silhouette) symbolising endurance and progress

• Cool blues and warm creams evoking altitude, ocean, and clarity

• Commanding QANTAS EMPIRE AIRWAYS typography anchoring the composition

📐 Size Options

Original proportions preserved. Custom sizing available on request.

🎨 Premium Format Options

📄 Paper — Printed on heavyweight 170 gsm coated paper; smooth, crisp, and ideal for framing under glass.

🧽 Laminated — True encapsulation using 2 × 80-micron gloss laminate; exceptionally durable and wipe-clean.

🪵 Laminated + Wooden Hang Rails — Natural timber rails with discreet hanging cord; ready to display straight away.

🖼️ Canvas — 395 gsm HP Professional Matte Canvas, printed with pigment-based, fade-resistant inks for rich texture and archival longevity.

🪵 Canvas + Wooden Hang Rails — Premium canvas presentation with timber rails top and bottom; effortless, elegant wall hanging.

⏳ Please allow up to 10 working days for hang-railed finishes, as each is carefully assembled by our professional framer.

🎁 Ideal For

• Collectors of aviation and airline history posters

• Qantas enthusiasts and mid-century design lovers

• Offices, studies, libraries, and boardrooms

• Interiors celebrating exploration, engineering, and global travel

🌍 A Poster That Tells a Story

At mid-century, Qantas positioned Australia not at the edge of the world, but at its centre. This poster made distance legible—and conquerable—through science and flight, transforming oceans into lines and continents into connections.

It wasn’t just a map. It was a promise: the world was within reach.

🖼️ Display with Pride

Whether framed, laminated for durability, or presented on canvas with elegant timber hang rails, this poster brings clarity, ambition, and classic aviation authority to any space.

Precise. Global. Iconic.