Qantas Airways Boeing B737-800 VH-XZJ 'Mendoowoorrji' Lands at Longreach Airport on Charity Joyflight from Sydney

We've been lucky enough to be able to share with you some spectacular photos taken by Sydney-based avgeek Mark H-H as he joined the special Qantas Drought Relief flight to Longreach on Saturday 20 October.

The charity flight was operated by Qantas Airways Boeing B737-800 VH-XZJ 'Mendoowoorrji' and touched down at Longreach Airport direct from Sydney as QFA1360.

Photo taken by Greg Weir  ©

In August, Qantas announced a partnership with charity Rural Aid to help fund hay bales, water trucking, groceries and mental health counsellors for farming communities struggling to survive the worst drought conditions parts of Australia have seen in decades.

The program includes an immediate $1 million cash donation by Qantas to Rural Aid, followed by a number of Qantas and Jetstar appeal initiatives to raise another $1 million with the help of customers. Qantas will then match these fundraising efforts, with the aim of providing the charity with a total donation of $3 million by the end of 2018

Among the fundraising initiatives included two special fundraising charter flights from Sydney to Longreach and Tamworth in October. These will be operated by volunteer Qantas crew with revenue given directly to Rural Aid’s initiatives.

After the guests on the Qantas Drought Relief Flight arrived in Longreach, they enjoyed an afternoon tea before touring through the Qantas Founders Museum and its Boeing B707 and B747-200 followed by a barbeque.

VH-XZJ returned to Sydney from Longreach Airport after dark as QFA1361.

Of interest, VH-XZJ, 'Mendoowoorrji' is the fourth aircraft in Qantas' flying art series, inspired by the work of late West Australian Aboriginal painter, Paddy Bedford.  The artwork on this aircraft is an interpretation of the 2005 painting 'Medicine Pocket' which captures the essence of Mendoowoorrji, Paddy Bedford's mother's country in the East Kimberley region of Western Australia.

Paddy Bedford was born on Bedford Downs Station in West Australia and worked as a stockman for much of his life before taking up painting in his 70s. He was a founder of the Warmun art movement and was credited for inspiring a generation of Indigenous artists.

For this project, Qantas and Balarinji collaborated with the Bedford Trust and the National Gallery of Australia to ensure design of the fuselage stayed true to the original painting.

Mendoowoorrji was painted at Boeing's headquarters in Seattle, USA and delivered into the Qantas fleet in November 2013. The design took over 950 man hours to complete over a five days period and used 500 litres and 125kg of paint.

The designers worked with 140 nylon stencils to re-created the more intricate design. The techniques used to achieve the paint strokes and detailed shading on the fuselage were a Boeing first.

Our sincere thanks to Mark for allowing us share his great photos of what looked like a great day in Longreach!  Thanks mate!

Photos taken by Mark Helliwell-Holmes  ©