SEVENTY five years ago, there was great excitement when Qantas launched its first Short Empire Flying Boat service between Rose Bay and Singapore.

In what's a bizarre sight to today's flyers, passengers climbed the wings of the plane and stood on top, as the aircraft sat in the water.

How things have changed ...

The fascinating image is part of a collection of historic photographs Qantas has shared on social media sites to celebrate the 75th anniversary of its original Short Empire Flying Boat service.

They provide an insight into what flying was like in the early days of commercial air travel and leave us wondering, was flying more fun - and glamorous - back then?

Sure, it took three days to fly between Sydney's first international airport at Rose Bay, to Singapore's Kallang Airport. But what an adventure.

There were overnight stops in Townsville, Darwin and Surabaya, Indonesia.

The flight would have been made more bearable by the fact there were just 15 passengers on each flight, so there was plenty of room. Plus there were large windows and huge seats.

The Short Empire flying boat service was replaced in 1943 by the long-range Catalina flying boat. The airline began with joy flights in 1920.

More on the history of Qantas here