23 January – De Havilland Australia conducts the first flight of its 3 engined Drover transport aircraft at Bankstown Airport.
19 February – An Avro Lincoln bomber crashes at RAAF Base Amberley in Queensland, killing 16 Royal Australian Air Force personnel.
25 February – Robert Cosgrove is reinstated as Premier of Tasmania after being cleared of corruption charges on 22 February.
8 May – Margaret McIntyre becomes the first woman elected to the Parliament of Tasmania. She is killed in a plane crash later in the year.
29 May – A federal referendum is held, asking one question on Rents and Prices. It is not carried.
1 July – The Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme is introduced.
21 August – A state election is held in Tasmania. The result is a hung parliament, but Robert Cosgrove and Labor retain power with the support of an independent, William Wedd.
2 September – The Douglas DC-3 Lutana crashes near Nundle, New South Wales, killing all 13 on board.
21 September – H.V. Evatt becomes President of the United Nations General Assembly.
29 November – The first Holden car, the model 48-215, popularly known as the FX, rolls off the assembly line. The on-road cost was approximately £760.
1 December – The body of an unidentified man is found on a beach in Adelaide in the Taman Shud Case.
16 December – HMAS Sydney is commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy as its first aircraft carrier.
