Well when I travelled there in 1991 the flies were plentiful. I did have a photo of the back of the person ahead of me's jacket but I can't find it right now. If you brushed them off them, they just swarmed you.
From history books Aussies used to wear cork hats - may or may not be true.
The theory behind cork hats is that the dangling corks go some way to keeping flies off your face. Visitors from other parts of the world might not understand why this is necessary, but it is. In the United Kingdom, one buzzing fly might be mildly annoying. In an Australian outback destination such as
Uluru,
Kings Canyon,
Lake Eyre or
Balladonia, seemingly zillions of
flies can descend on you. On a hot day, it is particularly hellish – no amount of frantic arm-waving seems to shake them off.