NEW LINER AWATEA.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 206, 31 August 1936, Page 10

NEW LINER AWATEA.

TALK BY RADIO TELEPHONE. BROADCAST TO-MORROW NIGHT. (By Telegraph.—rress Association.) WELLINGTON, Sunday. Duriner the voyage of tlie Union Steam Ship Company's 14.000-ton liner Awatea from the C'iyde to Wellington there have been frequent radio-telephone communications with New Zealand, and on Saturday night, when the Awatea was 1900 miles away, there was a very successful demonstration of the ship's radio equipment and that of the Post Office commercial radio station, ZLW, Wellington. The Awatea called up Mr. N. S. Falla, chairman and managing-director of the company, and when contact was established the listener in Wellington was switched through to the captain's cabin, the Awatea having a complete system of telephone inter-communication. Mr. Falla was able to talk with the captain and the chief engineer, the reception at both ends being almost as easy as if conversations were taking place over local circuits instead of nearly 2000 miles across the Pacific. It foreshadowed the next development in radio telephony, which will enable transTasman travellers to "ring up" land telephones in Australia and New Zealand at any stage of the voyage. "Reception was extraordinarily clear," said Mr. Falla. "and it is a source of great satisfaction to be able to communicate so readily with a ship over four days away from New Zealand. The Awatea was steaming at IS knots at the time and had just emarged from a heavy storm. She is proceeding at economical cruising speed, and will arrive in the stream at Wellington at 8 a.m. on Thursday. It is intended to conduct a broadcast from the Awatea on Tuesday evening for the benefit of New Zealand radio listeners who tune in to the national stations."