N.Z. ANTARCTIC EXPEDITION

Press, Volume XCIV, Issue 28157, 21 December 1956, Page 7

N.Z. ANTARCTIC EXPEDITION

REPLACEMENT WING FOR AUSTER TOO LIGHT TO BE USED (New Zealand Press Association) DUNEDIN, Dec. 20. H.M.N.Z.S. Endeavour sailed from Dunedin at 11 o'clock tonight despite the fact that no replacement wing for the Auster reconnaissance aircraft h&s yet been found. "We have reports that the United States fleet is through the pack ice and that conditions down there at present are favourable,’’ said the leader of the expedition (Sir Edmund Hillary) tonight. “With these good conditions, it is possible that the loss of the Auster as a spotter aircraft to guide Endeavour through tne pack ice will not hold us up as much as expected.’’ A vain attempt was made this morning to replace the damaged starboard wing of the expedition's aircraft with the wing of an Auster Autocar aircraft, which was flown to Taieri. Technicians. under Squadron Leader J. Hardy, the chief technical officer at Wigram, worked quickly this morning dismantling the Autocar’s wings. However, when this was done, it was discovered that they were of lighter construction than those of the expedition’s Auster, and thus the interchange could not be made. Another replacement wing has not .yet been discovered in Australia, ’although the attempt to find one is continuing. If Endeavour leaves New Zealand without a replacement wing for the Auster, a new wing, or the old one repaired, will eventually be flown down by an aircraft of the United States expedition. The United States authorities have already offered to do this.

PLANS FOR FAREWELL AT BLUFF (New Zealand Press Association) INVERCARGILL, December 20. The New Zealand Antarctic expedition’s ship Endeavour will sail from Bluff for the Antarctic at 11 o’clock tomorrow night. The official farewell to members of the expedition will now be held at the Bluff town hall at 6.05 A special train will take school children, parents and others interested, to Bluff tomorrow afternoon. Officials in Bluff and Invercargill did not learn officially of the scheduled arrival and departure times until about 5 p.m. today. From then until late in the evening they were at work recasting the arrangements which had been made when the vessel was scheduled to leave Bluff this afternoon. At the official farewell tomorrow speakers will include the Mayor of Bluff (Mr H. J. Burke), the Mayor of Invercargill (Mr A. L. Adamson), and the chairman of the Bluff Harbour Board (Mr E. N. Adams). The Minister of Health (Mr J. R. Hanan) will represent the Government.