MR MACMILLAN APOLOGISES

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28490, 21 January 1958, Page 12

MR MACMILLAN APOLOGISES

Incident At Airport (New Zealand Press Association) AUCKLAND, January 20. The British Pri.ne Minister, Mr Macmillan, is to send an apology to the Australian Air Minister. Australian newspapers claimed that Mr Macmillan had snubbed the Minister, Mr F. M. Osborne, and a large party of officials and service chiefs who gathered at Richmond airfield, near Sydney, today to welcome the Prime Minister to Australia. Mr Macmillan was most surprised to hear in Auckland that he had been accused of snubbing the Australians. He explained that he had developed a high temperature on the flight from Singapore to Australia, and had taken “a large number of remedies.” He was asleep when the Britannia aircraft arrived at Richmond and did not wake until an hour and a half out from Whenuapai. “I am sorry,” he said. “I did not know there was a Minister there. I will send my apologies —but I was in bond,” he added with a smile. A member of the Prime Minister’s staff said tonight that the British party had travelled 17,055 miles and been in the air 56 hours. Mr Macmillan was standing up to the strain better than anyone else in the party. In spite of a high temperature and sore throat, he had continued to work on the flight to Australia. The spokesman said that it should be remembered that even although the Britannia arrived at Richmond at 8.30 a.m. Australian time, it was actually only 6.30 a.m. Singapore time.