THE AIRPORT ISSUE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 25384, 16 November 1943, Page 6

THE AIRPORT ISSUE

Sir,—lt is generally understood that the members of the Harbour Board are elected to that body for one specific purpose—to protect and further the interests of the Port of Otago. The chairman and members of the board would have failed signally in their duty had they not presented to the public the urgency of their need for the retention of the south endowment for the future progress of our harbour. In extolling the public-spirited-ness of Mr Skinner In doing his duty by the Otago Aero Club, your correspondent, Mr M. Poulter, must also commend the attitude of the chairman in acting similarly on behalf of the Otago Harbour Board. The delegates of the Expansion League and Otago Aero Club seemed not a little irate that an authoritative statement from the president of United Airlines, U.S.A., disclosed that freight carried by aeroplane cost 250 times more than that transported by ship: that this became generally known is patently their main bone of contention. When Mr Skinner suggested, in effect, that the Harbour Board should suspend all development work pending the arrival of experts, he quite forgot to mention where they were to come from and when we could expect them. In 'the meantime the Harbour Board was to mark time. This delegate was quite unconscious of his drollery when he allowed his enthusiasm to outrun his judgment. The importunate demands of two very small organisations for the use of the south endowment as an airport will have little or no appeal now it is known that we will be expected to pay £250 for freight that ordinarily costs us £l—costly transport indeed. There still remains the consideration of luxury traffic and Messrs McKay, Skinner and Sinclair are desperately anxious that our airport should be centred in the heart of the city. This would certainly serve to accelerate, by 15 minutes or so, the speed with which Lord Frederick Verisopht or the Countess of Flapdoodle could “do ” their world tour. Mr Poulter contends that the Aero Club’s delegates did not disparage the Harbour Board, but were it publicly stated that the foundations of the former’s business premises were unstable would they not consider that their property had-been disparaged? With his • usual delightful humour “ Civls ” reviewed the airport discussion. Here is one passage of arms: Should the Harbour Board “ make the south endowment an attractive proposition for our industrialists in search of factory sites? " No,” answered a delegate: onlv costly floating foundations would support an industrial plant.” Yes, countered the Harbour Board chairman with an unanswerable argument: “Foundations that can support the 40 tons per square foot of your modern transport plane can surely support the one ton to the square foot of a building load.” Yes, we certainly do haye a lot of fun in Dunedin.— I am, etc., Costly Transport.