SURPRISE VISIT

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXV, Issue 19808, 9 December 1938, Page 8

SURPRISE VISIT

FLIGHT TO SYDNEY THE FLYING-BOAT GUBA. SCIENCE MEN’S FERRY SYDNEY, Nov. 24. The American flying-boat Cuba, owner) by (lie millionaire explorer. Richard Arch'bold, which is being used by the American Museum ol' Natural History for its expedition in Dutch New Guinea, arrived at Rose Bay on Tuesday, completing the first ncci-stop flight of 1750 miles from Port Moresby to Sydney. The visit of the sleek, twin-engined flying-boat, which has been ferrying men and freight from Hollandia, on the coast of Dutch New Guinea, to the ulterior, was a surprise. If was flown to Sydney to convey back equipment which will arrive from the United States next week. Its flight from New Guinea to Sydney took hours, at an overage speed of 100 miles an hour. The Guba was the first American flying-boat to land in Australian waters after a direct flight from beyond the Commonwealth. It was the first oversea machine ,to fly direct to Sydney. On its arrival at Rose Bay, the yellow quarantine flag’was hoisted on a flying-boat for the first time.

The flying-boat carried a crew at five. There were four passengers, Mr. and Mrs. K. Franks, Miss M. Franklin, and Mrs. G. O. Higgins. Mr. Franks is in charge of the wireless station at Port Moresby, and Miss Franklin is matron at the Port Moresby Hospital. On arrival it was revealed that the Guba, which is fitted with elaborate radio equipment, was unable to maintain communication with the wireless station at the Sydney airport even when it was 25 miles off Sydney. If was, however, fc in touch with New Guinea, 1750 miles away, until it alighted on Sydney Harbour. Attempt to Climb Over Storm

When 300 miles from Sydney, the flying-boat, which has a range of more than 4000 miles, called the Kingsford Smith aerodrome and was informed that there was bright sunshine over Sydney. The navigator, Commander Yancey, who flew the Atlantic .from Maine to Spain in 1929 with Roger Williams, headed the nose of the aircraft into a storm, expecting at any moment to break through into blue sky. In an endeavour to get over the top of the storm, the flying-boat climbed to 20,000 ft., where, in a temperature of 10 degrees below zero, 'the passengers wrapped themselves in blankets as protection against the freezing cold.

“The expedition's coastal station in Dutch New Guinea is Hollandia, a fishing village about 700 miles from Port Moresby,” said Commander Yancey. “The expedition’s pilot, Mr. R. Rogers, has been regularly flying heavy loads of supplies from the coast and landing on. Lake Habema. which is 11,000 ft. above sea level. Since July, Rogers, who is a famous flying-boat test pilot, has flown 350,0001 b. of equipment and 215 men inland. At the Grand Valley camp base there is a population of 'between 60,000 and 70,000 natives. They are of the stone-age type, and have no metal implements, but 'have plenty of sweet potatoes and pigs. Our third base, Edinburgh, is about 150 nautical miles from Hollandia. Associated with the expedition are six scientists, including four entomogolists, a botanist, and a timber expert. The work of the expedition is progressing quickly, and, at the present stage, it would appear that we will be there for another three months.”