CIVIC AIRPORT

Southland Times, Issue 25363, 15 August 1935, Page 8

CIVIC AIRPORT

WORK IN PROGRESS LEVELLING HALF COMPLETED FIFTY MEN EMPLOYED Two miles from the Post Office, in the reclamation area north of Stead street, 50 men are engaged in the task of constructing a civic airport. Admirably adapted for the purpose it is to serve, the site is responding excellently to the levelling process, and in the near future Invercargill should possess an airport worthy of the city and capable of accommodating the largest planes that are likely to be used in inland or trans-Tasman services. A great advantage will be the proximity of the aerodrome to the heart of the city. In a number of northern towns a considerable distance has to be traversed to reach the airport.

It is more than four months since work commenced in earnest on the site and the men have completed the levelling of slightly less than half the area, which is somewhat irregular in shape, with a maximum length of 41 chains and a maximum width of 30 chains. Fifty men were at work yesterday when a Times reporter paid a visit of inspection. The site could not be mistaken, for in addition to the gangs of men scattered over the area a wind direction indicator flew from a pole above a hut—a sure sign that aviation was involved. It will, however, be some time before planes are likely to land on the site, the indicator forming part of a weather-recording apparatus used by the foreman for informative purposes. Contracts Let To Gangs.

The levelling is all being done by manual labour as a relief job. Contracts are let to gangs of six, seven or eight men who with the aid of barrows, trucks and the inevitable shovels are building up the hollows and lowering the hillocks. Not only is the ground being levelled, but it is being hardened through the drainage that indirectly takes place. On the western side of the ground there is already a level area sufficiently large to permit a small plane’s landing, though the surface would probably be too soft to ensure perfect safety. It is expected that when the whole job is completed and the area sown down in grass its surface will be quite satisfactory for landing purposes throughout the year. Probably discing, harrowing and sowing will form the final operations on the airport, though the present contracts concern only the levelling of the ground. Trucks holding from half a cubic yard to a yard of spoil which run on rails are used by the men to transport the soil from higher to lower levels. Yesterday they were working under pleasant conditions, but after rain oi' hard frosts their tasks have not been joyous. They are by no means dissatisfied with the contract price for filling, but they were not enthusiastic about, their reward for pushing the trucks. Lake Hawkins. The airport's surroundings are by nt> means unattractive, for with the steady growth of the trees gracing its shores Lake Hawkins each year more nearly approaches the amenity envisaged by the late chairman of the Jieserves Committee of the City Council, Mr C. J. Brodrick. Last year an additional 8000 trees were planted there, and in spite of prognostications to the contrary, they are flourishing. In the shooting season the lake is the home of hundreds of grey and Paradise duck, swans and stilts. Thu sunsets which are reflected in its waters have evoked the admiration of artistic visitors from many parts of the world. But apart from its aesthetic value Lake Hawkins may at some future date play a part in aerial transport. At present it is not large enough to permit a two-way landing for seaplanes, but should the necessity arise it could probably be made suitable. In any case it should always be a valuable scenic asset. _____