Pilot Denny

Praise for N.G. Airman’s Skill

THE achievements of Mr. Orme Denny, one of the best-known pilots of Gui nea Airways, Ltd., have been receiving some attention in the Australian news papers. His machines have been involved in two mishaps recently; but the remark able skill of this well-known aviator al lowed him in both cases to land without any damage to his passengers.

In the first case, Mr. Denny, with a couple of passengers, had risen from the Bulwa aerodrome (Morobe goldfield) in a Fox Moth. Just as the machine was gain ing height the engine failed and it seemed impossible to avoid a bad crash. Denny, however, handled the Fox Moth with con summate skill, and

brought the machine down in an oblique landing on the edge of the aerodrome. The machine was rather badly damaged, but the pilot and passen gers escaped merely with a severe shaking.

Everyone, of course, deplored the accident, but there was a unan imous chorus of praise for the clever way in which Pilot Denny avoided a crash.

Some weeks later, on December 1, Pilot Denny left Port Moresby with a num ber of passengers in a Guinea Airways Jun ker to fly over the mountains to Morobe.

But when he tried to get above the central ranges (13,000 feet) he found that everything was hidden in dense mists. Apparently, he flew around for some

time trying to find a way through, and then turned back for Port Moresby.

He then discovered that his petrol supply was dangerously low and he sought an emergency landing-place. The newspapers in Sydney reported that he saw a green patch near the Lakekamu River, and, tak ing a chance, landed his machine safely there. Those who know Papua say that obviously Denny would land on one of the suitable beaches, in or near the mouth of the Lakekamu. At any rate, the Junker was landed quite safely, and Denny, at tended by marvellous luck, found, in this lonely place, a European (Mr. F. W.

Clark) with a broken-down launch, who was able to supply him with petrol. As a result, he was able to take off shortly afterwards and returned safely to Port Moresby at 6 p.m.

If they are not careful, these young Australians, who are carrying on the New Guinea aviation services will find them selves one day the darlings of the hero worshippers in British and American newspaper offices.

Here is another aviation achievement.

The day the Fox Moth had the smash at Bulwa, Guinea Airways, Ltd., radio’d Syd ney for another machine. There was an other Fox Moth in the city, and a B.P. steamer in the harbour. The aeroplane was immediately shipped, unloaded at

Moresby, flew across to Morobe, and was in commission a fortnight after the Bulwa accident. Meanwhile, the damaged Fox Moth was loaded aboard one of the big monoplanes and taken down to Lae for repairs.

Sir Henry Milne Scott, of Suva, Fiji, has been spending a brief holiday in Syd ney, and has been given much attention by the newspapers and public bodies. Sir Henry has been called upon to speak on a number of occasions, and, each time, has had something very interesting to say about conditions in Fiji—economic, poli tical, constitutional and scenic. He has made a very strong appeal to Australian tourists to spend some part of the winter months in this attractive South Seas Colony.

Pilot Denny