Pilot Ferguson

Killed

Carpenters’ Dragon Moth Crashes at Bitoi Creek, N.G.

CRASHING in the jungle near Black Cat mining camp, New Guinea, Car penters’ D.H. Dragon Moth was com pletely wrecked on September 30 and the pilot, Colin R. Ferguson, 30, was killed.

The ’plane was found wedged in trees, 50ft. above the ground. Ferguson had been hurled with terrific force from the ■cockpit.

The Black Cat mining camp, on Bitoi Creek, between Salamaua and Wau, is one of the most dangerous areas on the route. There is no aerodrome at the camp and the pass through the ranges at Black Cat is some 6,000 ft. above sea level. On each side the mountains are at least 10,000 ft. high and it is extremely ■difficult to find the pass when clouds obscure the mountains.

During the past two months the weather over the route had been par ticularly bad and little flying had been done. It is presumed that Pilot Fer guson, who was freighting supplies to the mining community at Black Cat, ran into heavy weather when crossing the pass and was forced down into the gorge.

A competent and careful aviator, Colin Ferguson was most popular in New Guinea. He was held in high regard by the Administrator (Brigadier-General W.

R. McNicoll), whom he piloted on inspec tion visits to the Morobe goldfields area.

Trained as an aviator and engineer by the New South Wales Aero Club in 1927, Ferguson was for a time assistant pilot in the Sydney-Melbourne service oper ated by Sir Charles Kingsford Smith and the late Charlie Ulm. In December, 1932, he joined Messrs. W. R. Carpenter and Co.’s service in New Guinea.

The ’plane in which Ferguson crashed was a twin-engined Dragon, purchased from a Western Australian company in December last year. Accompanied by his wife, who was the first woman to fly to New Guinea, Ferguson piloted it to Wau, via Port Moresby, Papua.

It is a remarkable coincidence that Ferguson’s fellow-pilot, Donald Crisp, crashed in similar circumstances in the same vicinity on December 16, 1934.

Though the Carpenter ’plane also crashed on the treetops on that occasion, Crisp’s safety belt held him to the rear portion of the machine, which was suspended 70ft. in the air. Crisp escaped with only a few scratches.