"Faith in Australia" Returns to N. Guinea

IN July, 1934, one of Australia's best known aviators, Mr. Charles Ulm, flew to New Guinea with the first airmail in the famous monoplane “Faith in Australia”.

Now, exactly seven years later, the Faith has returned to New Guinea— this time by ship, she was unloaded at Salamaua in June and shortly will be assembled at Wau. Stephens Aviation Co. will use the old “bus” for carrying freight to outlying aerodromes.

Sister ship to Sir Charles Kingsford- Smith’s illustrious “Southern Cross”, the tri-motored “Faith” has had an extra ordinarily varied life. Since the 1934 flight

to NG she has been at Mascot aerodrome, Sydney, most of the time, being used for instructional purposes and “joy-riding”— thousands of Australians first tasted the thrill of flying and gained their first aerial glimpse of Sydney city and harbour from the 10-seater cabin of this ancient Pokker, at 5/- a time.

The accompanying photograph was published in “PIM” in August, 1934, on the notable occasion of the first flight to New Guinea and it includes several of the men whose flying records added pages to the aviation history of Papua and New Guinea.

The Faith in Australia at Port Moresby, Papua, en route to Wau, TNG, with the first official airmail of 28,000 letters, July 26, 1934. Left to right: Late Mr. Charles Ulm (in charge of the “Faith”), Father M. McEncroe (Catholic Mission, Port Moresby), Pilot Kevin Parer (then Pacific Aerial Transport Co.), Brother Gerrard, Mr. Charles Lexius-Burlington, Pilot “Tommy”

O’Dea (then Holden’s Aerial Transport Service), and Pilot “Scotty” Allen (“Faith in Australia”).