QEA's "Old Lady"

Retires

AFTER 10 years’ service and the flying of 2,523,641 miles, the Qantas Em pire Airways flying boat “Coriolanus” is to be retired. She is well known to most South Pacific Islands communities.

Among Qantas men she is known affec tionately as the “Grand Old Lady.”

One of the first Empire-class flying boats built, “Coriolanus” was launched in Britain in 1937. Operated by Imperial Airways, she flew on regular service to South Africa and Australia until 1940, when war closed the Mediterranean.

She was then based on Durban and operated to the Far East. With the cut ting of these routes by the Japanese in 1942, “Coriolanus” was transferred to Australia. With Qantas Empire Airways crews, she went on war service in the

Pacific, flying in unchartered waters, operating where no aircraft had been before, making rescues under the noses of the enemy.

Amongst other tasks, “Cori olanus” helped in the evacua tion of Singapore and the East Indies, carried urgent personnel and equipment into the New Guinea war zone, and evacuated sick and wounded.

At the end of hostilities, “Coriolanus” was one of the first Australian planes into Singapore. She brought back

Australian prisoners-of-war.

Her most recent job has been in the service from Sydney to Noumea and Suva, first commenced in November, 1945. Residents of New Cale donia and Fiji, to whom she has been a familiar and welcome visitor, look with re gret on her passing.

The Sydney-Noumea-Suya

twice-monthly service will now be carried on by a Cata lina.

Cartoon by Courtesy of "Brisbane Courier Mail.”