Tea’S New Polynesian
pp. 23-24 · Read in the full issue
Service
Will Not Commence For Few Months Yet
PROBABLY, it will be close to the end of 1951 before the service with flying boats, planned by Tasman Empire Airways, to run fortnightly between Syd ney and Tahiti, via Auckland, Suva, Apia and Aitutaki, will be commenced.
The announcement made at the end of May by a spokesman for TEA, gave a wrong impression. He did not say that the service would commence very soon— only that a survey flight would be under taken at once. That survey is now pro ceeding, and a flying-boat, staffed with experts, is now examining all possible landing places, and mooring, fuelling and accommodation facilities, in those parts of the Polynesian groups which are likely to be affected.
These widely-scattered archipelagoes— some of which consist entirely of atolls— provide flying-boat conditions very dif ferent from those encountered in the high islands of the Pacific.
Consequently TEA—which has a fine record of efficient and accident-free opera tion—is taking great care in planning the new service. "When it starts, it will keen going” said one high official. “It will not go off half-cock.”
Samoa Welcomes New Service
From Our Own Correspondent APIA. June 20.
WITH great satisfaction, we have re ceived the announcement that Tas man Empire Airways, Ltd., follow
ing on recent test flights, have decided to include Western Samoa in a fortnightly air service to Tahiti. This new air-link with the outside world, and particularly with Australia, is of importance to Western Samoa, which so greatly depends on Australia for essential supplies. The new service will be used by passengers, airmails and freight and it will stimulate the
extending trade relations between Wes tern Samoa and Australia, Our only airlink with the outside world —the NZ National Airways fortnightly service from Suva (Fiji) via Tonga and Samoa has proved insufficient for the needs of the territories concerned, so that a fortnightly special plane had to be added to the regular fortnightly plane
The regular plane proceeds from Apia to Aitutaki and Rarotonga and returns from there to Apia and Suva. But even these planes at present can hardly cope with the increasing public demand for air pas sages, and the special plane may be taken off the service at any time.
The engagement has been announced of Miss Audrey Watt of Sydney, to Mr.
Keith Barton of Lautoka, Fiji.
Since the signing of the trade agree ment between Australia and Indonesia, six months ago, the volume of trade has been almost double the estimated total. Aus tralia’s main exports to Indonesia are wheat, flour and non-ferrous metals and Indonesia’s exports to Australia include rubber, coffee and petroleum. About 29 per cent, of Australia’s oil requirements come from Indonesia and this figure does not include oil imported from Singapore but originating in the Indies.