French, British Plan

Pacific Air Services

Extended Routes

• In Sydney, in early December, “PIM” could get no confirmation from either French or British air line companies that extension to Pacific services announced authorit atively in New Zealand and Fiji newspapers, were imminent.

A FIJI announcement of November i\ 11 that Transport Aeriens In tercontinentaux would commence a regular four-times-a-month ser vice from Noumea to Bora Bora (Tahiti) was not confirmed by the Sydney office of the company early in December.

A spokesman for the company in Sydney said that there was “nothing definite”.

The Fiji announcement was made by Mr. M. H. Helsen, who is man ager in Suva for Burns Philp (SS) Ltd., Fiji agents for TAI. Mr.

Helsen is also French consul in Fiji.

Mr. Helsen said that the service would use DC4 aircraft initially and DC6 aircraft later. Calls would be made at Nadi, and possibly Wallis Island—which already has a TAI service from Noumea. As Papeete has no airport at present a shuttle service would be run from Bora Bora to Papeete by Catalina flying-boat.

With TAI already operating to New Zealand from Noumea (as part of its service from Paris) a service from Noumea to French Polynesia would be a challenge to the opera tions of TEAL on its present Coral Route.

TEAL’s flying-boats have no more than two years’ effective life left and no plans for replacements have been announced.

New Zealand, which has been in the throes of pending elections for all this year, has now got itself a Labour Government for the first time since 1949.

The NZ Labour Party, which had strong ideas on nationalisation of airlines when last in power, may have something to say about the Coral Route; it may even have some plans, which the National Govern ment had not.

BOAC and a Pacific Service BRITISH Overseas Airways Cor poration whose trans-Atlantic service now extends across the United States to Los Angeles was, according to New Zealand sources, planning to continue the service across the Pacific to Sydney.

The date for the commencement of this round-the-world link de pended on the delivery of long-range

Britannias, but “next year” was mentioned. • This was denied by BOAC’s Sydney office. It was stated that negotiations are still proceeding be tween BOAC and the American authorities over landing rights— presumably at Honolulu; that the delivery of Britannias, long-range or otherwise, had nothing to do with any extension of the service at the moment. It was expected that the first extension of BOACs route from US West Coast would be over the Pole back to Europe and not across the Pacific.

Mr. H. J. Bingham, the Corpora tion’s manager on the American West Coast, was in New Zealand and Australia in November-De cember discussing future plans with TEAL and Qantas.

In January, Qantas will commence its round-the-world flights. Passen gers will then be able to fly with the company from Australia across the Pacific to America, across the US and the Atlantic to London, and return via the Middle East and Singapore to Sydney.

All these new air routes —which all indirectly give greater service to the people of the Pacific —are an in dication of the expanding tourist potential of Pacific Islands-Aus tralasia, as well as an indication of an awareness of the risks in volved in concentrating on the more established Asian routes.

TAI Take over RAI In November, arrangements for TAI to take over the French Polynesia operations of Regie Aerienne Interinsular, which operates Catalinas in the Tahiti area were completed.

TAI will begin operating the ser vice in January. RAI was operated by the French Government.

Spectacular Moresby Fl[?]

In November, the Senior Wien's Quarters Australian Petroleum Co., at Tuaguba, in Lawes Road area of Port Moresby, w destroyed by fire. This photograph (suppl by Mr. H. S. Wynne) shows the blaze at heigh[?].