This Day in History: 1924-04-27

WGCDR Stanley James Goble and FLGOFF Ivor Ewing McIntyre continued their around-Australia flight in Fairey IIID A10-3. Early on 27 April 1924 the seaplane was lowered into the water at Darwin and at 10.10 a.m. they took off for Broome. Visibility was good. Cape Londonderry was reached at 1.20 p.m. (328 miles in 3 hr. 10 min., an average of 103 mph) and Mission Bay at 1.45 p.m. where a landing was made in a choppy sea. The guns were loaded as they were not sure whether the natives were friendly. However, they were met by the Father Superior of the Spanish Mission and all was well. He plied them with biscuits and wine, and they were feeling rather heady as they returned to refuel the plane. By 6 p.m. it was completed and the missionaries provided a kangaroo tail dinner and the natives staged a special corroboree. Goble and McIntyre stayed in the Fairey overnight to ensure floating off with the tide in the morning. Source: The First Round-Australia Flight, 1924 by Neville Parnell, AHSA Journal, vol 6, no 12, December 1965