(Very) Dutch New Guinea

[Ralf Roggeveen]

One of my many fascinating hobbies is flying an old DC-5 around Southeast Asia...

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Installed the new Cal Classic Asia '62 and thought we'd better check on the remains of the Dutch Empire in New Guinea.

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The Sausage Dog, Moffen, insisted we were in Yap Yap, but in fact it was Hollandia (today's Jayapura (WAJJ) Capital of Irian-Jaya, the western half of New Guinea, now part of Indonesia).

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Must get the old DC-5 repainted since KNILM was disbanded shortly after WW2. Nowadays she's only carrying a bit of freight around Java, Borneo, the Celebes and over here in New Guinea, so nobody takes much notice of the livery and ATC just call me 'KLM'. Sausage Dog's family have cadged a lift over to the Island of Biak. They are an eccentric lot...

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'I hope you don't mind going in an old aeroplane,' I said to Miep (that's her, dressed as a traditional Dutchman). 'No, no! The older the better!' she insisted.

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They all smoked, drank hot chocolate and read the Bible for the short hop over to Biak (even the little boy, Cees)...

[Ralf Roggeveen]

Now it is Frans Kaisiepo Mokmer International (WABB), but just Biak back in the day.

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We find some magical AI sitting around there...

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These belong to the local airline Kroonduif (= Crowned Pigeon, the Dutch will always find a bird to name an airplane/airline after), which only operated for a few years in the late '50s/early '60s.

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It was originally a subsidiary of KLM, then transferred to Garuda (which, incidentally, is a mythical Indonesian bird, as well as the airline of Indonesia). They seem to have painted their wings a patriotic orange, though one also suspects that it would be useful for spotting bits of scattered wreckage on the forest floor...

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This chap came out very slowly to help unload our cargo. Miep and her brood sang one last hymn, finished off their cocoa, stubbed out the strange-smelling cigarettes and disappeared into the jungle, followed by Moffen.

Interesting trip - do I detect the genius of Harry Biard in the creation of this surreal world?!? :salute:

[Willy]

Very interesting Douglas and part of the world. Looking forward to more of it.