Description supplied by depositor:
“Western Samoa Journey, November 1956.
a. Stopover in Suva to the Municipal Markets.
b. Game of cricket on the Suva Cricket Ground.
c. View of the verandah of Grand Pacific Hotel, Suva.
d. Street scenes in Suva, Ramona & Roger Fenton.
e. Faleolo Airfield - land-based planes.
i. Aircraft:
1. Canberra bomber RAF (Operation Grapple, A - and H-bomb testing times, occurring at Christmas, Canton or Johnston
Islands).
2. Hastings transport RAAF.
3. DC3, Civil Air Administration, New Zealand, calibration flight.
4. Lancaster bomber, RAF.
5. Shackleton bomber.
6. DC3, RAF.
7. Aircraft from: Canton Island, Johnston Island and Christmas Island, where A or H-bomb testing was taking place.
8. Aircrew: Australian, English, French.
9. Ground crew employed by New Zealand’s CAA - fire extinguishers and fire engine.
10. Views of airfield and fly pass on DC3.
ii. People, other than crews - Names: Margret and Roger Fenton.
f/ Satapuala Field - ‘Flying boats’, barges and pilot launches.
i/ Aircraft: mainly arrivals, daytime of TEAL’s Coral Route planes
1. Solent-class flying boats, TEAL aircraft, including ZM-AMO, now at MOTAT in Auckland.
2. Sunderland-class flying boats: RNZAF
ii/ Aircrew - Captain Alison of TEAL.
iii/ Fuel barge, Shell company. iv/ iv/ TEAL’s pilot and passenger launches.
iv. TEAL’s pilot and passenger launches.
v. TEAL’s terminus at Satapuala, passenger traffic.
vi/ Children fishing or playing at the TEAL jetty - names, Fenton, Hartigan and Kirkwood children, whose parents
lived next to Faleolo.
vii/ Dynamiting coral - towed platform carrying a replacement tripod that was placed in lagoon to hold 44-gallon drums
containing light and battery for night-time takeoffs of the flying boats, onto the flight path.
g. Home life - concrete home built for NZ’s CAA staff - gardening hula dancing, Christmas Day siva dancing by Samoan
travelers - Names: Fenton, Kirkwood, Houseboy ‘Soafoi’, Housegirls.
h. Neighbour across road - Samoan policeman, with prisoners cutting his lawn with machete.
i. Apia, Samoa’s capital, May Day celebration competitions - 1957.
i/ Guests included Sir Guy Powles, High Commissioner,
Samoan leaders.
ii/ Fight scenes when villagers disagreed with results.
j/ Apia, Samoa’s capital - inside dining area Aggie Grey’s Hotel, 1959.
i/ Outside Aggie Grey’s Hotel, Roger and Margret Fenton across road.
ii/ View of the HMS Lachlan in Apia Harbour 1959, and lighters carrying goods back to town wharf.
iii/ Views outside the premises of Burns Philp store - goods on sale 1959
k/ Tonga’s blowholes, beating tapa cloth, Royal Bat’s tree, 1959”