By James Kightly, Commissioning Editor
On October 26, 2024, at Albury airport, New South Wales, the new English-language translation of To Austalia in Three Days was published by the Uiver Memorial Community Trust. The book, originally published in 1935, details the remarkably flight of the KLM Douglas DC-2 from Mildenhall in the UK to Melbourne, Australia, coming a remarkable second in the 1934 MacRobertson Air Race. It is literally the ‘view from the pilot’s seat’ being written by the KLM captain Koene D. Parmentier.
The guest of honor was the Kingdom of the Netherlands Ambassador to Australia, Her Excellency Ardi Stoios-Bracken, who launched the book to the applause of a notable crowd, who were able to purchase copies straight afterwards. The book is now available worldwide via the Uiver Memorial Community Trust website HERE.
It’s not often a book gets translated nearly 90 years after it is published! Originally produced in cloth covers in 1935 in Dutch as In Drie Dagen Naar Australië, it highlighted the achievement of the pride of Holland in 1934, but soon disappeared, in part because of the grip of the depression in Holland.
Few copies are known of today (Only four copies are known of in Australian archives) and it was the donation of a rare example to the Uiver Trust that inspired the team to bring this remarkable and unique firsthand account to the wider public in English translation.
The Uiver Trust team said:
“This first English edition by the captain of the Uiver, To Australia in Three Days, gives a rare insight into the Uiver’s participation in the London-Melbourne Air Race – a precursor to the international air travel we know today – and an almost minute-by-minute commentary on the drama that unfolded over Albury that stormy night in 1934. The book also has a new foreword by Dick Smith AC.”
The modern edition book team were all on hand, including Henri Dekker, the Dutch translator who traveled from the Netherlands for the launch, as well as Andrew Hipwell, the editor; David Crotty, proofreader and Ian Cossor, the designer.
Both Henri and the Ambassador spoke with passion about the strength of the Dutch-Australian connection the book highlighted, and particularly with Albury, the place where the community saved the lost and in-peril airliner that stormy night in October 1934, 90 years ago as explained on the trust’s website HERE.
Notable Australian aviation personality, world-record holder and project sponsor, Mr Dick Smith, AC, said of the book:
“This book is extraordinary because it is the pilot’s version of events, which was a real highlight to me, and this is the first time it has been translated to English, through the astute effort of the Uiver Memorial Community Trust. I think it is a wonderful book. Congratulations to everyone involved.”
It was a good chance also to catch up on the Uiver Memorial Community Trust’s work on the Douglas DC-2, having moved on significantly, as seen when Vintage Aviation News covered last year’s open day at the trust HERE. As well as major work on the aircraft’s center section, the Trust has recently received the vital spar extrusions that have to be replaced due to the original metal’s degradation – nevertheless the volunteer restorers continue to retain the vast majority of the Douglas’ original structure and skinning.
As well as the workshop of the Trust being thrown open to the public, other organizations in support included the Rotary Clubs of Albury West, Albury, and Albury North, Navy Brew, Albury Libraries and Museum, Albury and District Historical Society, LEGO air race models from Bricks on the Border, the ‘Uke Muster’ of the Albury Wodonga Ukulele Group, the Antique Car Club Albury Wodonga, and Twin Cities Model Aero Club.
Many attendees had special stories to share, including a 93 year old who’d been a small child when the emergency landing occurred, and a family album with original photographs of the following day’s works to dig out and dispatch the DC-2 to finish the air race. Support for, and donations to the Trust can be made HERE.
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James Kightly, from Melbourne, Australia, discovered his passion for aviation at the Moorabbin collection in the late 1960s. With over 30 years of writing experience for aviation magazines in the UK, US, Australia, and France, he is a feature writer for Aeroplane Monthly and an advisor for the RAAF History & Heritage Branch.
James has interviewed aviation professionals worldwide and co-runs the Aviation Cultures conferences. He has flown in historic aircraft like the Canadian Warplane Heritage’s Lancaster. At Vintage Aviation News, he ensures accurate and insightful aviation history articles.
Outside aviation, James has worked extensively in the book trade and museums. He supports the Moorabbin Air Museum and the Shuttleworth Collection. James lives in rural Victoria with his wife and dog.
I remember attending the 75th anniversary celebrations in Albury when we flew up from Melbourne in a DC-3 and some VIPs on board, including a couple of missed approaches on the racecourse where the Uiver landed. Quite the experience.