they thought they had spotted a downed aircraft or survivors, but when flying in for a closer look realized bleakly that they had been fooled by the uneven teeth of the rocky outcrops. Having had no luck, âSO and âCZ crews returned via the southern neck of the Kent Peninsula, hugging the western coast of Bathurst Inlet to the base at Burnside River.
Hollick-Kenyon flew sixty miles to Bathurst Inlet to send messages to Winnipeg, where Western Canada Airways had their head office, and to Dominion Explorers in Toronto. Both were anxiously waiting for news of the search operation. With Vanceâs plane being a write-off until parts could be obtained, and now âSQ in questionable shape, the bad news had to be told. Up until now, the searchers had been forging ahead with their own plans, a policy agreeable to both WCA and Dominion Explorers, yet, when possible, information of the actions being taken needed to be sent to Winnipeg and Toronto through the wireless. After checking on the condition of the ice and finding open water he dropped messages to be picked up by the people at the Hudsonâs Bay Post. âSL then made a search along the coast, again not seeing any sign of the missing men or their planes.
For the next two days, poor weather kept the search crew grounded, so the men put all their efforts into the salvage operation of Cruickshankâs âSQ, now deemed âthe old crock.â Siers reported:
A piece of timber 8âx8âx18â was rigged up as a gin pole in front of the engine, its base resting on the ocean bed. Two double blocks were used and the machine gradually came up through the ice but it was found that the weight of the machine sank the gin pole into the mud. To overcome this a 3âx6âx10â piece of timber was lashed and nailed to the 8âx8â and the hitch changed from the 8âx8â to the 3âx6â. This change allowed the machine to be lifted clear of the water and ice. There was a slight but uneven tide. This in itself was a source of annoyance for at times the ice would come up against the fuselage and the tidal water came on top of the ice. [5]
The men had cut holes in the ice that had frozen around the skis. Removing each undercarriage with the ski attached was difficult. Since a skin of ice would quickly form around the body of the plane, it had to be chipped off in successive stages as the plane was gradually levered up out of the water. However, they did succeed.
Once this had been accomplished, the black gang waited for the ice to become thick enough to support the use of a jack. Like their counterparts at Peechuk Point, they needed strong, stable ice. The mechanics were not idle during the wait, however, and continued to work on the engine. The propeller was removed from the engine, the engine dismantled, and all instruments disassembled. Working outside and with their bare hands, the group was exposed to increasingly colder temperatures and must have suffered intensely from the frigid Arctic air. The thinness of the ice made building any kind of fire too dangerous, and they could only thaw their freezing fingers by periodically burrowing their hands into the sleeves of their parkas. Not only were their hands frozen, but for the most part they stood in inches of icy water due to the action of the tide. [6] Cruickshank calculated the temperature with the wind chill at -43°C, as the one half-bottle of rum in his pocket had turned to slush. The air was metallic with the smell of cold and freezing water, and the sounds of hammering and clanging echoed across the inlet. They didnât discuss their discomforts. All the men knew and understood that time saved in the biting cold would get them back into the air much sooner and could mean the difference between life and death for the men they were seeking.
Inside the house at the Dominion Explorersâ base, mechanics worked to remove any trace of damage from the action of the
Hollick-Kenyon flew sixty miles to Bathurst Inlet to send messages to Winnipeg, where Western Canada Airways had their head office, and to Dominion Explorers in Toronto. Both were anxiously waiting for news of the search operation. With Vanceâs plane being a write-off until parts could be obtained, and now âSQ in questionable shape, the bad news had to be told. Up until now, the searchers had been forging ahead with their own plans, a policy agreeable to both WCA and Dominion Explorers, yet, when possible, information of the actions being taken needed to be sent to Winnipeg and Toronto through the wireless. After checking on the condition of the ice and finding open water he dropped messages to be picked up by the people at the Hudsonâs Bay Post. âSL then made a search along the coast, again not seeing any sign of the missing men or their planes.
For the next two days, poor weather kept the search crew grounded, so the men put all their efforts into the salvage operation of Cruickshankâs âSQ, now deemed âthe old crock.â Siers reported:
A piece of timber 8âx8âx18â was rigged up as a gin pole in front of the engine, its base resting on the ocean bed. Two double blocks were used and the machine gradually came up through the ice but it was found that the weight of the machine sank the gin pole into the mud. To overcome this a 3âx6âx10â piece of timber was lashed and nailed to the 8âx8â and the hitch changed from the 8âx8â to the 3âx6â. This change allowed the machine to be lifted clear of the water and ice. There was a slight but uneven tide. This in itself was a source of annoyance for at times the ice would come up against the fuselage and the tidal water came on top of the ice. [5]
The men had cut holes in the ice that had frozen around the skis. Removing each undercarriage with the ski attached was difficult. Since a skin of ice would quickly form around the body of the plane, it had to be chipped off in successive stages as the plane was gradually levered up out of the water. However, they did succeed.
Once this had been accomplished, the black gang waited for the ice to become thick enough to support the use of a jack. Like their counterparts at Peechuk Point, they needed strong, stable ice. The mechanics were not idle during the wait, however, and continued to work on the engine. The propeller was removed from the engine, the engine dismantled, and all instruments disassembled. Working outside and with their bare hands, the group was exposed to increasingly colder temperatures and must have suffered intensely from the frigid Arctic air. The thinness of the ice made building any kind of fire too dangerous, and they could only thaw their freezing fingers by periodically burrowing their hands into the sleeves of their parkas. Not only were their hands frozen, but for the most part they stood in inches of icy water due to the action of the tide. [6] Cruickshank calculated the temperature with the wind chill at -43°C, as the one half-bottle of rum in his pocket had turned to slush. The air was metallic with the smell of cold and freezing water, and the sounds of hammering and clanging echoed across the inlet. They didnât discuss their discomforts. All the men knew and understood that time saved in the biting cold would get them back into the air much sooner and could mean the difference between life and death for the men they were seeking.
Inside the house at the Dominion Explorersâ base, mechanics worked to remove any trace of damage from the action of the
Similar Books
