INDIAN OCEAN ISLAND ODYSSEY (OR FIASCO)

Before the South African political transformation, a group of diving enthusiasts wished to extend their diving experience to the more northern reaches of the Indian Ocean.

- JEFFREY KEMPSON

THEY WERE AWARE of the Coelacanth discovery near the Comoros Islands, and the proliferation of exotic fish and turtles that enjoyed the warm waters surrounding the French dependency of Mayotte in the Comoros archipelago, which featured one of the largest lagoons on Earth.

The fishing club chartered a Douglas DC-6 freighter from Inter Ocean Airways at Lanseria. The freighter had been converted to passenger status by installing several rows of seats.

Whether the aircraft carried passenger oxygen outlets, a galley or other normal amenities found on passenger aircraft, I don’t know. These items are normally removed from freight aircraft to reduce weight to increase the cargo capacity.

The installation of the seats and other passenger amenities took a few days longer than expected, so the passengers had to seek overnight accommodation. Some slept on seats at Lanseria airport and some in the squash court.

Once the aircraft was nearly ready, a Belgian pilot arrived to command the flight, aided by an American DC-3 Dakota owner and operator (Captain Fantastic in an earlier story) as co-pilot. The Belgian used to be a flight engineer and he sported a worn-out navy blue uniform with faded gold braid which made him look like a head waiter.

Once the DC-6 was deemed more or less ready for flight, work was suspended to allow the pilots to familiarise themselves with the aircraft during daylight hours. Then cosmetic finishes to the passenger installations were continued during the night.

During the afternoon the two pilots and a flight engineer started the engines. When the normal clouds of thick grey oil smoke cleared, they taxied out for a familiarisation flight watched by several passengers who had hoped to have been in the Comoros a couple of days previously.