Mapleton adventurer to return to PNG in Flying Dutchman medical mission
Mapleton adventurer Peter Gamgee with locals on the day he discovered the Flying Dutchman on PNG’s Ghost Mountain.
Four years after setting out to locate a lost World War II crash site deep in the mountains of Papua New Guinea, Mapleton man Peter Gamgee has found it – and is heading back.
In October last year, Mr Gamgee returned to PNG with one other Australian and, with the help of locals, located the crash site of the C-47 DL Flying Dutchman. The US military transport aircraft crashed on November 10, 1942, while flying over the Owen Stanley Range from Port Moresby to Pongani. Six of the 23 people on board died. Six of eight men who trekked for help eventually survived.
“The purpose behind this find was to create an interesting trekking destination to attract philanthropists and help remote communities along the Ghost Mountain Trail with health and education,” Mr Gamgee said.
Mr Gamgee first attempted to reach the wreck in 2019. At the time, he told the Gazette it was the first time some of the local villagers had been into that part of their own country.
“The fellows that are cutting the track know they have the opportunity to open things up for their village. If they were just doing it for the money, this wouldn’t work,” he said. “They can see the benefits that this will bring.”
That trek revealed how difficult the terrain was, with guides cutting a path through dense rainforest. “It would take at least 10 minutes to do 50 metres, sometimes longer,” he said. “One day was the equivalent of two or three days on Kokoda.”
On that trip, he was also confronted by the medical needs of the villages along the trail. “If I’d been concerned about not finding the wreck, I was called on to treat people in the village (medically) and it convinced me of the need to get medical services into the area,” he said.
Ghost Mountain Trail Community Event
This October, Mr Gamgee will return with a documentary team to film the site and its story. Locally, he is teaming up with former PNG Patrol Officers from the 1970–1980 era to run a free community event in Mapleton to raise funds for health and education services along the Ghost Mountain Trail.
The Spirit of Papua New Guinea evening will be held at the Mapleton Men’s Shed on Thursday September 5, from 5pm for a 5.30pm start.
Attendees will hear “fascinating stories from the field” from ex Patrol Officers Col Young and John Brady, as well as be inspired by Peter Gamgee’s personal adventure in finding the Flying Dutchman (a WWII C47 plane) and the survivors’ stories.
The event will include raffles, snack food, drinks, and opportunities to donate, with all funds going to support medical outpost and schools along the Ghost Mountain Trail through Papua New Guinea Tribal Foundation Pty Ltd.
• Spirit of Papua New Guinea, Friday September 5, Mapleton Men’s Shed, 5 for 5.30pm. Free to attend. More info and donations: www.events.humanitix.com/humanitarian-spirit-of-papua-new-guinea. Contact Peter Gamgee 0419 716 870.