Rakanda plantation airfield

[hekarewe]

not sure if this is the right place for this but cant find any where better on the forum.

I have noticed when trolling the web that there is some miss leading information about a now disused air field located on Rakanda Plantation beach front in front of the old plantation house. rakanda plantation located on the main island of the duke of york group between new britan and new irland in the bismark strait was heavily bombed and shelled during WW11.

I lived on the plantation with my family on two occassions once during the late sixties and again during the late seventies.

the airfield was built during the early seventies by reclaiming land from both the swamp and the sea. the air field was made out of decompossed lime stone quarried from a small hill at the end of the run way. three sides of the airfield were protected by a concret and rock sea wall when my father arrived back on the plantation back in 75 the air strip was a little worse for wear, so he set about repairing it and back filling holes made by the eroding sea and then up graded it by constructing an appron in the floor of the old quarrie this was made by using a gader pulled by an old 275 international tractor and rolled the same way with a home made roller. this was done as air nue guinea had sudjested that they may be interested in providing a weekly service o the islands if the air strip was up graded. also being a 1000 meter run way with the added appron made it a close alternative to rabaul for emergancies.

this air strip has been photographed over the years in a very poor state since with huge holes in the sea wall. check it out on google earth.

as a young teen on the island i explored the plantation and the island from top to bottom and never found a ww11 air strip any where on the island and talking to the old natives about the jap occupation they never mentioned any sort of run way. there were how ever many man made caves that did contain a lot old relecis helmets old weapons etc i even found a lot of unexploded orderance on the island the tank wrecks that are just of the shore were around the far side of the island from where we were how ever i did find the back bone of a small vessel on a reef not far from our house age or date i have no idea of.

i love history and it does need to be preserved but i do wish that when people frow info in the web that they make sure it is true and just presumed bwcause it looks good and sounds right and evidance look s like it might support it! i know this will ruffle a few feathers but i am not having the hard work put in by my father and the previus manager wiped a way because some one was to lazy to do their home work properly.