Triumph & Tragedy ~ The story of the KLM DC-2 Uiver (Part 2)

The DC-2 wasn’t just a new airliner, it was an entirely new class of airliner. In 1934, the world changed when a brand new Douglas DC-2 Dutch airliner flown by KLM Airlines and named Uiver showed that holiday flights to Australia from London, business trips from Chicago to San Francisco, and bombing sorties from Berlin to New York were, if not immediately possible, well within the realm of possibility.

The story of the Uiver hinges on Melbourne’s Centenary celebrations, in October, 1934. Lord Mayor Harold Gengoult-Smith believed that the economic growth of Melbourne — and Australia — depended on access by air to world markets, although no aircraft existed that could provide that access. He proposed an international air race between London and Melbourne to spur the development of commercial aviation to and from Australia and to serve as the cornerstone of the centennial.

Sir Robertson MacPherson, a prominent Australian confectioner, philanthropist, and supporter of aviation, donated $75,000 in prize money. The “MacRobertson” race, named in honor of its patron’s nickname, would challenge aviators to bridge the formidable distance between Europe and Melbourne — some 11,300 miles — using the latest in aviation technology.

The race, as organized by the Royal Aero Club of England, would include the speed division — the winner being the first aircraft to reach Melbourne — and the handicap division, which allowed 16 days to finish, the winner having the lowest flying time based on a complex formula that took into account the aircraft’s design and performance. Thus, each of 20 entrants would have an equal opportunity to win the handicap prize for their respective countries — Great Britain, the United States, Australia, Netherlands, New Zealand, and Denmark. ¹

Five compulsory “checkpoint” stops were designated for both the speed and handicap divisions: Baghdad, Iraq; Allahabad, India; Singapore, Malaya, and Darwin and Charleville, Queensland, Australia. Pilots were free to stop wherever else they wished, including any of 20 optional airports for refuelling.

The race would start October 20, 1934 at a disused Royal Air Force base at Mildenhall, near London, and end at Flemington Racecourse, Melbourne.

The Uiver, almost unnoticed when it first appeared in Europe, created a sensation when it arrived at Mildenhall aerodrome on October 15, five days before the start of the MacRobertson Race. It was the biggest aircraft in the race, its Duralumin skin buffed to a sheen and its unruffled crew smartly turned out in crisp uniforms. Even King George V and Queen Mary requested a tour of the aircraft and were greatly impressed (although the King distrusted aircraft).

The Uiver would land not only at the required airports across Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and Australia, but also at12 other cities it would serve when it began scheduled service in December. Those additional stops would add more than a thousand unnecessary miles to the Uiver’s route.

The Uiver took off from Mildenhall at 6:20 a.m. London time, with three passengers* and a 400-pound cargo of commemorative covers which would be carried to Australia and returned to their senders by sea.

Only 12 of the 20 aircraft which took off from Mildenhall reached Melbourne. A crash in Italy killed two British fliers. Mechanical problems and accidents forced seven other aircraft to withdraw.

The Uiver enjoyed a trouble-free flight until the night of October 23/24, when it became lost in a severe electrical storm over the Snowy Mountains and Munyang Range of the southeastern coast of Australia. It narrowly avoided peaks reaching above 7,000 feet; ice building up on the wings and propellers forced the Uiver to lower altitudes west of the mountains, and it lost radio contact with the ground.

News that the Uiver was missing was soon followed by reports that it had been seen — or heard — over various towns throughout the region. The electrical engineer of Albury, New South Wales, began flashing the city’s lights, spelling out “A-L-B-U-R-Y” in Morse Code. Shortly after midnight, the Uiver began circling overhead; the crew had correctly read the Morse signal. Albury’s radio station broadcast a plea for every owner of an automobile or truck to drive to the racetrack to provide illumination with their headlights. At 1:30 a.m. the Uiver made a hair-raising landing on the makeshift landing field, but as it slowed and stopped it sank deep into the mud.

The next morning, some 300 men shovelled mud away from the wheels and dragged the aircraft free. Only when the passengers, half the crew, the luggage, 30,000 letters, interior fittings, and seats were removed was the Uiver able to take off on the final leg of its journey.

The KLM Uiver prepares for takeoff at the start of the MacRobertson International Air Race at Mildenhall aerodrome, near London. The handwritten note in French at the top of the photo incorrectly identifies the Uiver as the “Cyclone”, an error that probably arose from the fact that the Uiver’s was powered by Wright Cyclone engines. Shown in the near background are two other contenders, a Granville Gee Bee, flown by Jacqueline Cochrane and Wesley Smith, and the Lambert Monocoupe flown by John H. Wright and John Polando.

The Uiver’s passengers were the German aviatrix and journalist, Thea Rasche, and two Dutch bank managers, Roelof Jan Domenie, originally fro

Also attracting attention were three twin-engine de Havilland Comets, purpose-built aircraft of unique plywood construction that were little more than streamlined flying gas tanks with room for pilot, one crewman, and perhaps a toothbrush. The Comet would serve as the prototype of the famous Mosquito fighter-bomber of the Second World War.

Another aircraft that vied for the spotlight was a Boeing 247 (the first that had rolled off Boeing’s assembly line) fitted with extra gas tanks.

The Uiver, the first Douglas aircraft purchased by KLM Airlines, would compete against xxx other aircraft, including a Boeing 247 and three purpose-built twin-engine De Havilland Comets, streamlined aircraft purpose-built for the race and featuring powerful Rolls-Royce engines and an innovative all-plywood fuselage.

The MacRobertson Race, sponsored by the wealthy Australian confectionary manufacturer, Sir Macpherson Robertson of MacRobertson's Chocolates, was intended as the premier event of Melbourne’s Centennary celebrations. It was organized by the Royal Aero Club of England. It was divided into a speed division — the winner being the first aircraft to reach Melbourne — and a handicap division, which allowed 16 days to finish, the winner having the lowest flying time based on a formula.

The Uiver, the first Douglas aircraft purchased by KLM Airlines, would compete against other aircraft, including a Boeing 247 and three purpose-built twin-engine De Havilland Comets, streamlined aircraft purpose-built for the race and featuring powerful Rolls-Royce engines and an innovative all-plywood fuselage.

lost several hours because of an oil leak which they noticed an hour out of Singapore. For the rest of the flight to Melbourne, they were forced to fly at times on one engine, and made forced landings at Alor Star in British Malaya (for fuel) and at Bourke, New South Wales, where they tried but failed to repair the leak. They elected to carry on, and limped across the finish line four hours, 12 minutes and 14 seconds after the Uiver, placing third in the speed race, which at least put them in the money.

he Uiver crossed the finish line at Flemington Racecourse at 2:52 p.m., only nine hours and 17 minutes behind the Comet Grosvenor House. Had it not been for the unfortunate forced landing at Albury, which cost the crew 10 hours and 35 minutes, the Uiver would have won the speed portion of the MacRobertson race — not that it much mattered.

The Uiver qualified for first prize in the handicap portion of the race. It was a remarkable achievement: A large airliner capable of carrying both paying passengers and heavy cargo had more than halved the previous best flight time between London and Melbourne, landing less than four days after take-off. The long-held Australian dream of rapid transportation to and from its trading partners had finally been realized.

While the B-247D performed commendably in the MacRobertson race, and was certainly the world’s first modern airliner, the writing was on the wall: it would never be able to compete successfully with the DC-2, and soon became yesterday’s airliner.