The Daily Alaska Empire

SEARCH FLIER
FOR EIELSON
IS IN JUNEAU

Captain Oaks, Canadian,
on Way from Fairbanks
to Toronto, Canada

Bound for his headquarters in Toronto, Canada, Capt. H. A. Oaks, Canadian aviator, who went to Fairbanks recently in company with the Fairchild airplanes used in the search for Capt. Carl Ben Eielson and Earl Borland, is in Juneau today.

When interviewed today Captain Oaks expressed satisfaction that the missing plane had been found near North Cape, but said he deeply regretted the manner in which the search had ended, with the last possibility gone of Eielson and Borland being alive.

While in Fairbanks Captain Oaks did not actively participate in the search for the missing fliers, but went aloft on test flights of the Fairchild planes which he accompanied North.

Short Flying Days

With less than two hours of daylight in which to fly during the short winter days, searching expeditions were materially hampered, Captain Oaks said. Weather, too, proved an added interference.

Although moonlight made it possible to fly on clear nights, such action was possible only for a pilot who knew the country well, Captain Oaks declared.

Added Danger

The greatest danger in crossing from Teller to North Cape was the risk of a forced landing, he said. As there were few places where planes could make a forced landing it was necessary for the fliers to await favorable weather across Bering Straits before they dared attempt a crossing.

Captain Oaks is an experienced Arctic flier. He is connected with a commercial company in Canada which has been conducting explorations for minerals in the northeastern section of Hudson Bay, and he expects to accompany an expedition there this spring.

He is leaving for the south tomorrow on the Princess Mary.