SOLDIERS OF FORTUNE

Grey River Argus, 20 September 1948, Page 2

SOLDIERS OF FORTUNE

PERTH, Sept. 13.

A man who claims to haVe flown the Tasman in 1935, fought in the Spanish Civil War, served as a pilot in World War 11, fought for the Chinese Communists and for the Haganah in the recent Jewish-Arab conflict, has arrived in Fremantle by the tanker, Chisholm Trail, . from Abadan in the Persian Golf without documents or even a letter as to his identity. He claims to be Paul Whitehead, aged 32, of Weymouth, near Auckland, New Zealand, ant} he is endeavouring to return to his home-1 land. Whitehead claims to have flown the Tasman from Australia to New Zealand in 1935 with a man named Nicholls. The flight was not authorised and the men were arrested. Whiteherd said he left New Zealand in 1938 to fight in the Spanish Civil War. On the outbreak- of World War II he joined the R.A.F.. but later transferred to the R.N.Z.A.F. At the end of 1946, after his discharge from the Air Force, he was a pilot with the Chinese Communists. His next adventure was in Palestine. He claims that he was area officer commanding a section of the Haganah air force in the recent Jewish-Arab conflict. Whitehead has landed in Fremantle under supervision - and is now awaiting word from his relatives in New Zealand or someone in Australia to identify him. R. G. Whitehead, then aged 24, together with E. R. Nicholls, of Manly, left Gerrigong, New South Wales, on a flight to New Plymouth on November 22, 1934. They landed on Ninety-Mile Beach, Auckland, the same day. They remained on the beach all night, and flew to Mangere the following morning. They flew. a four-year-old Puss Moth, the. certificate of airworthiness for which had been cancelled.