§ Mr. Godman Irvineasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies what are the means of communication between the Gilbert and Ellice Islands and the outside world; and whether the possibility of air communication has been examined.
§ Mr. SandysAt present shipping of the British Phosphate Commissioners provides the main physical link with the outside world. Occasional flights are arranged by courtesy of the Royal New Zealand Air Force which has a flying-boat base in Fiji. However agreement has recently been reached with Fiji Air-202W ways to start, probably in the autumn, a fortnightly air service from Fiji to Funafuti in the Ellice Islands and Tarawa in the Gilbert Islands. A Colonial Development and Welfare grant of £37,440 (90 per cent. of the total cost) has been made for the renovation of the two war-time airfields and the provision of certain other aviation facilities.