Homeward Bound

Written by Rob McCallum - Friday, 04 September 2009 22:07

The Search for Amundsen in the chill waters of the Barents Sea concludes today as we retrieve all of our equipment and turn south for Tromsø, some 330 miles away.  Last night we investigated the last of the targets from the final search box and although there were some interesting contacts, none proved to be the elusive Latham. A dead whale of exactly the same dimensions as the Latham engines, a box shaped rock entangled in man-made debris  (industrial fishing gear) and other curiosities served to pique our interest until the last retrieval of the ROV, but it was not to be...

Now begins a series of debriefs, interviews and ultimately reflection on the expedition and the results at hand. For deep-sea searches the goal is to search a given area thoroughly, and to be sure of where you are so that you are positive that an area that has been searched can now be firmly ruled out. In that sense, our expedition has been a great success; we have searched 35 square miles of ocean at a level of detail that is at the very edge of modern technology. We retained enough redundancy in our planning that we were able to cope with the loss of one of our two ships, yet we have also kept the flexibility to alter our approach and our search area as we learnt more about the sea floor. Importantly, we have managed to operate around the clock without serious issue or any injury. In short, we have done exactly what we set out to do, and in there waters that is a very good indeed.

But I do feel deflated for those who have tied so hard to find the Latham; the planners and organisers who have shepherded the project from its earliest beginning, the crews of Tyr and particularly Harstad who have spend long hours out in the cold wet conditions on deck, the Hugin team who have analysed every square inch of ocean floor and of course Kjell Lutnes and Daniel Petry, who have made it all happen.

So why didn’t we find Amundsen’s Latham flying boat? 

Where could it be? I think there are two possibilities: The first is that the data that we have used may be in error.  Our primary clue was a position report given in 1933 by the Captain of a fishing vessel that snared a large piece of metallic debris. His position was given as both a depth and also as a bearing to Bear Island. It is entirely possible that with a rudimentary compass, a pitching vessel and the passage of 75 years that the information may have altered. The second, and very real possibility is that the Latham was here, but has since been either removed from the site or completely destroyed by the massive amount of industrial fishing activity over the last decades. When watching the sonar data of the sea floor, we rarely had a screen that was not criss-crossed by trawler drag-marks, and in much of the search area the scouring of the sea floor is complete.

We have searched using all of the clues gathered over the last 10 years, including a public ‘open commission’ into the Latham’s disappearance. We have deployed the some of the most advanced equipment in the world in our efforts to find the Latham.  We can say definitively that the aircraft is not within these 35 sq miles of ocean, but we cannot say where it is. 

Will it be found? Perhaps there is a chance that a chance survey by fishery scientists, a military exercise or those engaged in oil/gas exploration… but in reality the Latham is now 81 years old and will continue to deteriorate. If it is going to be found, it will need to be soon.

And so we head for port. I’m certainly looking forward to seeing my wife Kathy and our baby son Kai again and the warmth of the homecoming that those returning from sea experience. 

It has been a privilege and a pleasure to work with the people involved in Operation Latham.  Amundsen’s last days are an interesting story indeed and I am hoping that our research and our efforts can now provide a documentary that will tell this story of this iconic man and his brave crew that has waited far too long to be told.

Rob McCallum

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