Emotions run high as new transport era begins on remote island

The island's transport eras have spanned from 1834 when the first island settlers used whaling boats, to the romanticised post-World War II flying boat era, through to the past three decades when Qantas has served the island community. "The history of an extremely isolated place like Lord Howe Island, 586 kilometres from the closest point on the Australian coast, is always defined by transport and communication," Lord Howe Island resident and historian Chris Murray said. " It was tradition on the island that a visitor who was leaving was given a flower lei … before they boarded, they would throw the lei on the water, and it would look so beautiful with all the flowers around the plane. "

Author: Emma Siossian

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