Dear Mr. Plumptre:

I am sending by concurrent air mail despatch No. 522† dated today, concerning a proposed amendment to the Australia‑Canada Air Agreement of June, 1946, and I would like to offer a few comments which I did not want to include in the despatch and which you may take for what you think they are worth.

You will recall that the Minister for Transport on 2nd† July, 1948, announced the Canadian Government's decision to designate Canadian Pacific Air Lines to oper­ate the Vancouver‑Sydney air route. This announcement was a cruel blow to the Australian Government who would have preferred and actually expected that Can­ada would designate T.C.A. to the route. The Minister for Civil Aviation repeatedly expressed disappointment at the decision and an exchange of telegrams between the Prime Ministers of Australia and Canada took place. At the third meeting of S.P.A.T.C. held in Wellington, New Zealand, last November‑December, the Aus­tralian delegation, led by Mr. Drakeford, openly criticized Canada's action in designating a privately‑owned company to operate to Australia and the situation, as Mr. Rive and Air Vice Marshall [A.] Ferrier can tell you, was, to say the least, at times quite tense.

Although the Australian Government had no option but to accept our Govern­ment's decision, from all our dealings with them since I cannot but feel that they still have not resigned themselves completely to it. They appear to put out special efforts to make things as difficult as possible by employing delaying tactics when­ever we have occasion to approach them on matters dealing with the operation of the Vancouver‑Sydney route. For instances of this I should like to refer to your telegram No. 61 of 3th† May† in which you instructed us to seek the Australian Government's concurrence of C.P.A.'s designation. Although we acted immedi­ately here a period of almost two months elapsed before this concurrence was granted. Again, on 24th† June we approached the Australian Government along the lines directed in your despatch No. 314 of 15† June† seeking fifth freedom rights on a similar basis to those which had been enjoyed by the Australian air line operat­ing to Canada for the past three years. Although there would appear to be no justifi­able reason for it the Australian authorities again delayed for over two months in providing a reply in spite of the fact that, as directed in your despatch No. 378 of 10th† August† we persisted in pressing them for it. In both cases, of course, the replies were favourable.

I should not want you to think that the above remarks are the product of a defeatist mind on my part. I am sure our former High Commissioner, Mr. K.A. Greene, would support all I have said. I know for a fact, as I have been told by two different officers of the Australian Department of External Affairs, that the trouble does not spring from that Department but rather from the Department of Civil Avia­tion which appears to revel in attempting to frustrate us every time we approach the Australian Government on such matters.

Yours very truly,
G.A. RAU