The word Skeleton Coast conjures up a host of images – desert coastline, flotsam and jetsam, whale and seal bones and the wreckage of many ships that have come to grief in its treacherous waters. But where did the name originate?
The story began with a young Swiss pilot, Carl Nauer, who from a young age had made a name for himself in the aviation world in Switzerland. He had a dream to fly solo from Europe to Australia in his DH.80A Puss Moth and plotted a course via Greece, Egypt, India, Thailand and Indonesia with the aim of flying eight to ten hours a day.
Nauer set off on his epic journey from Dübendorf on 9 March 1933 and after many adventures along the way, which included desert storms, monsoon rains, strong winds, emergency landings and aircraft damage, he arrived in Darwin two months and 98-flying hours later, having covered a distance of 18 000 kilometres. He received a warm welcome from the Australians and made the headlines in newspapers across the country.
When his time in Australia came to an end, he prepared for the next leg of his journey to fly home from Cape Town via Africa. He loaded his Puss Moth onto a steamer bound for Cape Town, the wings conveniently designed to fold alongside the fuselage, and boarded a passenger ship in Melbourne. Although Nauer initially planned to fly back to Europe via East Africa, at the last minute he changed his plans and decided to fly the shorter, more turbulent route up the West African coast.
He set off from Cape Town on 5 August 1933. A few days later contact was lost. A massive aerial search ensued with several countries enlisted to find out if the aircraft had been sighted or heard in their territory. When nothing turned up, journalist Sam Davis wrote: ‘. . . as a correspondent for Reuters and the Cape Argus I filed continuous copy on the futile search for Nauer which had become world news. I ventured the opinion that he had probably crashed in the sea or in the desert and that one day his bones would be found, for this was Skeleton Coast, the graveyard of ships and men.’ This was the first time that the term ‘Skeleton Coast’ had been used in the press to refer to the desolate coastline that runs along Namibia’s western boundary into Angola and we have Davis to thank for coining the descriptive name, although some claim that it was a name used by ancient mariners.
Later on, it was discovered that an aircraft was sighted near the Congo estuary on 6 or 7 August, and if this was indeed Nauer, it can be presumed that he crashed into the sea. The cause of the crash is unknown and includes several possibilities that range from equipment malfunction, wing failure and bad weather to fuel vapour impairing his perception and a fire onboard caused by the extra fuel he carried, possibly started by him lighting a cigarette. Nauer loved music and travelled with a gramophone and a pile of records. We can only hope that his last moments were accompanied by the uplifting music of a great composer. He was only 24 years old.
The name ‘Skeleton Coast’ lives on. It has gained a mysterious and alluring air, and the coastline attracts many travellers who explore its shipwrecks and wild desert beauty.
(References: Ernst Nüesch, Wie ein wagemutiger Jungpilot vor 85 Jahren allein von der Schweiz aus nach Australien flog; Sam Davis, The Naming of Skeleton Coast, SWA Jaarboek, 1979)
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