Five years ago Roald Amundsen, discoverer of the South Pole, went to the rescue of the wrecked airship Italia commanded by General Umberto Nobile, whom he cordially disliked. A French navy seaplane bearing Amundsen and five companions started from Tromso, Norway, towards Spitsbergen. It was never seen again.
Last week fishermen trawling the chill grey waters south of Bear Island, which lies along the track of the Amundsen route, sent reports to Tromso which, if investigation bears them out, will enable Norwegians at least to mark with a reverent X the spot where their great explorer died. One report said a "heavy object'' brought up in a net had been identified as part of the plane, but had broken through the net and been lost again. The Norwegian Government wondered whether other identifiable wreckage had been found, ordered an investigation, stood ready to send the Arctic ship Fridtjof Nansen promptly to Bear Island.