I 



23 miles eastnortheast; of Cape Bonavista was noted near the hori- 

 zon on this flight, but little could be determined as to its extent be- 

 cause of the distance. A tiny patch of light sludge about 55 miles 

 east of Baccalieu Island was the only remaining field ice south of 

 Cape Bonavista. 



No further search of the Grand Banks area could be made until 

 the 9th of April. Good observing weather prevailed throughout the 

 area on the 9th and 10th enabling three flights to search an area of 

 over 6,000 square miles of the sea surface, an area encompassing 

 the northeastern slope of the Grand Banks as far south as the 46th 

 parallel, the northern slope of the Banks, and an area from the 

 beach to over 150 miles offshore, continuing from the northern slope 

 of the Banks northward past the Gray Islands. Except for mechani- 

 cal difficulties with one of the patrol aircraft which made a second 

 flight in that area impossible on the 10th, the continuation of the 

 search northward past the Strait of Belle Isle would have been 

 accomplished. With the necessary return of this second flight, the 

 flight crew utilized a shorter range plane to search the area south- 

 east of Cape Race. No ice was sighted south of 48° N., in any of the 

 area searched with the exception of a small berg in Conception Bay, 

 and about 70 miles off Cape St. Francis a very small, light patch of 

 ice, which was estimated to have a probable endurance of not over 



24 hours. A belt of sludge and winter ice extended eastward from 

 the beach just south of Cape St. John and along the northern shore 

 of Twillingate and Fogo Islands curving southward just east of 

 the latter to within 3 miles of the Newfoundland coast and then 

 closing to the beach at Cape Freels. The belt widened eastward off 

 Fogo Island to 15 miles at Cape Freels then spread seaward to 70 

 miles east and almost 50 miles southeast of that cape with a tongue 

 extending south along Cape Bonavista and halfway across the en- 

 trance to Trinity Bay, Another field extending south along the Lab- 

 rador coast was about 100 miles wide at Cape Bauld, narrowing 



h abruptly south of the Gray Islands to less than 40 miles in width. 

 e This narrow portion curved eastward just north of 40° N., extend- 

 ing in south-southeast direction to about 45 miles east of Funk 

 9ij Island. A projection stretched southeast of this tongue at Funk 

 Island, narrowing to a slender tongue, but joining the field spread- 

 ing eastward from Cape Freels. Other than this narrow point of 

 contact, an area of open water separated the two fields and the inner 

 oill edge of the more northerly field curved northward north of Twill- 

 ^lil ingate, then northwestward trending toward the coast at Hare Bay, 

 1 i but leaving a considerable expanse of open water off White Bay 

 iW and Cape St. John. 



I'll In view of the scope and effectiveness of the reconnaissance of 

 jtt' the 9th and 10th and that of 1 and 2 April, it was considered most 

 a. 1 unlikely that any field ice or bergs were in position to menace the 



3! 1 

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15 



