The Javelin thrower had wanted to compete in the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, but when that proved unreachable he got a job in an airport to try and earn enough money so he could fly home.
Although in a twist of fate, Reg’s wallet was stolen and he was forced to change his plan or he would never make it home. He had a friend build a box in which he could live in when he was loaded onto a plane.
According to Metro he said “I just got in the thing and went. What was there to be frightened of? I’m not frightened of the dark so I just sat there.
“It’s like when I travel now if I go overseas. There’s the seat. Sit in it, and go.”
He managed to get loaded onto an Air India plane yet had to endure a 24 hour delay squashed into the 5ft x 3ft x 2.5ft box.
He took only a few supplies to stay alive for the three day journey. These included: A blanket, a pillow, a torch, some tinned foods, two plastic bottles (one used for water, the other for urine) and a suit.
Whilst in the air, he often crept out to wee into the bottle of which he left on top of the box as the plane came into land in Paris on its first stop.
Reg describes his next stop, Bombay, as being ‘sticky’. He said that his box was left in the sun’s glare upside-down for hours. This was a good enough excuse for Reg to get naked.
Many more hours had gone by until, finally, he could hear the sound of Australian baggage handlers swearing about the size of the box he was inside.
He said “The accents, how could you miss? I’m on the soil. Amazing. Wonderful. I made it.
07/05/15 Thomas Finlay/Sunday World.com
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Although in a twist of fate, Reg’s wallet was stolen and he was forced to change his plan or he would never make it home. He had a friend build a box in which he could live in when he was loaded onto a plane.
According to Metro he said “I just got in the thing and went. What was there to be frightened of? I’m not frightened of the dark so I just sat there.
“It’s like when I travel now if I go overseas. There’s the seat. Sit in it, and go.”
He managed to get loaded onto an Air India plane yet had to endure a 24 hour delay squashed into the 5ft x 3ft x 2.5ft box.
He took only a few supplies to stay alive for the three day journey. These included: A blanket, a pillow, a torch, some tinned foods, two plastic bottles (one used for water, the other for urine) and a suit.
Whilst in the air, he often crept out to wee into the bottle of which he left on top of the box as the plane came into land in Paris on its first stop.
Reg describes his next stop, Bombay, as being ‘sticky’. He said that his box was left in the sun’s glare upside-down for hours. This was a good enough excuse for Reg to get naked.
Many more hours had gone by until, finally, he could hear the sound of Australian baggage handlers swearing about the size of the box he was inside.
He said “The accents, how could you miss? I’m on the soil. Amazing. Wonderful. I made it.
07/05/15 Thomas Finlay/Sunday World.com
