Here is a bit of history of Lae.
A couple of points of interest was firstly Lae was one end of an air supply chain in 1931/32 to the goldfields at Bulolo and Wau (no roads in those days). In 1931 the Junkers and other aircraft on this 40 minute run carried more air freight than
the whole rest of the world combined!
It was from Lae that Amelia Earhart and Noonan took off never to be seen again.
The Japanese occupied Lae in 1942 and it was from here Saburo Sakai flew to become one of the top WW2 aces.
On 10 March 1942 a task force comprising the carriers Yorktown and Lexington and the heavy cruiser Indianapolis (all later sunk) launched a force which flew over the 15,000ft Owen Stanley Ranges from the south coast and attacked and sunk several Japanese transports unloading troops for the Lae occupation.
The modern converted cargo liner Tenyo Maru was hit and the captain drove it onto the beach at the foot of the airstrip. The bow of the ship was a radar beacon for aircraft flying in bad weather for 20 years until it slid back during an earthquake in the 60's. Still a great scuba dive.
With the Australian 9th Division from the east, 6th Division from the south and 7th Division air landed at Nadzab to the north Lae was taken to become the main centre for New Guinea operations. Hence the workshops etc.
This is a good read with some photos
http://malumnalu.blogspot.com.au/201...t-old-lae.html
Lang