page_title: Ben Carlin
section_title: Europe and the Middle East
hierarchical_section_title: Ben Carlin / Circumnavigation / Europe and the Middle East
caption_attribution_description: English: A photograph of w:Ben Carlin's craft Half-Safe in Copenhagen in 1951.
context_page_description: Frederick Benjamin "Ben" Carlin was an Australian adventurer who was the first person to circumnavigate the world in an amphibious vehicle. Born in Northam, Western Australia, Carlin attended Guildford Grammar School in Perth, and later studied mining engineering at the Kalgoorlie School of Mines. After qualifying as an engineer, he worked on the Goldfields before in 1939 emigrating to China to work in a British coal mine. In the Second World War, Carlin was posted to the Indian Army Corps of Engineers, serving in India, Italy, and throughout the Middle East. After his discharge from service in 1946, he emigrated to the United States with his American wife, Elinore.
  Sparked by an idea he had had whilst in the military, Carlin proposed that the couple honeymoon by crossing the Atlantic Ocean in a modified Ford GPA, which they named the Half-Safe. Beginning their trip in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, the Carlins finally completed the transatlantic crossing in 1951, after unsuccessful attempts. From there, they travelled to Europe, temporarily settling in Birmingham to raise more money.
context_section_description: Tired, weary, and lacking in money, the Carlins decided to remain in England to rest and recuperate. Throughout the journey from Nova Scotia to the Azores, both Carlin and his wife had suffered from severe hallucinations, including one instance where he had jerked awake to find himself 60° off course. Another important objective of their time in Britain was to repair Half-Safe, which had sustained large amounts of damage during the crossing, not least from Hurricane Charlie, which battered the vessel whilst it was amongst the islands of Macaronesia. The repairs to the craft were accomplished with the help of RAF Group Captain Malcolm Bunting, who had served alongside Carlin in India. To raise money for the continuation of the journey, Half-Safe was exhibited in department stores throughout Europe. During this time, Carlin also completed Half Safe: Across the Atlantic by Jeep, a book chronicling the first half of their journey, which sold 32,000 copies and was translated into five languages. The book was generally well received, with a reviewer in The Montreal Gazette describing Carlin as "an adventurer of the old school – full of the explorer's instinct, and with a dry wit that makes his story an odd mixture of high-adventure and real understatement".
  The Carlins set out again in early 1955, arriving in France on 22 April 1955. The vehicle continued through Switzerland, northern Italy, and Yugoslavia, where in May 1955, it was reported that Half-Safe had had its first flat tire, whilst travelling through Belgrade. The Carlins then continued through Greece and Turkey, sailing across the Bosphorus to Asia Minor, before progressing through Syria, Jordan, Iraq, Iran, and Pakistan to Calcutta, India. Carlin later noted: "the 2000 miles across the Atlantic from Nova Scotia to the Azores were in many ways much less worrying than a similar distance covered on murderous roads in Persia". At Calcutta, the Carlins decided to transport Half-Safe to Australia via steamer. At the start of his voyage, Carlin had said he would not travel to Australia or New Zealand, because petrol was "too dear" there. However, a lack of funding meant the side trip was necessary. The trip also allowed Carlin to meet with his family, who still lived in Perth – his brother, Tom Carlin, had become a captain in the Royal Australian Navy, and was actively involved in nuclear weapons testing on the Montebello Islands in 1952, as part of Operation Hurricane.
caption: The Carlins and Half-Safe were greeted by a large crowd upon landing in Copenhagen, Denmark, in 1951.
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