First Edition in damaged dustjacket.

Biggles of the Air Police has been called upon to fly over many lands, but on this assignment he must not only pit his wits against a formidable opponent but do so in what is acknowledged the most treacherous climate on earth for any type of craft, land, sea or air.

Biggles goes to the Southern most tip of South America in search of gold after a tip off from Erich von Stalhein. British gold has been hidden on an unknown island by the German Navy during the Second World War. Partly as a cover story, Biggles is additionally in search of two missing botanists called Carter and Barlow. Taking Algy, Bertie and Ginger with him they fly to Southern Chile but meet a hostile reception from a Chilean official (whose father was a German sailor). This man, Gontermann, is also looking for the gold. With assistance from another Chilean official called Juan Vendez, Biggles spends time flying in his Gadfly plane and searching for clues. Eventually, seeing smoke on an island, they land and discover Barlow, who has been shot and wounded, and Carter. This is the picture on the dust cover of the book. By pure chance, Carter and Barlow have discovered the gold and hidden it. Barlow had been shot by two men whom Biggles suspects Gontermann is using to try to help him to find the gold. Biggles is able to make further sorties on the pretext of salvaging important papers from the wreck of the Seaspray, which was Carter and Barlow’s boat. However, he has to deal with the dreadful weather as well as Gontermann before a Russian whaling ship turns up to take the gold away. This is a ship that Gontermann was expecting. All looks lost, but the whaler runs aground and then the British Navy arrive to take the gold back to the country that rightfully owns it.