This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost Australia, which closed in 2021.

NZ Father, Daughter Missing At Sea Turn Up In Ulladulla

"We were always safe, we just couldn't let anyone know."

A New Zealand father and daughter missing at sea for a month have turned up in a coastal Australian town.

Alan Langdon, 46, and his six-year-old daughter, Que, spent 27 days in a 6.4-metre catamaran, using a broken rudder to sail across the Tasman Sea before reaching Ulladulla, on the NSW south coast.

There's been an international manhunt for the pair, with Langdon reportedly having been locked in a custody dispute with Que's mother, Ariane Wyler, before the father-daughter pair set sail from Kawhia Harbour on New Zealand's North Island on December 17.

Alan Langdon on the deck of his catamaran in Ulladulla Harbour on Wednesday
Fairfax/Milton Ulladulla Times
Alan Langdon on the deck of his catamaran in Ulladulla Harbour on Wednesday
Alan Langdon speaks with Australian Border Force officials at Ulladulla Harbour
Fairfax/ Milton Ulladulla Times
Alan Langdon speaks with Australian Border Force officials at Ulladulla Harbour

"I tell you I learned a lot about sailing," Langdon told the Milton Ulladulla Times on Wednesday.

"Yes we are safe and well. We were always safe, we just couldn't let anyone know."

Australian child recovery expert Col Chapman, who was hired by Wyler, said he had suspected Langdon would try to make the 2,600km journey from New Zealand.

Alan Langdon's catamaran made the nearly 2,600km trip with a broken rudder.
Fairfax/Ulladulla Milton Times
Alan Langdon's catamaran made the nearly 2,600km trip with a broken rudder.

Chapman told Stuff.co.nz that after hearing her daughter had been found, Wyler was "thrilled, over the moon, ecstatic, she couldn't be happier" and she wanted Que returned back to New Zealand immediately.

"That is what should happen," she is reported to have said.

"New Zealand can insist on Que's immediate return, that would not be a problem."

Close
This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost Australia. Certain site features have been disabled. If you have questions or concerns, please check our FAQ or contact support@huffpost.com.