INTREPID AIRWOMAN.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1583, 29 October 1912, Page 2

INTREPID AIRWOMAN.

MIRACULOUS ESCAPE. ■ Tho famous English airwoman, Alks Trehawke Davies, has just had a remarkable escape from death. Piloted bv AU-. 11. J. D. Asllcy, she left Liege, Befgium, for London on Wednesday in a Bleriot monoplane. Attempting to descend at the Ronchin Camp, near Lille, Air. Astley lost control, and (.'ho machine fell 20011., and was smashed. By a, miracle both Aliss Daviss and, Air. Astley escaped without any injury.

Afiss Davies made the following laconic entry in her diary wliile the machine, already .heeled over on to its side, was tumbling 200 ft. to tho ground: "Planing madly to earth , . . 2,20 . . . bib of us flying now." At the time she made tho entrv Aliss Davies wae held in her Mat onlv by luggage and other impedimenta which hod tumbled upon her. and the writing is naturally of a very shaky character; in fact, it is hardly legible. To a ne.\yvpajier representative tho airwoman ga\e a narrative of her adventure:

"AVo fell from a height of about 200 ft., I think. Things began,to ily about, and a compass rushed up. at inc. I caught it, and then the oil can fell in my lap. I tried my best to write something, but fliad not much time. Soon after the dive began I wils turned over. T saw the propeller whirling and bits ..of it bein» hurled into the heavens. Nobody has seen a sight like that, before from the machine itself, I .should think. When we were about to strike the ground I wondered whether my head would stick in Oho earth, ond they would find mo in that position. I was rather surprised when I had no shock and found 1 was unhurt." . , Cause of Accident.

Mr. Astley explained the cause of the accident. When flying at a height of about 300 ft., he said, the floor-board cracked, and a piece two or three inches square fell out. His heel became wedged in tho iholo and he was unable to steer the machine. When tho machine had crashed to the ground, lie said, he was astonished to find himself alive. When he crawled out ho found Aliss Davies coolly fixing her camera to take a picture of tilie damaged machine. Examination of tho monoplane- revealed that tho hole, in the floor-board was dim to the collapse of a knot Ho thinks some of tho recent air fatalities may to similarly explained. Atiss Trchawko Davies hns crossed tho Channel by air on ten different occasions. She docs not drive an aeroplano herself, 'but flies as <i passenger for the sake of tho exhilaration and emotion wihich sho finds among tho clouds. She accompanied Mr. Hamel in the Flying D?rby round London in June for the "Daily Alail" Gold Cup.