CAUSE A MYSTERY

Evening Post, Volume CXV, Issue 75, 30 March 1933, Page 11

CAUSE A MYSTERY

EXPERTS ON SCENE

MESSAGES OF SYMPATHY

RECORD OF COMPANY;

(British Official Wireless.) (Received March 30, 11 a.m.)

RUGBY, March 29. Major Cooper, Investigator of Accidents at the Air Ministry, accompanied, by his assistant (Flight-Lieu-tenant Davy), left Croydon by air this morning to begin investigations into the disaster to the air liner City «f Liverpool, which crashed at Dixmudc, Flanders, yesterday. The examination and removal of die. wreckage of the air liner began this afternoon in the presence of the British Air Ministry inspector and the Belgian air authorities. The cause of the accident is a mystery which . may never be completely solved, as the machine is a mass of charred remains and all. fifteen perNons aboard lost their lives. An eye-witness's story suggests that there was an explosion in mid-air and the machine was afire before it crashed. It is only known that the pilot (Captain Leleu) was, a skilled airman with eighteen years' flying experience, who had been with Imperial Airways for nine years, and that the machine was of a well-tried type with which no trouble bad ever previously occurred. The King, in a message to the chairman of Imperial Airways (Sir Eric Geddes), expressed deep sympathy with the relatives of passengers and the crew who lost their lives, and with the company. In. a telegram of sympathy to tho company the Air Minister (Lord Londonderry) says:—"The accident is more regrettable in view of tho unequalled record of safety established by Imperial Airways," and tho chairman, in reply, expresses profound regret at the "deplorable break in. the company's record of safety." ,- RECORD Or SAFETY. Imperial Airways craft a month ago completed an aggregate of ten million miles of flying, and since the companywas formed nine years ago only five accidents involving injury to passengers have ever occurred. The record liaa been so good and the inspection organisation is so thorough and complete that insurance rates for night in Imperial Airways craft were recently reduced by insurance companies to the same level as for other forms of travel.. Sir Eric Geddes,. in a public statement, says that to those who direct and work for Imperial Airways the deplorable accident is a great blow and tho shock is greater owing to-the pride they-took in the nine years' record, during which 10,600,000 miles had been flown. As official inquiries were jbcing conducted it was undesirable to hazard a guess as to'thc cause of the disaster, but every possible assistance would be given by the company to ascertain it and to take all possible precautions to prevent further accidents. In its grief at the bereavements suffered the company finds some consolation in tho confidence shown oil all sides and in the fact that passengers who had applied for reservations-today on some of their services exceed the accommodation available. . - . QUESTIONS IN COMMONS. The air disaster was the subject of questions in tho House of Commons, where the Under-Secre'tary for Air (Sir Philip Sassoon) said that the aircraft appeared to have caught fire in the air. Until the receipt of a preliminary report from the Inspector of Accidents this morning it was not possible to make any further statement. In the moan*-hne, the reports, such as that' tho fire started in one of the engines, should be treated with tho greatest reserve. Sir Philip recalled that since tho last accident attended by loss of life, nearly ; two and a half years ago, Imperial Airways had flown over four million miles and carried over, 99,000 passengers', a record of safety in which the country might take a legitimate pride. The type of machine involved had been in constant use for six years, and tliis was the first accident in the course of over 2,000,000 miles flown, by this typo on regular services. . . ' Under approved international procedure responsibility for investigations rested with tho country in which the accident occurred, though it was customary to associate with the inquiry the technical representatives of tho country to which the aircraft belonged. No doubt in the present ease the responsible Belgian authorities would work in the closest and most cordial co-operation with British experts. He conveyed to the relatives of those killed the profound sympathy of the Secretary of State and himself at the loss so tragically sustained.