THE FLYING-BOATS

Evening Post, Volume CXXVI, Issue 136, 6 December 1938, Page 13

THE FLYING-BOATS

ADDITIONS TO FLEET

TRANS-TASMAN CRAFT

(By Air Mail, from "The Post's" London Representative.) LONDON, November 7. The first of a fleet of eight new 24-ton flying-boats of the "G" class, the "Champion," was delivered to Imperial Airways last week. Although identical in appearance with the "C" class flying-boats, now operating on Empire routes, these "G" class aircraft are being made capable of carrying an additional 54 tons of "all-up" weight. The second of the "G" class 'flying-boats to be delivered will be the "Cabot." The third will be the "Caribou," the fourth the "Connemara," and the fifth the "Clyde." The remaining three units of these eight "G" flying-boats are earmarked for use on the trans-Tasman service linking Sydney with Auckland. They are to be called "Aotearoa," "Australia," and "Awaroa." All but the Champion will have four Perseus sleeve-valve air-cooled engines, each of over 900 h.p. The completion of this contract by next March will clear the docks to enable Short Brothers, at Rochester, to go forward with the construction of the giant 78,0001b flying-boats for the Atlantic passenger service. Progress has already been made with the hull of the first of these boats. They will be ready in 1940. It will also enable the firm to go ahead with construction of the 280 m.p.h. landplane air liners for which they have an order. One of these is to have a sealed pressure cabin for sub-stratosphere flight at 25,000 ft to 30,000 ft. Every effort is being made to bring, into commission as many as possible of the "G" class flying-boats, in order that they may be available to help with the task —the biggest undertaken so far by any air transport organisation —of coping with the forthcoming rush of "all-up" non-surcharge Christmas mail-loads on Empire routes between England and destinations overseas. A total of nearly 70 aeroplanes will probably be used by Imperial Airways lin the early part of December to carry | the unusually heavy loads of Christmas mails to Empire destinations. Most of the air liners which normally serve on the Continental routes will be detached to take part in these services. The liners of the Heracles and Scylla classes will be fitted with extra petrol tanks in order that they may carry mail loads between London and Marseilles, and in their absence the ordinary services out of Croydon will probably be maintained by some of the Ensigns and Frobishers which are now being delivered.