The Future of Flying.

Hokitika Guardian, 4 September 1920, Page 4

The Future of Flying.

BLENHEIM ON THE ALEUT,

LANDING PLACE FOR AERIAL MAILS.

BL’ENHEIAI, Aug. 31 A proposal _that a company should bo formed in Marlborough to establish an acrodrorno near Blenheim was made at the last meeting of the Marlborough Chamber of Commerce. The object was stated to be to ensure that Blenheim should bo the taking-off and lauding place when an aerial mail service is inaugurated lo tween (. iiristohureh and Wellington. In order lo have an expert opinion of the p sibilitics of til© idea the progress committee’s organiser interviewed Captain cni-in Dickson. ‘ h irst of all,” said tl a airman, “you must bear in mind that flying in New Zealand at present is not a paying busi- ! ness, unless yon have seme definite work ! for your machines to cirry out. An aeroplane such a.s the one 1 am flying now costs all told about £2OOO. Tins is the smallest, machine that is practicable. Then there are your hangars and workshops. You must have more than one machine and several pilots. That means fairly heavy overhead expenses. At present too the Government is not .showing much inclination to subsidise flying. If the object is purely to encourage flying, and the promoters are prepared to lose money for a few- years, then the matter is in another light, and the advertisement the enterprise would bring to the province would be a benefit. There would always be the difficulty however, of securing good pilots. That is one of the greatest difficulties in aviation. “What I would suggest would be for the Blenheim municipality and other bodies to set apart an area of level clear ground for aeroplane work. Then if private individuals in the province wish to fly their own planes they would be sure of a regular landing place here, and they could travel to and from their farms by air. Such an area would be a boon to visiting airmen, too, and would help materially in the work of linking up Blenheim with, the south and north by aeroplane services. “I may say that I 'have recommended Blenheim as the hopping-off place in the cross Strait flights. Picton has too many high hills, and Nelson is too far away. “As an indication of what J mean by a suitable ground, let me say that the ground I am using at present is not an ideal one at all. The trees are too’ near, and fewer adjacent fences would be better. As to the seaward end of this valley in general it is quite good. “There are many matters to be con- ] sidered in connection with an aerial post between Blenheim and Christchurch. On my present trip I have noted a number of flat areas on the route, and later on I shall motor through and spend several weeks in examining these and reporting on the amount of work that would be required to make them fit for landing places. It is necessary to have extra landing places for use in case of a forced landing, otherwise the machines would crash with damage to themselves and the pilots. The enterprise, of Blenheim and the keen interest her townsmenare talcing in aviation is typical of this goahead town. I’m sure you are well started on the way to progress and prosperity, and I look forward to flying here very often in the future.”