AVIATION

Hokitika Guardian, 6 August 1928, Page 2

AVIATION

COURTNEY’S PLANE. MARVELLOUS ESCAPES. Australian Press Assn.—United Service LONDON, August 3. A copyright message gives Courtney’s own story aboard the Minnewaska. lie states: “ Our plane caught fire abruptly, and thus nearly tragically ended the flight. - I decided, after leaving Horta on August Ist, to fly on a southerly course in order to put the headwinds abeam as we finished the trip, expecting to arrive at Newfoundland in seventeen hours. After flying for three hours, the moon rose, cloudblanketed. The crew were comfortably stowed. Hugh Gilmour, the wireless operator, ascertained from steamers that the direction of the wind differed from the forecast. We were a while re-calculating our course. We lost sight of the sun in the sky, and ran into a blinding rainstorm. -We also hit many ferocious bumps, though the engines were running perfectly, and the instruments accurate. The rain then stopped for two hours, but we were still flying blind at eighteen hundred feet. We climbed to inspect the upper side of the clouds at 3500 feet. This was too high to encounter adverse winds. We then descended below the clouds a thousand feet. It was too dark to see the water. The clouds broke at 2.15 o’clock in the morning, and we glimpsed the moon. Then we climbed up to fifteen hundred feet. I was discussing the engines with the mechanic, Fred Pierce, when I saw the most horrible sight of my flying career. The cheery exhaust flame behind suddenly changed to a dull, red glow. I was stunned to see the rear engine enveloped in flames, stretching out like a giant blow lamp rearwards, over Elwood Hosmlrs’ seat, and beyond the rudder tail. Our machine in the darkness, must have resembled a grotesque comet. The situation seemed to be a nightmare. It did not occur to me that we could reach the water before the tail would be burned away. My subsequent actions merely blindly followed my piloting instinct, which possibly saved us. Pierce rushed into the engine room, and turned off the petrol. Three seconds later it would have been too late. 1 cut off all of the switches, and threw our machine into a headlong dive through the blackness, with a vague .idea of burning up the escaped petrol if Pierce should have failed to turn off the cocks. The dive shot Gilmour out of his seat. As 1 drew out of the dive, with the burning seaplane over-loaded one ton, I saw a glow reflected on the wave crests. I managed to put the machine on one wave crest, and ran down a hill of water and then up the next, just in-eventing the seaplane from shooting into the air off the crest. The machine, after several jolts, came-to rest without any damage. During the descent Pierce amazingly succeeded in turning off the cocks and in applying the fire-extin-guisher inside the engine room, greatly diminishing the flames, the remainder of which, instead of streaming out behind, burned directly over the opening in the hull containing six hundred gallons of petrol. The fire extinguisher was exhausted. The flames burned fiercely for a quarter of an hour, while we four stood awaiting a final explosion. However, that explosion never came. When the flames subsided, we erected boat hooks to support our emergency wireless. Gilmour then sent “ 5.0.5.” wills, but we received no reply. Wo decided to conserve our batteries by awaiting daybreak. When the engine room had cooled we found tnat a petrol pipe had broken, causing the petrol under pressure to be forced against the exhaust. The breakage, as it developed, must have caused an accumulation of petrol to give it a good send-off. When the flames reached the exhaust, the metal engine mounting burned through like paper. If our machine had not been made ol metal, it would not have survived five minutes. Gilmour resumed his “5.0.5.” calls at daybreak. The steamer “ Cedric ” answered, and 1 checked the position, but by the time that a’’ accurate estimate was sent, we had drifted thirty miles. Our batteries gradually ran out. As the liner searched, we knew that the position was serious, and put our last power into the directional signals to the “ Minnewaska ”. We also tried smoke signals and we nearly again ignited the machine. We waited dejectedly and were seasick, owing to the continued rolling. Gnmour announced casually, “Ship sighted.” I called him a liar, and looked and saw the finest sight I have ever seen—the “ Minnewaska ” steaming towards us. I have failed again to fly the Atlantic, but I am not disheartened as my failure has proved my point better than would success have done. 1 have always insisted that a seaworthy machine and an efficient wireless set are essential to successful ocean flights. These principles saved our lives in about as bad a situation as aviators ever were in.” ANOTHER SIDE OF IT.

LONDON, August 4. The “Daily ilail ” says: “Courtney’s rescue calls attention to the expenses entailed for the. shipping companies whose vessels responded to his “5.0.5.” Several liners had to quit their course and rush to his assistance. The efforts of all but one of them were necessarily vain. The aggregate cost thereof has probably been between seven thousand and ten

thousand pounds sterling. A shipping official points out. that, while vessels always are ready to answer distress messages from ships, the Atlantic fliers are in a different category, inas they will be lionised if successful, but they do not consider the expense caused if anything goes wrong. ANOTHER. ATLANTIC FLIGHT. LONDON, August 4. The airman ldzikowski hopes to reach New York in fortv-two hours. The distance of the course is five thousand miles. His plane carries 150 gallons of petrol. If adverse winds cause too heavy a consumption, the plane may be forced to land at Halifax. ldzikowski is the first to follow the southern, instead of the northern grand circle.

The “ Berliner Tagehlatt ” describes the venture as “ a neck-breaking flight with a one-motored aeroplane.” A MYSTERIOUS FLIER. LONDON, August 4. The steamer “ Amakura ” reported latitude 42.26 nortli longtitude 20.40 west an aeroplane approached from westward and encircled the ship at a distance of half a mile at a height of five hundred feet, and swiftly departed northward, without signalling. A NEW AIR GRADE. LONDON, August 4. A new air grade has been created, known as Master Pilots, and composed of the most experienced pilots, who, nevertheless, have to pass severe examinations. They must be proficient with seaplanes as well ns landplanes. THE SOUTHERN CROSS. GISBORNE, August 4. A wireless from Sydney stated that the Southern Cross plane flies to Melbourne on Sunday. Captain Kingsford Smith returns to Sydney on Wednesday in a borrowed plane, to be present at the A.I.F. annual re-union, when he

receives a cheque for one thousand pounds from the Returned Soldiers’ Association. SYDNEY, August 5. The Southern Cross ’plane made a successful trial flight yesterday afternoon, and received New Zealand messages easily on the wireless. A further trial flight will be made to-mor-row. RESCUER’S VINDICATION. ROME, August 4. Lundhorg, the ariman who rescued General Nobile, has written to General Nobile regretting the unjust press comments on the latter. Lundborg says: “I desire to establish the truth. You desired me first to take Ceccioni. It was only after insistent and repeated pleadings by others that you consented to come first.