A FORCED LANDING

Hokitika Guardian, 1 May 1929, Page 3

A FORCED LANDING

AIRMEN’S TERRIBLE ORDEAL. IBy Telegraph—Press Association). BLENHEIM, April 39. - The overdue Moth plane of the Blenheim Aero- Club, 'piloted by Captain Noel Chandler, the Club’s instructor. with Air C. A. .Macdonald, the secretary of the Club, as a passenger, which had been missing since it left Farorar.gi at 11.30 u.m. yesterday, has been found.ENGINE; UNRELIABLE. DESCENT INTO WATER'. dsl .EXHEIA 1, Apr i I 30. At 11.3 d o’clock yesterday morning, one ol the Marlborough Aero Club’s “Gipsy Moth” planes, piloted by Captain N. E. Chandler, the Club’s Ilyin),; instructor, accompanied by Air C. A. M acDonakl, the Club’s secretary, hopped off from Mr Short’s homestead at. Paroraugi, seven miles from Feildmg. on the second stage off a flight from Hastings to .Blenheim. A lew minute, later the machine (Sir Charles Wakefield’s gift plane, which was ip resented to the Aero Club recently) wai seen passing over Feilding, witigin; steadily southward. From that moment, ’ nothing tha. could he confirmed had been seen or hoard of the machine, until, after.;., night of the grayest anxiety, the new was received at Blenheim about 11 o'clock this iiKirning .'that the planhad been located iat Ship Cove, neathe entrance of Queen Charlotte Sound, where a forced.: landing ).a» been made yesterday afternoon. Tin crew were uninjured/■.though the pian< was slightly damaged.-

The first news of the location of tlr airmen was received from Mr 'Fissen dens, of Cannibal. Cove, the messag ; giving the bare facts that, the me; were safe and the plane slightly dam aged. ■ i Tt has since been ascertained that the Alotli made the 'forced, landing at Ship Cove oil acemint of engine trouble. Captain Chandler had hoped to reach Pic-ton. but the engine became .i i > * so unreliable that a landing at the earliest lipssible moment was imperative. ShijF Cove beach presented as good a ! chance as anywhere, and the machine /wins beached in. and inn led. at 2 pjwvj; As sofifiifrom the air, by Mercer aiu! Hull, )t|!a,saw the plaifif the course of tlieinj/aerial search, the Wakefield.Mothjsl'eilVed to be on jtsoiose in 'iha! low w.ajtxjr; about half-a-dozen yards from ‘the'beach. She must have been somewhat' ’damaged. The plane’s crew had to spend a comfortless night ashore in the raindrenched bush. This morning Captain Chandler walked to Cannibal Cove, reaching there about 10 o’clock.. Some time Inter a launch, believed..to be one ol Air J. Porano’s whalers, picked up Air MacDonald from Ship Cove. Both lnen were provided with nnicii. uoeded food by Mrs Fissendons, whose husband gwas out searching the coast towards Cape Jackson. men appeared to he much worse for tintrying experience. FULLjg'pORY OF THE ORDEAL, BLENHEIM, April 30." With the arrival home about 3.30 two strangely-dressed much-bedraggied individuals in whom it was difficult to recognise Captain X. E. Chandler and .Mr O' A. MacDonald, the full story of a terrible adventure in Cook Strait on Monday, and of a dreadful experience at Ships Cove during the night, became available. The Blenheim Alotli took off lrom Hastings at 9.45 o’clock on .Monday morning in company with the other machines piloted by Captain I? iiullay, Burrell, Hall, and Alercer. With the exception of Hall, the other pilots had arranged to land at Paroraugi. Here the Bristol plane was to be refuelled. The conditions were bumpy. A smart trip of an hour saw all of the machines on the ground at Parorangi. Taking tho air again, Findlay and Alercer were first away, followed half-an-hour later at 11.30 by the Blenheim Alotli. The latter took a northwesterly course over Foxtail and Paekakariki to Cape Tera-whiti, and at this point should have headed for Tory Channel and at this time the South Island was quite invisible under heavy rain clouds, so Captain Chandler headed the machine for Lyali Bay, where the conditions were clear. At this, the clouds over the South Island lifted, and the Brothers and the northern part of the South Island were clearly visible, and so it was decided to run part of the way across the Strait, in the hope of a further improvement in visibility. When the plane was lmlf-way across the water the clouds again shut down, and i,otli of the Islands were obscured. Descending to within 50 feet of the water, the airmen found the Brothers dimly visible, but the mainland could not be observed. The machine was then turned around.

The plane made in tlm direction of Tory Channel and Port Underwood, I,nt though the plane mast have been within one hundred feet oi the elifls, not a glimpse of these was available. The plane was turned about, and a little later the airmen again picked up the Brothers Lighthouse, which they circled twice, so as to enable the lightkeeper to read the plane’s identification letters, the airmen now being well aware they were up against it, and wore at the mercy of their engine, .fust then the “Gipsy” gave signs of trouble. “An air lock!” said Captain Chandler laconically. The machine then flew low, and they picked up the

entrance of Queen Charlotte Sound. M 1 anyth’ - Ibo conditions now were worse. Blinding rain beat about the inane, wnn -Mutuara just dimly visible below. . The engine spluttered, and cut out. • “Any landing place here?” asked the Pilot. “You might put her down Ships Cove, and you mightn’t!” was the reply of the passenger.- Jle pointed in the direction, and the plane was put into a glide through the Tog. Shi])* Cove became dimly visible, and, as llie tide was l'u■ I, the little beach was covered. One patch of flat rock, about 9) feet square, was visible. Captain (.Handler with uncanny accuracy head-' oi f.t it, -that is,, for .-a pancake landing,: He'undershot it by ten feet, and the machine,stalled, and in a fraction of a’ second it fell nose down in tho water, 20ft. from the slnre. The pilot 'was quickly overboard and in the water up to the armpits. Air AlaoDonald, in the forward cockpit, had some difficulty in extricating himself from under the wings. The crew then waded ashore in sheets of rain. It was a wonderful landing in the circumstance; and the pilot’s nice judgment undoubtedly saved their lives. At tin’s stage • lie plane was virtually undamaged. II the crew had had a length of rope t put the tail down, she could have boon got ashore. Back on shore, the airmen were in a sorry plight. They were wet to the skin, and their cigarettes and matches were sadden. A fire was out of the question. Rain poured dow pitilessly. The;"pair'crouched down in an old packing ease which they/discovered.

Al)plit two o’clock.- Chandler set off in an attempt to reach Cannibal Cove, leaving Iris partner-iii-misforhuie to the. oaeking ease. Two hours later Chandler was hopelessly: lost in a thick hush. He halloed for direction, and then ho found his wav back to the packing ease. There they had to face long hours of darkness, the rain beating down pitilessly and unceasingly. The cold was intense. . It was an awful night, never to he forgotten'. At dawn. Chandler again set off, eventually reaching Cannibal Cove, after a strenuous effort of four hours. A Iron t the same time. AraeDonald attracted the attention of a fishing launch, and a little later tho airmen, Alercer and Hall, flew overhead in the searching planes, and Afercor drooped a packet of sandwiches.

Afr D. Peru no’s launch picked up .MacDonald, and later Chandler, who had telephoned the news of his ow’n and- his companion’s safety. STORM DAAIAGES PLANE.

The plane was rather hadlv damaged in the storm during the night.

The adventurers have been inundated with telegrams of congratulations, <ind had a wonderful welcome at Pietoil and at Blenheim. Both much appreciate tho steps taken to locate them bv the pilots of tho Blenheim and Hawke’s Bay and Auckland clubs, and by Captain Burrell and the Govern-* ment.