KINGSFORD SMITH

Hokitika Guardian, 26 June 1930, Page 5

KINGSFORD SMITH

A SAFE 1 LANDING. 2190 MI LEH' COVERED. 3i hours, 28 Minutes in air

f. LOST THEIR WAY

[-'United lVess Association—By Electric

Telegraph—Copyright; j.

(Received thin dav at 9. a.m.)

HARBOUR GRACE, .June 25

After circling .the town several times in a heavy■>< fog the Southern Cross landed easily on the aviation field coming to <ycst on the. ground without any difficulty, having landed liere a few minutes'before six o’clock, New York time, r * ■ • • The Southern Gross had covered 2190 miles after icthirty-one hours twenty-eight minutes; in the' air. Twenty hours of the flight was spent passing through fog; Strong head winds bothered then-fliers. For the greater part of the journey nothing was visible alb the . iWay across the Atlantic, . save two. ( { stars, sighted early last night. Heavy clouds obscured the sky and thejnships,. with which the aviators communicated, were invisible, because of- ithe. clouds and fog.

When about five , hundred miles olf Newfoundland' the •: compass began to {fail. They believe thereafter they flew in circles the only guidance being : Cape Race signals.;

When daylight ./broke "they, discovered they were about a hundred miles from the, Newfoundland coast, without knowledge of their . position, They headed for land only occasional glimpses of headlands, They actually. passed Harbour 7 . Grace without seeing. it. They. then, flew westward for an hour and j;e't lining with hope almost abandoned, ..they . sighted the port and descended... The Southern Gtess Janded on the same field as tha.it , Horn which Hawker hopped off.' /| <.J

Kingsford Smith, commenting on the flight, said they w Would never have reached Harbour Grace but for the wonderful radio, Without which they would never have got-out of the iog. They . -would have 'diad to -fly about waiting fol- the visibility to improve arid; with only a few gallons in the petrol tank he preferred not to think what might have ’ (happened • under those .eimunstaneefiG’ : •• •

KINGSFORD SMITH'S ACCOUNT. ONE HELL OF A NIGHT. LOST IN THE FOG. MACHINE WORKED PERFECTLY. , 1j1j! JI. * . . ’ r‘~->vrigbt in New-Zealand by Austtralian -Prefes Association,' world’s copyright by New York Times.) ''(Received this dhy at 9.40 a.m.) HARBOUR GRACE, dune ®6; Nobn Newfoundland time.—lCingsford Smith, and his 1 associates are now sleeping and will be starting at four in the aftejmopif frii* the final dash, but may • not* take ,off before daylight. lf ' v ’ Smith when asked as to their ex-

perience said “We-bad one hell - of a j night.” The trip was uneventful until within ten miles of ''Capte ' Race, although they encountered a heavy gale for about five hours'Fb'TVonv this point they encountered ftig 1 arid dne of their compasses was going"wrong. They had to depend on dire’Fti&rial finding to keep on their course,’the stations used being Belle Island in the straits of Belle Island and Ciipe' Race. The engine and pTfine worked like a charm all the way 5 .-* 1 When they stepped‘'from' the plane at the landing field they looked ns fit as a ieyefl and deaf, but there was'a J broad smile of contentment on their faces. Their first “Has any one got cigarettes” and with these they were quickly supplied. The crowd on the‘landing field gave the aviators a rousing ovation before leaving in taxis ftfr Hotel Cochrane for a Wash and breakfast. Five hundred miles from Cape Race a Careful check df 'instruments was made on the basis' 1 of position determined from ships, arid they decided to rely upon radio information to make their way, since th% ivefe then convinced the compas's' :,!^as: deranged. They believe they* hoVered an hour nnd'n half over Hrifboiir Grace before determining where they were, and making the landing. It is the aviators, will not depart before ipprn.ing although they .are to be wakened at four in the afternoon, having gone to bed at ten in the morning. ■'/;

PR.ESS EULOGIES. (Received this NEW ; ;> r QRK,; June 25. The - afternoon ipja,per,s- ; ..enthusiasticallv herald the Southern Crass. The |‘Sun” says,- • “Kingsfprd Smith and his com pan i ons.yflliust be congratulated' upon bringing, their plane safely to earth on North, American soil.” The ‘.‘Evening ..states: “Real feats of valour air still have power to stir the of our people. They are not air wearied. As for ICingsford he will enter •' all American " Addllafas. Wo are grateful to him for 1 j‘the radio. It made us all share in !l the intellectual of his which saved us the agony of' 1 ignorance, which- acoompa,nied fatal '‘’attempts which preceded him.” The “Evening World” says ; “Cheers jand congratulations for' 1 " 1 Kingsford

Smith and his companions in the Southern Cross. Theirs was a thoroughly workmanlike job and was rewarded •by a big measure of success.” STANNAGE’S STATEMENT. (Received this day at 10.39 a.m.) HARBOUR GRACE, June 25. Stannage on landing, said but . for directional wireless they would never have been able to reach Harbour Grace and he praised Belle Island and Cape Race for making it possible for them to land at Harbour Grace.

OIL ORDER

NEW YORK, June 25

A local oil company received a message from Kingsford Smith at Harbour Grace shortly before ten this morning.—-'‘Will you authorise four hundred gallons of petrol, twelve gallons of oil; to get to New York tomorrow.”

Officials of the company advised that the fuel was available at, Harbour Grace and would be turned over to the fliers immodiatelv.

N T o explanation was offered of the change of plans which were understood provide tor a resumption of the flight to-day.

MR SCULLIN’S MESSAGE

NEW YORK, June 25

General Brookes forwarded the following from Mr Seullin to Kingsford Smith.—“ Heartiest congraf"lntions on behalf of Government of Commonwealth of Australia. You have added another charter to Australian achievements in the air.”

BYRD’S CONGRATULATIONS

NEW YORK. June 25

Byrd sent Kingsford Smith the following message. “My companions and I congratulate you and your courageous crew on the splendid flight. The care with which the flight was prepared and carried out is noteworthy, and your achievement is one that will do much towards the progress of aviation. I hope to have the opportunity during your stay here to extend personally my congratulations and good wishes.”

OTHER MESSAGES. The acting Secretary of the Navy Ofr Jahncke) telegraphed. “Americas Navy extends congratulations to and your gallant crew. Your courageous feat in crossing trie Atlantic and landing safely against great odds has aroused the admiration of every officer and man in the Naval Service.” Walter Hinton, pilot of N.C. 4 on the first Atlantic flight in 1919, described Kingsford Smith as.—“ His second epochal achievement and great contribution towards the advancement of aviation.”

Plans for the New York reception of the personnel of the Southern Cross remained in a nebulous state to-day. pending word from the aviators as to the time of their arrival. Ambassador Lindsay and Commissioner General Brookes will meet the fliers upon* arrival. I is hoped if the Southern Cross reaches either Roosevelt field or Curtis Wright field before dark, it will be possible to fly the personnel to the statue of Liberty in an amphibian of Mayor Walker’s reception committee and then land at the battery and proceed up Broadway to the city hall, under escort for a Mavoral reeention similar to Byrds.

VANCOUVER, June 25

■ Forwarding congratulations to Kingsfnrd Smith this city is urging the Southern Cross fly here on the way to San Francisco. A huge welcome is '■>"ing planned. On the last visit here the fliers expressed the hope to be able to fly the machine here.

KI.NGSFORD SMITH’S MOVEMENTS.

TO FLY ATLANTIC FRO A! WEST

THEN ENGLAND TO AUSTRALIA

(Received this dav at 11 a.m./ NEW YORK, June 25.

A message from Longbeaoh, California, says Kingsford Smith’s brother R. H. J. Smith of San Francisco stated the aviator after arriving at New York with' the Southern Cross plans to fly here to Oakland after

-Inch ho will return to New York hv train. From there he will fly to England in a four motored, sixteen passenger transport plane. He will then leave England for Australia on a flight in a British plane in an attempt to lower the record of the flight from London to Australia.

THE ATLANTIC FLY. The flight across the Atlantic from east to west is one of the few ailroutes that remains to be conquered. The northern Atlantic lias been flown successfully only once. The flight to South America has been achieved many times, owing to the more favourable conditions, and the assistance of the Trade Winds, hut there is a drift towards the north on the direct route between Europe and the United States, albout which no data is available, and tli© prevailing wind is towards the east and against the aviator.

The pioneer flight to America was accomplished on April 1.3, 1928, when the* Junkers monoplane Bremen piloted by Captain Herman Koelil and Commandant Janies Filzmauriee Cliioi of the Irish Free State Air Force, with Baron Gunther von Hucnfeldt, made a forced landing on Greenley Island, off the southern coast of Labrador. The difficulty of the flight may lie appreciated by the fact that in a distance of about 2990 miles they were 400 miles off. their course. In the previous year Captain Nun-

gesser and Coli were never heard of after they set off from Le Bourget, Paris, on the same flight, and other well-known people who have disappeared over the Atlantic are Captain Hamilton, Colonel Mine bin, and Princess Wirtlieim; Captain Hindi cliff and the Hon. Elsie Mac-kay ; and two Swiss aviators, Oscar Kaesar and Kurt Luesclier.

Among those who have attempted the flight and have been rescued after forced descents are Captain Courtenay; four Spaniards, Franco, Gallarza, Ruiz and Madaraign: who were rescued by the British aireiaft (airier, HALS. Eagle; the Frenchmen, Lacoste and Bellecontes; the Polish fliers, Kubala and Id/.ikowski.