AVIATION

Hokitika Guardian, 25 August 1933, Page 8

AVIATION

ANGLO-AUSTRAL lAN SERVICE

COMMENCING NEXT SPRING

The British Government is about to conclude with Imperial Airways an agreement wherfiy Great Britain, will .ultimately lie-linked by a weekly air service to. Australia.

The intention is to forge' the links gradually, the first being that from the-present terminus at Karachi to, Calcutta. This will be followed by an extension, to Rangoon, and finally the last, link between Rangoon and Singapore, where the .English responsibility for the undertaking will end. The serivice between Singapore and Australia is to be. undertaken by Australian enterprise, and it is hoped to have the through service operating by the end of the financial year--be., by April, 1931. The. Karachi-Calcutta section is expected to, be 111 .operation by July, iaiid the beginning of October should see the opening o* the Calcutta-Rangoon extension. . ... ' -v

The proposed agreement is to run ■for- a period of approximately five •years from the.date of the opening of tli.e Singapore-Australian .section, and the subsidies to . be, paid by, the British Government haye, been . arranged •on a diminishing scale, at the rate of :£40,000' per apuum.for tlmfiyst year, r £30,000 per annum for the second and 'tbird.year, surd £20,000 per annum.for ’the .rpmaining perio.d. ~ ...... .groiuiids, lyireless and other gro,und services ai'A tO‘ be .provided and by tbe, Governments. pL ilndia,, .the, .Straits. Settlements,, and. ;Mamy States.. TEe rates; of,payment; :to; lie- received by.. .the operating companies. have been .fixed at, 24s per lb. for tbe England-Australia Mails, forthe Anglo-Indian company, and lbs per ib; for the Australian, company,, making a total payment for the Eug-laud-Australia mails of 40s per lb. For mails between England and Singapore the rate has. been fixed at, 30s per. lb. These payments will enable the Post-master-General to fix the inclusive charges to. the public at Is” per io«, letter’between England and Australian cities. .

The Karachi-Singapore section is to be:•(operated’ |oiiifly by Imperial Airways and an Indian company which is being-formed under the title Indian Transcontinental . Airways, Limited.; The capital, ivill ;be subscribed Jointly by the Government of India,. Jmpei'ial Airways,; and Indian National Airways, the last-named company being established for operation of feeder lines and other services in Northern India. Imperial Airways and Italian Transcontinental Airways will •■ each provide one-half of the fleet required for the operation of the weekly service between Karachi and Singapore, v Atthe- moment the type of machine employed has not been definitely chosen,

but is is likely, to be the Armstrong Whitworth Atalanta •, four-engined monopiVsne. Provision will be made for carrying* passengers and freights as well as mails,. / ,