SOUTHERN CROSS MISHAP.
VERY WILD COUNTRY.
AIRMEN CARRIED SIGNAL GUN and kites.
SMITH KNOWS COUNTRY WELL.
Following upon the delayed news icceived on Tuesday, covering the last messages from the Southern Cross, all minds will be concentrated on the question, what sort of forced landing the airmen made. The -country over which they were last known to be flyin? is of the roughest deseriptiom Ihe rainy season usually lasts from November to April, and during that P eno(l the low-lying districts are converted into lakes and bogs. The Forrest River mission station is on the north-west side of the Cambridge Gulf, about 30 miles north of Wyndham, while the Drysdale River mission station (evidently the one over which Smith passed) is about I'dO miles further to the westward. The area in which tlije fliers are lost is to the north and west of the Kimberley goldfields. It is bounded on the east by the Ord River and on the south-west by the Fit'zrov River. From the upper reaches of the latter stream the Leopold Ranges extend to the "north-west. Below Wyndham the Durack Range runs roughly ■north and south, .Beyond the ranges extend a vast series of ridges covered with dense scrub, alternating with depressions filled with dense masses of snear-grass and cane-grass, which grow to a great height. In the rainy season most of these depressions _ become extensive bogs, through which it is impossible to ride on horseback. The sea-coast is much broken by numerous gulfs, bays and inlets, into which flow rivers and creeks. There are hundreds of miles of mangrove swamps along the coast, and flense bush, and undergrowth along the courses of the rivers and creeks, which swarm with ciocodiles. At the same time the streams are the haunts of great numbers of ducks and other wildfowl, and in tin. scrub ar; brush turkeys and many other birds. Snakes and mosquitoes are among the pests of the region, which apart from the mission stations and a few points on the coast, is uninhabited by white people. Numerous aborigines, however, roam the 'territory; they have a bad reputation, but might hesitate to attack four white .men, as these natives are known to be somewhat cowardly., PROVISION FOR' EMERGENCY. A friend of the missing Southern Cross airmen, Mr Janies H. Fort, of Oakland, California, who L at present visiting ■ Auckland, 'stated, yesterday that the Southern Cross is equipped with ample means for sending out dis tress signals should the monoplane have made a forced landing in inaccessible country. Mr Fort flew 1000 miles with Kingsford Smith and- Ulm in the Southern Cross just prior to their departure from America on the Pacific flight, .and he helped to install and test the aeroplane’s "instruments. ‘ it is Kingsford Smith’s custom alwavs to carry a Vcrey signal gun capable of firing rockets at night that can be seen from a great distance,” he .said, “and' in addition he always carries Japanese silk signal kites, which can be released and are visible tor a great many miles in daylight. If'the Southern Cross were' damaged in a forced descent and its crew are alive these signals would almost certainly bo used '"to attract the attention of /searching aeroplanes.” “Kingsford Smith is well acquainted with the habits of the blackfellows,” Mr Fort added. “He flew through that country regularly for two years and a-lialf, ana has mixed among the natives so long that he should .experience little difficulty in persuading them to get food and water and act as guides .to the nearest settlement. If they did not come across any blackfellows they would have sandwiches and coffee sufficient for two or three meals—that was •all they usually carried —as well as emergency rations consisting of concentrated foods with which the aeroplane is permanently stocked. “Undoubtedly a wrecked aeroplane even of the size of the Southern Cross would be a difficult object, to pick up by searchers from the air. The wings are covered with an aluminium silver paint having no distinctive markings ,on the top surface, and from the air would blend fairly well with the natural landscape. Before leaving America I urged Kingsford Smith to have v the wings painted with diagonal blue stripes to make the machine conspicuous from a height, but nothing was ever done. As they are at present they almost exactly, match the colour of the sea, aud I should think they would be quite invisible at a distance of five miles.”
If .the aeroplane descended into the sea, Mr Port continued, the wings of the machine could be detached and used sts makeshift rafts. This was a device prepared for the Pacific flight and never employed. It was expected that if the aeroplane dropped into the sea the impact would dislodge the wings, but if not a hacksaw was kept handy do do the job. With a spread of 70ft they would float perfectly, and the immediate bodily needs of the marooned flyers would be catered for by the concentrated foods kent in an attached compartment, where were also kept the Verey gun, the kites, some life-pre-servers, and a miniature still for distilling sea -water for drinking purposes. PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE OP THE WEST. Both Smith and Ulm are Australians ;md have spent some time in the bush, ,-ind they have also flown across unknown Australia before. It is v r ell worth quoting several passages from the “Story of the Southern Cross Pacific Plight,” a book written last year by Smith and Ulm. In this great book they describe their flight around Australia, which was begun from Sydney on June 19, 1927, and completed there on June 29, establishing a record for the round, journey. They made an Aus-
iraliau noiustop record by flying from Camooweal lu Danvin, a. distance of ■B2O miles, and the next day they broke 'their own record by flying from Darwin to Broome, 860 miles, without stopping. On this flight they passed near to Wyndham, and thus had an opportunity of studying the countiy which they are now in. ■ 'Smith says of the Australian round flight: “We used a "Bristol Tourer ’plane which was seven years old, and the engine had run for more than 1100 hours. To prepare Ihe machine for the flight involved incesuant toil day and night. We left-Sydney on June 19th with our first stop at Brisbane, after enlarging the capacity of the oil tank to enable us to keep aloft tor about 12 hours. We fitted the rear tank under the pilot’s seat, with a funnel, which allowed us to pour petrel into the tank from ten or twelve tins which we carried m the back cabin.
“At no point around the Australian coast were there any aids to night flying. so that we had to fly from daylight to dark. When we landed each evening, no matter how tired we felt, we at once filled the tanks with petrol to be ready for the next day’s hop. On the hop from Camooweal to Port Darwin we broke the Australian nonstop record. On the last hour of that hop the engine developed a badly-blow-ing exhaust valve. When we looked over the engine at Port Darwin, we (were forced to realise that the engine 'was in a pretty bad state. There was no chance of replacing a broken valve at Port Darwin, so we decided to take a risk and to push on, if possible, to Broome, 860 miles from Darwin. On this flight we did really take a risk. We flew over country that was unknown, country that had never been iseen by a white man from the air, or pven by overland travel. Hundreds ;of miles of our route lay over the Kimberley Ranges. There we flew in a dead straight line over the mountain barrier bristling with buits of rock and roughly timbered slopes. At many points\ve found ourselves nearly 200 miles from the coast,-and on the other side nearly 180 miles from the telegraph line, which threaded its way Through the endless ocean of bronze 'green bush, and the nearest means of communication. “SOME WEEKS FROM HELP.’’ “If we had been forced down and were obliged to seek help through the 'telegraph line it would have been some weeks before any help could have reached us. Aboriginal tubes that, roamed through this wilderness ,of scrub were reported to be hostile. We carried nothing of any kind with which we could have defended ourselves had they forced their belligerent attentions on us. Our sole baggage consisted of a few sandwiches, oranges and drinking waler. Our chances of getting back to civilisation would have been slender had that old engine chosen to peter out there above those dim, misty gullies lying at the foot of the long Kim'berley ranges.’’ In'the same book, referring to this >fiip-ht, Ulm says: “Eor two and.a-half •years Smith had flown as chief pilot with a company operating the air mail service frein Broome to Perth. He knew the country around Broome thoroughly. ’’ 'On their flight from Danvm to Broome Smith and Ulm had to pass close to Wyndham and Drysdale River, so they are fairly familiar, with this area. This fact alone is an important pne at the present stage and should not ..be forgotten. The airmen are used to hazardous undertakiiigs. The whole 'world will have a feeling of thankfulness and pride when news is received .that they and' their gallant companions are safe.
HER DEPARTURE FROM SYDNEY. Sydney papers by yesterday’s mail contain many references to the last adventure of the Southern Cross and her intrepid crew. She left Richmond aerodrome at 10.47 on Saturday morning, March 30th, in the presence of many The following note is from the Sydney Sun of March 31st:— WOMEN WHO WAIT. SMITHY’S MOTHER. As becomes the mother or a gallant son, Mrs Kingsford-Smith does her best, on occasions such as yesterday, to conceal her anxiety.
An affectionate kiss, a nervous fluttering. of a tiny handkerchief, an intent gazing at the reeed'infg ’plane dwindling to a black line against the bronze-green hills —then fa purile of confidence across at her, husband.
Somebody speaks to her. The fluttering fingers that grip the handkerchief steady in a trice.
“They will be all right,” she says; ‘ 1 but Charlie has been ill—so ill during the week.” Meanwhile Airs Ulm peers through the glass window of the big ’plane Canberra. She, too, disguises her anxiety as well as she can. “QUITE CONFIDENT.” “I could see Chari,” she says afterwards. “He threw kisses to me from the ’plane. Anxious? —oh, no! I am quite confident that they will get through. ’ ’ But she is pale, and her face is drawn. Courageous women those who wait for the crew of the Southern Cross. “Aly heart was in my mouth when the Southern Cross was taking off,” said Airs Hal Litchfield, the young wife of the navigator. “All the same, I felt confident that they would get away all right, and I am sure that they will reach London within the time fixed. “I will, of course, be. watching anxiously for news all the time, but 1 have the utmost faith in the Southern Cross and its crew. “Aty wireless has broken down thi3 afternoon,” she said later. “It is mos annoying, for I had njped to be abb to follow the flight by means of thei:
signals. However, it will be fixed as soon as possible.” McWilliams, the wireless operator, is the lonely figure of the quartette. But though they were not present, it. is known that a mother and a girl in New Zealand are thinking of him to-day.
MYSTERY OF START.
DID FATE MARK AIRMEN DOWN?
(Sydney Sun of April 4th). (Squadron - Leader Kingsford-Smith and Flight-Lieutenant Ulm had planned their flight for many weeks. But they were not tied down to depart on any given day or date. In round thought they fixed Easter Week, because their proneller-blactes were to be ready by, them On Wednesday they were informed from Wyndham: — “Fifty poinis of rain fell on Tuesday night.' Landings and approaches of the aerodrome unsuitable. Delay flight until final ,O.K. reaches you from this end (Wyndham).” On Friday afternoon, at Richmond, Mr Ulm stated to a member of the staff that word had come from Wyndham and along the route that the general conditions were favourable. No record of these advices can be found to-day, because the airmen, very naturally, were not worrying about keeping a tab of what they regarded as minor routine matters.
On Saturday, apparently not knowing that they had determined to gdt the Southern Cross in the air that morning, their Wyndham correspondent wired them that it was raining heavily along the line of their route near Wyndham, and that storms had made the local aerodrome unsuitable for landing purposes. He was under the impression that they would not get up from Richmond until they had received a release from him. His message only arrived in Sydney at 2 o’clock in the afternoon.
“CANNOT BELIEVE IT.” Holding this view, he wired oil the same day: — “Cannot believe Southern Cross would leave without definite O.K. from me. If they have left, they must be recalled. Conditions are unfavourable and- unsafe, and will be unsuitable for probably some days. ’ ’ Ey fell mischance, the trailing aerial "from the machine was broken or lost, and from that moment the Southern Cross could not be 3poken to by wireless. Consequently this essential information never reached the gallant four. Their, diary from the air indicates clearly that they had no premonition of bad weather until they ran* into violent storms as they made for the north-west, and they disclosed that for' several hours, buffeted by rain and confused by winds, they lost their way, and wandered in the'sky amidst the clouds, the prey of the elements. WHY DID THEY LEAVE? At the moment it is impossible to discover why they adhered to their purpose in leaving early on Saturday .morning, when they had not, apparently, received an official O.K. from Wyndhair., and when the Weather Bureau reports more than suggested that ,the conditions were at least very embarrassing, and possibly dangerous. This mystery will probably not be cleared up until the four men emerge from their temporary isolation.
Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/SNEWS19290412.2.15
Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka
Shannon News, 12 April 1929, Page 3
Word count
Tapeke kupu
2,378SOUTHERN CROSS MISHAP. Shannon News, 12 April 1929, Page 3
Using this item
Te whakamahi i tēnei tūemi
Copyright undetermined – untraced rights owner. For advice on reproduction of material from this newspaper, please refer to the Copyright guide.