LIKE SHELL FROM GUN

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 302, 13 March 1928, Page 11

LIKE SHELL FROM GUN

Napier Plane Nose-Dives LIEUTENANT KINKEAD KILLED Fata! Attempt on Air Record By Cable.—Press Association. — Copyright.

Reed. 12.18 p.m. LONDON, Monday. 'TRAVELLING at a terrific pace, in an 1 attempt to lower the world air speed record, the Supermarine Napier 85 seaplane, piloted by Lieutenant S. M. Kinkead, nose-dived into the Solent. Machine and airman were swallowed

up instantly,

Lieut. Kinkead, who was one of the most famous high-speed pilots in the Royal Air Force, crashed in the Solent from a height of 400 feet. The machine was travelling at a terrific pace when it nose-dived vertically like a shell from a gun. When is struck the sea a great column of water spouted up. There was a faint sound from the engine for a second or two, and in less than half a minute both machine and pilot had disappeared, leaving no trace. An Admiralty high-speed boat, was on the scene within a minute, but found nothing but swirling water. Lieut. Kinkead had been waiting at Calshot for a week for an opportunity to wrest the world’s air-speed record from Italy. The machine was never in the air until Sunday, when it. was most successful. To-day was the second test. The airman waited all the morning while a snowstorm raged at the Calshot airdrome, but toward the afternoon the sky cleared and conditions were favourable. The officiaL timekeepers of the Royal Aero Club were ready and the stage was set for w r hat was expected to be a triumph for British airmanship. Lieut. Kinkead was obviously undecided whether or not to make the attempt. He paced up and down several times alone, and then conversed with the officials. Suddenly he appeared to make a lightning decision and instructed the time-keepers to take up their position. The super-marine Napier of 575 h"’se-power was brought out from the hangar and the engine warmed up. When it took the water it appeared to have considerable difficulty in rising. Lieut. Kinkead taxied down the turned, and taxied easily for a mile and a-half before rising. He flew seemingly at half-throttle for ten minutes and then landed for a few rr ‘ *utes. Later he opened out the engine and rose into the air apparently to begin the record flight. He circled the airdrome, the exhaust making a terrific noise. When at a height of 400 ft Kinkead swung sharply for the purrori of entering the course. Watchers heard the engine’s deafening roar, indicating that he was opening all-out. The machine shot off at an incredible speed, but the next second, with appalling suddenness, it dived absolutely vertically. An agonised cry broke from the onlookers, for a few seconds everyone was paralysed. Launches which were patrolling the course proceeded at full speed to the stop. The search continued until dark, airplanes commencing the search at daylight. onlookers, including French, Italian and Japanese air attaches, were greatly 'Ustr-'A-ed nt the tragedy. Lieut. Kinkead’s ability known and respected. The feelings of his fellow airmen are summed up in the expression: “It is a terrible tragedy. So much was expected of Kinkead, and now he is dead.” —A. and N.Z.-Sun. The late Flight-Lieutenant Kinkead was one of the British team which went to Venice for last year's Schneider Cup race, which was won by Flight-Lieuten-ant S. X. Webster on September 25. The ill-fated machine was assembled at Calshot, near Southampton,

TRAGEDY AT ADELAIDE

WELL-KNOWN AIRMAN’S DEATH ADELAIDE, Monday. Flight-Lieutenant I. E. Mclntyre ing an exhibition of nose-diving to-day when his airplane crashed and he was fatally injured.—A. and N.Z. The late Flight-Lieutenant Mclntyre, A.F.C., 0.8. E., accompanied Wing-Com-mander Goble on his historic flight round Australia, for which the airmen received the Britannia trophies. Last year he was pilot of the seaplane in which GroupCaptain Williams made a flight to the Solomon Islands. He had a distinguished war record and received the Air Force Cross for antisubmarine work. In November Flight-Lieutenant Mclntyre, who was under 30 years of age, accepted an appointment with the South Australian branch of the Australian Aero Club in Adelaide and resigned from the Air Force. '