BRITAIN’S AIR CHALLENGE

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 647, 26 April 1929, Page 1

BRITAIN’S AIR CHALLENGE

LONG-DISTANCE RECORD SOUGHT

PLANE FOR CALCUTTA PASSES BAGDAD

BRITAIN has strongly challenged the world's long-distance air record of 4,632 miles, held by Italy. The giant Fairey monoplane in which the Royal Air Force pilots left England on Thufsday has already passed Bagdad on its way to Calcutta, covering in 27 hours 2,600 miles of the total distance of 5,300 miles. British Official Wireless

Reed. Noon. RUGBY, Thursday. The British attempt to beat the world’s non-stop long-distance air record was begun to-day, when a Royal Air Force monoplane, with a single engine of 450 horse-power, left Cranwell Airdrome for Calcutta. The pilots are Squadron-Leader Jones 'Williams and Flight-Lieutenant N. H. Jenkins. Flight-Lieutenant Jenkins serves as navigator and second pilot. The route selected is 5,300 miles long. The specially-designed monoplane has many remarkable features embodied in its design. It was made by the Fairey Aviation Company; of Hayes, Middlesex. Three tons of petrol are carried in its wing, which has a span of 52 feet. This wing is thick and broad, and all in one piece, being probably the largest cantilever monoplane wing ever made. The engine is a Napier-Lion, and is in effect a service edition of the racing Napier engine, which was used to win the Schneider Trophy for England. One ingenious arrangement with which the machine is equipped is a horn worked off an aneroid in such a manner that if during night flying the machine comes below a certain altitude and is thus in danger of hitting a mountain, the horn sounds a warning in the pilot's ear. With its 1,000 gallons of petrol, the machine weighed 6£ tons, and a special two-mile run had to be prepared at Cranwell to facilitate the take-off. It was, however, well in the air after a run of only 600 yards, and

soon after turned on its southernward course. PASSED OVER BAGDAD MONOPLANE FLYING AT GREAT HEIGHT WORST PART OVER (Australian and -V.Z. Press Association) Reed. 11 am. BAGDAD, Thursday. The British long-distance monoplane passed over here at 1 p.m. Greenwich mean time, flying at a great height. A British Official Wireless message says that when the monoplane passed over Bagdad she had been in the air about 27 hours, and had covered 2,600 miles. She was within an hour of the time forecast for her. She had accomplished half her task and overcome the most difficult and unpleasant section of the journey. In the night, she had had to climb to 10,000 ft to cross the Tauras Mountains, and now with her tanks emptied of nearly 500 gallons of petrol and no further need to fly really high to surmount high land, she should travel faster than she has been able to on the first half of the flight. It is anticipated at the Air Ministry that with luck she would pass over Karachi early to-morrow morning, and then make for Bangalore. If all goes well she should be down at Bangalore early to-morrow afternoon, after flying another 2,500 miles from Bagdad.