AERIAL NAVIGATION.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVI, Issue 162, 8 January 1914, Page 3

AERIAL NAVIGATION.

A srnmL IN INDIA. Times-Sydney Hun Special Uablcs. Ciili'iittii, January li. The (loveniiiicnt is csta Wishing a lying school at Kitapur. ■ A staff cominuulant. and tluce nirun;n liave been ■ngaged. FIAINU TO AI'STRAMA". VKDHINKS OX HIS_ WAY, \'o\V IV AFRICA. Few people have awakened in tin; recognition of tile fuel fliat a dapper little Frenchman is at the present time i'ngaged in living to Australia in an aeroplane (says the Sydney Daily Telegraph). lie will only call at Australian ports en route, for Jiis Expressed intention is to circumnavigate the glolie in his aerial craft—a proposition so prodigious that few people will readily give it credence. lint the aviator is Jules Vedrines. And among the men who have taken a close interest in aviation it is realised that Vedrines i» one of those "silent. men who (lo things, letting babblers tell the story." Besides, he lias already accomplished a fair part of tlie journey---enough not only to show that he is in earnest, but also to establish the proud record of having llown over more countries in Knropc than any other aviator. Starting from France, he lias llou'n over (iermauy, Ttirkcv, Tripoli, Syria, and Egypt. The route lie has already covered works out at considerably over 3000 miles—which is easily a record for long-distance (light across different countries. With such (in auspicious commencement, it is (piite feasible that the .piiet little Frenchman will achieve his grand objective, which is to ll.v back to his native Paris after the first aerial tour of the world. It is not. diflicult to imagine the reception which would be accorded to him by his enthusiastic countrymen—a.reception in | jvhich all nations of the world would corj diall.v join.

There was no Nourish of trumpets when Vedrines started from his hangar outside Paris on December i. Vedrines objects to publicity. For this purpose ho, had Km'" out that lie proposed a flight to fthc'uns, n distance, of about SO miles. Only liis brother was awnro of Die tremendous project that Vedrines had entered upon. The machine lie used was a Dleriot of a type, considerably in.advance of Unit in which the inventor hud crossed the Channel. With the farewell wishes of his brother and the mechanics, the latter being unaware of his objective, he sailed up into the sky to start upon bis long' journey. After crossing the French border into f!evmany his mighty plans nearly came to grief, for while he was passing over a fortress at Valadine. on the Danube, at 11 height of -ItHlOft, the garrison evidently imagined that he was an international spy. ("fun's were fired at him. His monoplane was uninjured, hut the concussion of the shots was tronicndoiw. and the machine nearly capsized. He recounted this experience when he reached Belgrade, and he added that he promptly I ascended to a height of OOOOft, where he [ was, of course, out of range of the missiles.

From thence onward very little information has liltered through as to the doings of that plucky little .Kivivlnniin. lie arrived at Sofia nn December .">, and thence flew to Constantinople, then to Konieh, am! thence, across the Mediterranean See, to' Tripoli. It is only from the last-named place, that any news as to his experiences has reached civilisation, and that consists merely of his remark that when crossing the Taurus Mountains in Asia Minor the temperature recorded was 15 degrees below zero. t r p to this point Vedrines had maintained silence as to the great objective i lie had placed before himself, lie now I announced, without any evidence of bravado or boastfulnesi, that he intended to encircle the globe, lie said he would first lly throimh Egypt, and would then cross over India to Singapore, in the Straits Settlements, calling at the Island of Ceylon on the way. From I .Singapore he will fly to Sumatra and IBatavia. and then shoot, across to the western coast of Australia (probabH landing at Derby, W.A.I After visiting j Perth he will lly across the continent to I Melbourne, and thence to Sydney, The 1 way in which be speaks of these long | flights serves to show the degree in i which the aeroplane has annihilated distance.

From Sydney, so Yedrine* announced, he will take a steamer to South America and then tly along the Pacific Coast to Panama and Xew Orleans, whenc* he be will again take ?tearner for Lisbon. From the Portuguese capital he will once more mount bis monoplane and fly back home to Paris, having completed the circuit of the globe. Cable messages received la*t week announced that tie had reached fViiro. Further news of his journey will be keenly watched.