AERIAL POST

FOR. NEW ZEALAND MAILS

THE SUGGESTJia> ROUTES

Now that the mail services are disqrganised so muck by tho reduction oi' railway train running the business people of the country would be glad of the aerial m-iik of which Sir •Joseph Ward dropped a hint some while ago. Even very old-fashioned poople have to admit now that flying is the coming means «of rapid locomotion, and some day the .mails even in New Zealand roay bo carried in some sort of aircraft. Already consideration has been given to the question cf tho Jutiv.-e carriage of New Zealand mails over long distances by aeroplane. The merest skeleton "plans have been made and discussed between the Military Aviation Expert, Colonel Bettington, and the Post Office authorities; but until air carriage of mails becomes a. great deal cheaper than it> ca.n be made- at present, it is quite certain, that the aerial post when it- comes into operation will be used only for .special matter, vojry urgent, and probably paid for at special rates. The -aerial posib will nob carry postal packages, ■or even persona,! correspondence. The idea of using the aeroplane to reach remote country places is scouted by the authorities. Wellington will ho tho radial centre- for all these mails if any of the plans talked about up till ' the present ever materialise. To the South Island the routes, existing for the present only on maps, will Ise to Ne,!son, 78 miles, to Blenheim, 46 miles, and to Christ-church, 19^ miles. The suggestion is madto also of a mail from Blenheim to Nelson, 39 miles, Mid Jv'om Blenheim to Christchurch, 156 miles. Presumably these two routes to Christchurch, the one direct .aaul the other via Blenlioirti. may he considered to bo alternatives.' From Nelson the a-k----line to Wesxport is 94 milcfi, then.c*» to Oreymouth, 53 miles, and then to Hokitikii, 23 miles. It is suggestedl that the service rjift-oss tho island, over the .Alps, will be from Hokiti'ka. to Christchurch, a distance, of 103 mi'-es. South from,_ Christchurch the prr/ice will ir,o hi one flight to Tirnar.i, 92 miles, *i,:id on to Dunedin, 103 mile.s Prom Dunodin t/) Fnvercargill the distance is 108 miles. As the ,spe-oj of an aeroolane of to-day is about 90 miles per hour, these- services, if they ever corao, , wi" ho very fast. To .sctvs the North Island a very

much bigger series of services is proposed.' The suggested direct route to Auckland is via Wanganui, 93 miles duo north of Wellington, and almost in a, straight Ji^e between Wellington and Auckland. Tite next flight in this route, from Wanganui to Auckland, is 215 miles.. From Wanganui to New Plymouth is SO miles. The air line between Wellington and Palmerston is 80 miles. It is .■.suggested, that Napier may be reached either via Palmerstca or Masterton, the; Palmerston route being tho shorten- ono. From Palmerston. also there may bo services to Masterton and Wanganui. Also, there may be a service from Wanganui to Napier. Fl'om Napiav to Gisborne, the most inaccessible of the- important towns in New Zealand, the distance is only 85 miles. Cbmmuication by land or sea with this place is difficult, and unfortunately there are certain difficulties in tlie way of communication by air, because the place affords no easy landing for aircraft. Other suggcstf!cll lines -are from New Plymouth to Napier 185 miles, and New Plymouth to Gisborne, 216 miles, the longest flight shown on the maps. From Gisborne northward the routo will bo via Rotorua to Auckland, and there is a suggestion.for a, branch line fioni Rotor ua to Opotiki, a. little more than half au Irojur's flight distant. From Auckland the routes are north to Russell, and south-east to Thames ,a.nd the.:i?e> to Coromandel. These schemes are yet an exceeding long way from realisation. _ If a. t?Tn 1 should over be mado it .is certain that tho beginnings of the schema will bo small, and that it will then bo some time before such an ambitious programme as that now projected will" be attempted by tho Post- Office. It happens that in tho present; stato of tho mail services business people can use the telegraph, and the authorities are now in a position to take any business of this kind! T/hnt may often*. Me.r. from the service iiavc been returned in such numbers that there are now more than sufficient to do the work of tho telegraph branch, for in tlioiV absence a* greater number of youths nad some young women havo boon trained'as operators. These young women arc not among these who. may be discharged to m:il<o way for re- , turned men. They wero _ given pph'manient ]>o-s.itions fro.m their first appointment. So that the Department, has- a stnff of skilled operators ouite .!s large as it needs. — | Dominion.