ROSS SMITH KILLED.

Auckland Star, Volume LIII, Issue 89, 15 April 1922, Page 7

ROSS SMITH KILLED.

ON TRIAL FLIGHT. BEKWETT PATA__ Y INJURED MACHINE CRASHES IN TEST. »By Cable.—rrcss Association.—Copyright.) LONDON. April 13. Sir Ross Smith, the famous airman. who flew to Australia with his brother ' t> r Keith Smith, was killed in an aeroplane smash to-day. together with Lieutenant J. M. Bennett, who has to have accompanied the brothers on their proposed (light round the world. The two victims were testing their machine when it suddenly crashed to the ground. Sir | Ross Smith was found dead in his seat jin the machine, which was a mere heap of wreckage. Lieutenant Bcimcu was .• so severely injured that he'expired im- ! mediately after he had been extricated. ! The two airmen rose at 12.15 from I ihe Brooklands aerodrome. Tbe flying ; conditions were most favourable. "The | machine dew perfectly for a quarter of ian hour and then developed a spin and i crashed. Nose-diving, it fell on ton of ;an iron fence bounding the track. "The j cause of tho accident has so far not been '■ explained. j__ Half an hour before the fatal flight, | Captain Coekerill. of Vickers, had suci cessfully flown the machine for 30 mm•- --• vies. He then handed it over to Sir Ross Smith. T/he dead airman's brother , Keith had intended joining in the trial | flight, but arrived at the aerodrome too j late to participate. He was present, however, to witness the crash, and when ihe machine fell was one. of the earliest to p.rrive on the scene. He saw his . brother removed from the machine to the track. A motor ambulance con- , veyed the bodies to the mortuary. An eyewitness of tho accident declares that the machine climbed grace- | fully and powerfully to a height of I :1000ft, and then swnmr to a vertical position with one wing dipping. It then began to spin slowly downwards nose ,to earth. OUT OF CONTROL. | The spectators first thought Sir Ross Smith was "stunting," in order to test j his wings, but the speed of the spinning j accelerated and it soon became apparent that the machine was beyond control. Finally it crashed 150 yards from the terrified onlookers. Xo lire broke out. It was noticed that the aeroplane remained intact until it reached the earth. Sir F. E. Guest. Secretory of State for Air. telegraphed to Sir Keith Smith as | follows: "On behalf of the Air Council I nnd myself, please accept our most sincere condolences in the tragic death of Sir Ross Smith and Lieutenant Bennett lon the eve of your round-the-world ! flight." The Minister has also written to Sir Joseph Cook, High Commissioner for Australia, requesting him to convey to the deceased relatives the Air Council's profound sympathy in the tragic accident which killed two distinguished pioneers of aviation on the eve of their projected world flight, which the council had hoped would not only eclipse, the historic flight to Australia, but would also have been a further forward stop in the linking up by air of many countries of the world."as well as different parts of the Empire. The sudden ending to two such promising lives would everywhere be felt as an irreparable loss. The Air Ministry will hold an inquiry in a few days. CAUSE A MYSTERY. Fifteen hundred employees from the Vickers works witnessed the fatal flight. A member of Vickers' testing staff said: "I ascended in another machine accompanied by cinematographers, -who were photographing Sir Ross Smith's machine, which is named 'The Vickers. 1 When under Captain Cockerill's charge she behaved splendidly. When Sir Ross Smith took over the machine she had a beautiful take off and ran well. Then Sir Ross shut off his engine and was making for the aerodrome. He pulled her nose up, stalled, and that is all. She began to spin downwards from 2000 ft, which was not high enough to permit Sir R.os» to right his machine before the crash came. Nobody will ever know exactly what happened." Sir Keith Smith was overcome with grief when he saw the crash, and flung himself across his brother's body. PI__NS FOR THE FLIGHT. In an interview with the "Daily Telegraph" prior to his last tragic flight, Sir Ross Smith said he would start his flight round the world on Anzac Day, April 25. accompanied by Sir Keith Smith and Lieutenant -L M. Bennett, on a Vickers-Viking amphibian. The aircraft was made by the same workmen as the Vickers-Viroy used in the flight to Australia. The machine was of boatlike construction, surmounted by a biplane, with a 4.jU-horsc power Xapicr engine, mounted high between the wings. The driving propeller was behind the wings. It had been tested for endurance in various temperatures, and had been exposed for long periods to immersion in salt water. The landing wheels could be lowered in CO seconds. A feature of the. machine was tbe tail skids, which also acted as a water rudder, filled with compressed air under a pressure of 2501b. The airmen intended to breakfast bei fore starting every day, and have a i light lunch during" their seven hours' j flight, with dinner in the evening. It I was expected that the journey would I take 240 flying hours, and that it would be finished in three months. The airmen were confident and were looking forward cheerfuFy to their arduous experience. The roi'te was to have been to France, Ttalv. Egypt. Mesopotamia, India, Burma, China. Japan, the Aleutian Islands. A'n«ka. the Canadian Lek°=. New York. St. John, the Azores, and Home. The equipment, included a Reid control indicator, which informed the pilot when the machine was listing by means of glow lamps which could be used in a fo"\ The wireless set had been tested to" and from the Eiffel Tower. The aerial, which was between the wings for • receiving, was dropped for sending rcessages. A certain number of spare parts were to have been carried. A spare engine was available at Tokyo. It would have taken I'2o flying hours to reach Tokyo, but Sir Ross Smith hoped that tho first engine would carry him to Borden, Canada. Forty-seven petrol depots had been organised. Each airman had one suit of clothes and 81b of lii'-gapc They would have been able fr> C smoke, thanks to a fepcc.ial cigarette ' bolder on th" principle of the Davy 1-,-,-v. • \. and N.Z. Cable.) i

SWOOP !____ A WOUNDED BIRD. ' i BODIES FOR AUSTRALIA. ■ (Received 0.50 a.m.! LONDON*, April 14. A special representative wae xo have >. accompanied Sir Ross Smith on the first trial flight, but the airman said. "Sorry, old man, there is no room. You will get ,_ a better view from the other plane." He ascended in Che Vernon machine, which kept company with Sir Roes Smith's machine. Descending the representative "' and Sir Keith Smith watched Sir Ross Smith's second flight. When the mach : ne developed a spin- ] ning nose dive and got out of control r " Sir Keith buried his face in his hands ( _ and iiung himself to earth to avoid see- __ ing his hrother crash to his terrible 'ate. T\ hen the end came he groaned t _ It s all up. Oh, mv poor father and o mother, this will kill them."' Then he _ insisted on going across to sec the r wreckao.. On tho way he said, "If it t had only been mc instead of Ross; if Id only been there too; what a ghastly s "m ,C "_ Sir Rr>s *' forhead was ter- ( _ ribly bruised and there was a dreadful Cash on his left cheek. Fifty feet from j n earth he cut out ■„_, engine and made a 1 ereat swoop like a wounded bird trying! | to get away. Then came the end, which j , was mercifully hidden from those at the I A aerodrome by a banked racing track. f _ Sir Keith examined the machine care- _ lullv after the accident, but failed to _ discover the ca». Tie ea.'d those spins' were generally due to tail trouble, but I it was not tail trouble this time. Motor-. , mg back to London the Press represcn- > tative urged Sir Keith to give Up living, '* but he gave a typically gallant reply, We must not los<> our nerve." Just t before go:ng up Sir Ross said, "If any- ■> thrng goes wrong in the world flight 0 do not complain or blame anyone. It -• 1-5 the last thin- j„ the world T would n desire. We are taking the risk, knowing the danger, and remember that Austraa bans never squeal." Sj r Keith declared a that Mr Ross died as he would have descTcd. in harness, with a sham, sudden, headlong dive to earth. He was - dead before he knew the bitterness of - defeat. Sir Keith proposes to take both f bodies to Australia.- (United Service.) a FIRST TRIP AS PILOT. c THEORIES AS TO CAUSE. 9 'Received. 11.30 a.m.) 1 LONDON, April 14. i Sir Ross Smith was accompanied by,' Lieutenant Cockurell on the trial trip. ' l but the death flight was the first time I _ he had handled the controls of the] ~ \ ickers amphibian, which recently won i \ a £10,000 Government prize. Sir Ross' 1 last word was "Cheerio" to Lieutentant • Cockerel! as he put the wheels in I motion. No one saw the. actual crash 1 * of the silver grey Viking, as the spot! 1 was hidden by a clump of big- firs. When I' J the onlookers reached the spot Sir Ross i ■ had a deep gash right down his face. He j i ■ and Lieutenant Bennett were crushed;] from head to foot. Bennett was moan--1 ing. but died as he was taken from the wreckage. The fabric was torn off, and the machine so wrecked that the propellers, which split in two, lay facing inwards. When a doctor motored up Sir Keith, who had borne iid bravelj-, said: "Please look at my brother and see if there is ' any chance." The doctor immediately ' saw rhat it was hopeless, ami returned ' to Sir Keith, who had walked a little [ way apart. Sir Keith said, "I sec by - your face it is all over." The doctor,) ■ nodded, and Sir Keith broke down. I ' kneeling over his brother's remains.!' - Lieutenant Cockerell says he is unable to explain the accident. Questioned, he •" said the machine was now. Sir Ross had also had some months of comparative inactivity from flying, and the situation was something like a new ; mount in the first run of the hunting ' season. ' Other exoerts are doubtful whether r the crash was due to engine failure or " whether the pilot did not allow sufii--5 cient height for flattening after the - spin. The manager of the Brooklands motor - works says that if Sir Ross had had an , ! extra hundred feet he could have f righted the aeroplane. Another obserf ver says that the engine stopped, but " this is not confirmed. The bodies will - be embalmed and taken to Australia for ' a State funeral.—(A. and N.Z. Cable.) t *• TRIBUTES FROM AMERICA. NEW YORK, April 14. i The New York "Times," commenting X upon the death of Sir Ross Smith, says he was a greater man than Sir John Aleoek. Both men were noted for coolness and dexterity, yet each man in an - unaccountable way lost control of his ■ machine, which on occasion befalls the ; most resoureful pilot. The New York "World"' calls the i 'death of Sir Ross Smith a tragedy of i unusual fatefulness even for aviation. The "Herald" says it is the irony of i the air that it let a flier do things t seemingly impossible, and then killed - him when attempting a trifle.—(A. and i N.Z. Cable.) 3 Sir Ross Smith was responsible for the " most notable achievement in the history r of aviation, the flight from Great Bri--1 tan to Australia, and was testing his 1 machine for a. greater effort, the fliffht * round the world, when he met hi, death. A son of Mr. Andrew Smith, manager 1 of Muuioroo Station, near Broken Hill, ' he spent his early days in typical Auc--1 tralian surroundings, finding his keenest enjoyment, in hunting kangaroos and iii| - all outdoor occupations. At the age of i 11 he entered Queen's College, Adelaide. •' His brother. Lieu-tenant Keith Smith, t his assistant pilot nnd navigator, was 1 with him at the school. 1 Ross Smith enlisted in South Australia in August, IPI4, and left as sergeant ? with the 3rd (S.A. and T.) Light Horse * on October 22 of that year. He gained j i his commission while serving in Egypt , and on Gallipoli, and joined the Royal - Flvina- Corps in October, 101.5. With the i airmen in Palestine he performed good' , work and gained all his honours. Not-, able in a fine record was his rescue, in - association with Captain (then Lieut.) I R. F. Baillieu. of a pilot who had been S forced to land near a large Turkish l camp. The pilot had set fire to his 1 machine, and Captain Baillieu made a • D wonderful landing on a hillside near by. r While Captain Smith tent the Turks - at bay with his revolver the three men s made their escape. For this feat both c Smith and Baillieu received the Military t Cross. 0 When the first Handley-Page to ven--1 ture out of Europe was flown down the n Mediterranean to K_ypt, it:-was allotted i ,1 by Major-General Salmon!, of the Bri- •- tish Air Force, to the Australian Squadf ron as a mark of his appreciation. The c choice of a pilot was easy. Ross Smith c was detailed to fly the mammoth on r the front. He went down to Cairo, and i few days later landed on the Austra- »

Han aerodrome at Ramlch, with Generals Salmond and Borton a, passengers. Within a week the big machine was engaged in night bombing raids over the enemy lines, where it played an important part in the big offensive. Ross Smith, as a matter of fact, opened Allen/by, monster drive by bombing enemy centres on the nig,t of September 16, immediately preceding the initial artillery bcrmbordment. After the Armistice Ross Smith flew to India with General, Salmond and Borton. accomplishing the long flight without mishap. Then he went to England to compete for the prize of £ 10,000 for the first flight from London to Australia within 30 days, a feat whioh despite its tremendous difficulties he successfully accomplished towards the end of mm. Rose Smith's progress ia shown in the following table. The distances given are in a straight line from point to point. Altogether he flew mere than 11,000 miles: — Miles from London start from London... Nov. 12 Arrived at Lyons Nov. 12 About 450 Arrived Pisa Nov. 13 Ahont 7150 Arrived Rome Nov. 1.-. Abont 015 Arrived Tarnnte Nov. 1H Abont 118) : Arrived Hndn Bay .. Nov. 17 About IW I Arrived Cairo Nov. 18 Abont 2325 I Arrived Damascus ... Nov. 10 Abont 272s j Arrived Rnmadic Nov. 21 About 3100 | Arrived Basra Nov. 22 About 3450 [Arrived Randa Abbas Nov. 2.1 About -1000 I Arrived Karachi Nov. 24 About 4.w> Arrived Delhi Nov. 2r> About r.lfiO Arrived Allahabad .. Nov. 27 About 5520 Arrived Calcutta Nov. 28 Abont 0020 (Arrived Akyab Nov. 20 About 6.T-0 Arrived Rangoon Nov. 80 About fiflTO ! Arrived Rankok Dec. 1 About 7040 ! Arrived Sincora Dec. 2 About 7440 j Arrived Singapore ... Dec. 4 About 7884 (Arrived Kaliilinti Dec. fi About RS3O ! Arrived Sourabava .. Dec. 7 About ARM I Arrived Biina Dec. 8 About 9330 [Arrived Ataniboea Dec. 9 About 9780 I «Timorl I Arrived Darwin Pec. 10 About 10.2:10 Both Ross and Keith Smith were made Knights ot" the British Empire for their wonderful pioneer flight.