FLIGHTS TO THE POLE.

Auckland Star, Volume LVI, Issue 83, 8 April 1925, Page 5

FLIGHTS TO THE POLE.

THE ALGARSSON ATTEMPT. CAPTAIN AMUNDSEN'S RIVAL. LONDON, April 7. The Arctic explorer, Grettir Algarsson, in an article in the "Daily Express," I says the airship in which he hopes to reach the North Pole will he of a small non-rigid type, similar to the "Blimps" used for patrolling the Channel during; the war. i

The airship is being specially constructed in London to enable it to encounter the exceptional conditions in the Arctic regions. The explorer says lie is anxious to obtain a start over Captain Roald Amundsen. Ilia airship's first test will be a flight from London to Liverpool.

The dirigible is 150 ft long. It lias a windowed gondola made to carry four passengers and provisions for 30 days. There are two sleeping berths for the men off duty.

.Special cooking stoves and spare petrol will be carried as ballast, also a snifill sledge, which, in the event of accident will hold enough food to take the explorers back to the base ship or the Alaskan coast.

The Arctic winter is reported to have been the warmest experienced there for a century, continues Algarsson. This will probably enable the base ship, which is named Iceland, to go' further north than was originally expected.

The airship will be carried aboard the Iceland on a special detk. As the former's cruising speed is 50 miles an hour, Algarsson hopes to reach the Pole in 12 hours.

"On our arrival at the Pole," he says, "we will make fast, descend the rope ladder, and make our observations to find out whether there is land or shallow water at the Pole. We will then return to the base ship, with which we shall be continuously in communication by means of wireless.—(A. and N.Z. Cable.)

The Algarsson expedition is of great interest to New Zealanders, as Commander Frank Worsley, the intrepid Christchurch man. is second in command. Commander Worsley gained distinction with the late Sir Ernest Shaekleton. The Algarsson expedition starts on May 3.