ODDS AGAINST.

Auckland Star, Volume LXI, Issue 218, 15 September 1930, Page 7

ODDS AGAINST.

PACIFIC FLIGHT. Tokyo-Tacoma Flyers Lost In Heavy Fog. CALL FOR HELP SENT OUT. (United P.A.—Electric Telegraph—Copyright) (Received 9.30 a.m.) TOKYO, September 14. Lieutenant Harold Bromley, formerly of Victoria, British Columbia, and Mr. Harold Gatty, an Australian aiftiian, started at 5.10 a.m. yesterday on their attempted flight to America. The weather was perfect and a slight westerly breeze was blowing. An announcement made bv the offices of the Dollar Shipping Line stated that a wireless message was intercepted from Bromley at 6.49 a.m. local time. It said that the 'plane was lost in fog and asked for help. The message added that the flyers had passed Cliirihoi Island, one of the Kurilc Islands that stretch from the north of Japan to Kamchatka. Previously, at 1.30 a.m., the Dollar liners President Taft and President Madison intercepted a message from the 'plane saying the position was 700 miles off Japan, heading towards the Aleutian Islands, Alaska. From the Anchorage, Alaska, comes the information that dense clouds of fog over the Aleutian Islands have caused weather observers and aviators there to declare that "only a miracle would get Bromley through safely. Thick fog and high winds prevailed in that vicinity to-day. An earlier message from San Francisco was to the effect that the officials of the United States Weather Bureau had informed Lieutenant Bromley that good flying conditions probably would prevail over the Northern Pacific foi the latter portion of the flight. The conditions from the Aleutian Islands to Tacoma, Washington, the fivers'• destination, would be unsettled for the next three days. The winds would be strong from the west, with a velocity of 40 to 50 miles an hour at high altitudes. By taking advantage of these conditions the 'airmen would have advantageous %tail winds and low clouds. Four hours after the departure of the airmen a wireless message was received from them at Tokyo saying they had passed over Hokkaido Island, 300 miles distant.