AIR RACE ROUTE.

Auckland Star, Volume LXV, Issue 26, 31 January 1934, Page 5

AIR RACE ROUTE.

TURKISH "CORRIDOR."

NO REPLY TO APPEALS.

OTHERS MORE AMENABLE.

Turkey's failure to waive the restrictions in her territory has obliged the Royal Aero Club to consider an alternate route from London to Bagdad— the first compulsory checking point in the Melbourne centenary air race. By not replying to official diplomatic communications, Turkey lias held up the endorsement of the route for the race (says the Melbourne "Star").

Seven months have passed since the Centenary Council initiated petitions to the various Governments concerned, through the usual official channels, asking them to waive the normal restrictions about passports, examinations by Customs officials and "air corridors." This was intended to permit the contestants in the air race to take the shortest cuts between the compulsory checking points at Bagdad and Calcutta.

The three nations most concerned were Italy, Turkey and Persia, with whom there have been various difficulties in the last year or two in developing the non-British section of the Imperial Airways permanent route. Italy was somewhat reluctant to allow the development of a permanent British route down the Italian peninsula; Turkey has consistently placed restrictions upon flying over her territory at all; and ever since the expiry of the AngloPersian agreement in October, 1932, British machines have hugged the Arabian side of the Persian Gulf.

It is understood that Italy and Persia are willing to remove all barriers to the speedy passage of contestants in the international air race. Turkey has remained silent. Turkey's Restrictions. Ordinarily anyone desiring to fly over Turkish territory may obtain permission, under certain conditions, but only

after much trouble. Even then he may flv only through a restricted "corridor." lie must submit to examination at Constantinople, and pass over Afion Kharra Hissar, the war-time prison camp, and Konia, passing on to Aleppo, which is in the French mandated territory of

Syria. Turkey has been asked to waive the corridor and permit machines on the 7GO miles' hop from Athens to Aleppo to skirt along portion of the eastern coast of Turkey. The Royal Aero Club is policing the route from London to Koepang in Persia, and takes a serious view of the silence of Turkey. If the Turk is rightly understood by those in London who should know him by now, he does not intend to agree. The Turks' reluctance to permit unrestricted international flying over the coastline of Smyrna is better -understood when it is remembered that those parts are heavily and secretly fortified, and Turkey has given the aircraft and warships) of all nations warning to keep off. The Allies tacitly backed Greece in an attack on Smyrna in 1922-23.

This short and narrow corridor runs from Constantinople, to Aiion Kara Hissar, and Konia in Turkey, and on to Aleppo in French mandated Syria. None of the country beneath this corridor contains anything that the Turks are unwilling for the world to see.

Shorter Alternative. So that convenient use might be made of this corridor, the Royal Aero Club lias suggested that competitors might be given the option of using the mid-European route—London, Cologne, Vienna, Budapest, Belgrade, Salonika, Constantinople, Afion Kara Hissar, Konia, Aleppo.

Thence to Bagdad, the alternate route would converge at Aleppo with the present tentative route —the northern Mediterranean route by way of Marseilles, Rome and Athens. The mid-European route is somewhat the shorter and older. It is used by the Dutch on the Amsterdam-Batavia mail service, and was used by Imperial Airways before they adopted the northern Mediterranean route to include Egypt in the mail and passenger service.