THE MOST REMARKABLE ACHIEVEMENT OF THE 20th CENTURY.

Press, Volume LVI, Issue 16961, 9 October 1920, Page 10

THE MOST REMARKABLE ACHIEVEMENT OF THE 20th CENTURY.

SIR rrr T ?P SS SMITH'S; FAMOUS TUSTIII? 011 ENGTiAND ,jx>

Whiio history is taught in our schools, Sir ii.oss bmith's remarkable exploit will fig tiro prominently in our descendant's Jos.son-hooks. Tne Victors-Vimy ina-i-hinc used in the flight weighed six tons when loaded, and actually flew over 11 ; 340 miles it; j0.5 hours. The speecl averaged throughout was 85 miles per hour. We give a brief description of I endangers and difficulties encountered in Sir Ross Smith's own words:— On r\ovember 12tlj ; 1919, wo were called at 4.30 a.m., anil 1 was delighted to find clear, frosty weather. Two hours later a ground haze drifted up, and the Air Ministry Weather Bureau forecasted bad weather, totally unfit for fiyng. • But we had made up our minds, and we decided to start. The macliiue was wheeled from the hanger, •ami Commander Porrin, of the Royal Aero Club, marked and sealed five parts of, the machine in accordance with the rules of the competition. At 8.30 a.m. wo started the engines, climbed into our seats, and took off from the snow-cover-ed aerodrome. The flight to Australia had begun! The perils of our journey soon began. 'Shortly after reaching the French coast, at Boulogne we ran into a big bank of snow clouds. We could not get underneath it, for it practically reached the ground- We therefore climbed above it, to a height of 8000 ft. The cold was bitter, 25 degrees of frost, and for three hours onr breath froze on. our face masks, and our sandwiches were frozen solid. It took 1 us five days to cross Europe to Taranto, in Italy. ! The flight was made all the wav through dense clouds, snow, and blind- j mg rain. Only an occasional burst of sunsliine cheered- us on our way. Wo went to. Ctete, and stayed a night at Suda Bay. It was here that we nar- j rowly escaped disaster by crashing into a high mountain range obscured by fog. i We escaped this peril, aiid mad© a nou- ! stop of seven and a half hours from Creto to Cairo, arriving at Heliopolis j Aerodrome on November 18th. From November 19th to 30th, Palestine, Per- ' sia, India, and Burma were reached. On December 4th we arrived at Singapore. Next day, the sth, wo left Singapore for KaJidjati, near Batavia, in Java. This was the worst stage of the journey j n regard to landing grounds. We travelled two hundred miles down the eastern coast to guma- ; tra, which was so densely wooded that it would have been impossible for the machine to land. After leaving Soerabaya, on December Bth, we landed at Bima, in Sumbawa, and on December 9th we left Bima vfor Atamvery, in Timor. The' thirty days of the competion were now closing in, and our anxieties increased. Tired as wo were, excitement kept us all from sleep that night. Before daybreak on the 10th we were down at the machine giving it a last test and overhaul before venturing on the wide stretch of sea. As the hours rolled slowly by wo strained our eyes towards Australia. The clouds and mists obscured all distant vision, and it was not nntil after 3 o'clock that I observed the first outline of land, we were then doing eighty-three miles an hour. The land speedily ae-sumed more definite contour, and detailp became manifest. Darwin came into view— Australia was reached. —

Two important events bring this memorable trip to our minds just now. One is the visit of Sir Keith Smith' to Christchurch to-day, and the other is that picture patrons will have the uhiquo opportunity of seeing events as they actually happened at the Liberty Theatre.

For one whole week, commencing today, the great feat, with ail its dangers, thrills, and excitements, will be re-acted on the screen of the Liberty Theatre.

The great achievement in conjunction with the picture will be narrated by Sir Keith Smith personally. Patrons are advised to make sure of seats by booking early. % 9