NO NEWS OF MOIR

Press, Volume LXV, Issue 19624, 21 May 1929, Page 9

NO NEWS OF MOIR

SEARCH ORGANISED. THICK JUNGLE AROUND DARWIN. NEGATIVE REPORT FROM STEAMER. (UIHTED PRESS ASSOCIATION—BT ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH—COPTRIGHT.) (Received May 20th, 9 p.m.) SYDNEY, May 20. There is still no news of Captain Moir and Flying-Officer Owen. Hope for their safety rests on the slender prospects of their having turned back and banded somewhere on the island of Timor. The 'plane was not fitted with wireless. Prompt action is being taken by the Commonwealth Government to search for Moir and Owen. Amalgamated Wireless has been asked to obtain the latest news from Dilh and Koepang. The Portuguese and Dutch Governments have been asked to institute a search in their territories Western Australian Airways have been asked to search the coast between Derby and Wyndham. The Defence Department thinks Captain Grosvenor's search to-day of the coastline between Darwin and Wyndham will be valuable.

Squadron-Leader Kingsford Smith, interviewed to-day, said that if Moir and Owen struck the Australian coast at night they would find the coast line so much the same everywhere that they would not know which way to turn. On either side of Darwin there is a thick jungle for many miles, but the lights of Darwin would be visible for 25 miles.

The Burns, Philp Company received a radio from their island steamer, Malabar, to-day: "We are now within 40 miles of Koepang. Kept a strict masthead lookout and examined all floating objects, but found nothing relative to the airmen."—Australian Press Association.

UNAVAILING SEARCH. (Received May 21st, 12.42 a.m.) SYDNEY, May 20. Captain Grosvenor arrived at Wyndh"m from Darwin, having seen no trace of the missing aviators. —Australian Press Association. SIR KEITH SMITH APPREHENSIVE. (Received May 20th, 9.50 p.m.) SYDNEY, M«y 20. Aviation authorities state that Moir's 'plane has a petrol capacity for 16 to 20 hours' flying, and if the same speed was maintained to Darwin as was recorded from Bima to Koepang, they should have arrived at Darwin at 1>.30 on Saturday night. _Sir Keith Smith, who, with the late Sir Ross Smith, landed at Darwin on their flight to Australia, expresses the opinion that Moir and Owen did a dangerous thing in replacing the propeller with one that was shorter, as cabled yesterday. One effect of such a change would be to "rev" up the engine. The difference in speed would be particularly serious in the event of the _ striking head winds. Sir Keith says he does not like the look of things at all.—Australian Press Association.