SOUTHERN CROSS.

Press, Volume LXIX, Issue 20807, 17 March 1933, Page 18

SOUTHERN CROSS.

VISIT TO WIGRAM AERODROM& ~ YESTERDAY. Oue of the smallest crowds,that ha* ever welcomed the Southern Cross any- ;■• where saw it land at '.Aero- I drome at 7.30 yesterday morning, on its •}, way from Oamaru to Blenheim. Squad- '}- ron Leader J. L. Hndlay, Flight Liei*-- .", tenant H. B. Burr,ell, Mr J. C. Mercer, ( * and six others were there. Sir Charles. ~,j Kingsford-Smith called at Wigram to,?\; j pick up a new petrol tank, holding.Sjp'jfy gallons, which will be used on the ri- i( T ~> turn Tasman crossing, j "'•'* J l\ Members of the staff of the Sou^^';' 1 , era Cross, with the help of local chanics, fitted the new tank under' cockpit, a task that took neariy threo -Jl hours. Before it was finished tftere sgj were 30 or 40 persons at the. drome to see the machine leave. Southern Cross had aboard, besides whole staff, about six passengers. ' 'fya Sir Charles Kingsford-Smith sai&fiM while he was at the aerodrome, he <<**'ijfj» sidered it now the finest - "made'' drome in Australia or New Zealand, pneijgl or two natural ones were better, bns*|||| Australia had not made an that,was as good as Wigram. „.^VS On his way north, he flew over ; .t3jfe|*| city, and over New Brighton, wW*jg§| the funeral of Mr S. F. Napper, aa' r friend, was being held. . *^|l AIR MAIL CONTRACT.-)^ SINGAPORE-AUSTRALIA ' SERVICE. / ; /|j§ The story whjch has been current - friffS some time that Air Commodore ,'SttSl Charles Kingsford-Smith had tendered for the contract of flying &,'j|||j air mail on the new route from Sin£ft-.m| pore to Australia was denied by yesterday morning. , '.^llf? Australian National Airways, company which he, with Mr C. T. Ulm, founded in 1929 had tenaerer||fe for the service, but he was not a competitor, he said. . s&By Tenders for the operation of * service on this stage of the Sydney route will close within two-W«H three months. It is ftoped'that _ Vjslmj whole service will be operating w ™|Plip| a few months after the contract ,™*J|j been awarded. « .'Vtflil Mr .Wilfrid Kingsford-Smith said W?tM| he believed at least three companies k*#Jj|j|| tendered or would tender for the '?*&,»! vice. The general opinion was that W*Jlpi large capital of the new offshoot of p*sf|f perial Airways, Limited,' which ™ been formed in Australia to secure the contract, would give i tco *'' ! 'M| siderable advantage over ian concerns. Its amalgamation this purpose, too, with Queensland Northern Territory Air Services, ited, would help it. V '^ J §Kt The new company might be able guarantee that it could keep more in reserve than the other concerns, *?',||K it would have advantages in the » tenance it could promise. * '^{Jm! ARRIVAL AT BLENHEIM. . ■«] ''' '^li"'l (rRES9 ASSOCIATION TELEOnAIU . '*']fcj ' BLENHEIM, March fill] After a bumpy trip in a high *#&s«s easterly wind, the Southern • G*S§§| landed at Blenheim at 12.15 p.m. '[JhHH Warmly welcomed/ Sir Charles ford-Smith recalled with P loasur *v«|B| old association with Blenheim OTflglMM first visit to the Dominion. Ho Hw|l|Bi for Wellington to-morrow, and,. ffiSill probably take off on March 26 foT»WMIM tralia from the -Ninety-Mile Beaeh.|«H| Members who are persistently, »1»NB»i from sittings of the House of are liable to imprisonment in • th* iQfsWßi Tower at the order.of ,-the last time this, happened was