VISIT OF AIR EXPERTS

Press, Volume LXXXIV, Issue 25610, 27 September 1948, Page 8

VISIT OF AIR EXPERTS

STUDY OF AVIATION IN N.Z.

STAY IN CHRISTCHURCH The British mission inquiring into civil aviation arrived in Christchurch on Saturday. The mission is led by Sir Frederick Tymms. United Kingdom representative on the council of the International Civil Aviation Organisation. The other members of the mission are Mr K. T. Spencer, deputydirector of aircraft development in the Ministry of Supply, and Mr G. J. Warcup, deputy-director of aerodromes, in the Ministry of Civil Aviation in London. The official secretary is Squadron Leader M. B. Furlong. .This morning members of the mission will meet the Mayor (Mr E. H. Andrews) and the Town Clerk (Mr H. S. Feast). Later they will be entertained at morning tea by the Canterbury Chamber of Commerce and will then have a discussion with the South Island Overseas Air Terminal Committee. In the afternoon they will inspect the engineering section at Canterbury University College. The programme for Tuesday includes inspections of Harewood and Wigram aerodromes and on Wednesday meetings will be held with the Royal New Zealand Aero Club, the Canterbury Aero Club, and the Canterbury International Air Race Council. On Thursday the mission will leave for the south and visit Timaru, Oamaru. and Dunedin.

The mission arrived in New Zealand on August 24 at the invitation of the Government and will advise on the administration of civil aviation and on special problems relating to international air standards. Sir Frederick Tymms said in Auckland recently that these problems were concerned, in particular, with pilots’ qualifications, the provision of meteorological and radio services, maps and charts, certificates of airworthiness, and the operating of air transport services. In general the mission wanted to see what the country was like for flying end to gain an impression of the standards of aerodromes The significance of its visits to particular places was therefore not very great.

Sir Frederick Tymms said that to ascertain the Dominion’s aviation problems the mission had talked to all possible authorities It had spent much of its time meeting people concerned with the questions involved and in talking to officials and nonOfficials.