VISITING AEROPLANES ARRIVE

Dominion, Volume 23, Issue 45, 16 November 1929, Page 12

VISITING AEROPLANES ARRIVE

LANDINGS AT RONGOTAI YESTERDAY ACCIDENT TO GLOSTER GREBE WRECKED AT BLENHEIM Arrangements are well forward for Wellington’s first air pageant to-day, and fine weather is the sole remaining need. Most of the visiting aeroplanes arrived at Rongotai yesterday. An unfortunate accident befell one of the Government’s speedy Gloster Grebe machines at Blenheim; while taking off, with Captain Buckley in charge, the machine crashed, and was seriously damaged. Fortunately the ainnan was not hurt.

Shortly after noon two aeroplanes appeared over the western hills of the city, the one blue and the other scarlet, their silver wings glinting in the sunlight as they spiralled down from about 2000 feet, the first, ZK-AAA, looping and rolling over the club hangar at a low altitude before it landed. The first ’plane to alight was the blue ship (the Wakefield gift Moth) belonging to the Marlborough Aero Club. Captain N. Chandler (instructor to the club) made a good three-point landing on the southern end of the field and taxied easily up to the hangar, where he dlseffibarked with his passenger, Miss Pauline Bennett. pescribing the flight, Captain Chandi ler said: “We left Blenheim at 11.45, meeting with fairly strong headwinds. Just past Tory Channel we cut across. Flying was not too good, being rather bumpy below 6000 feet.” Miss Bennett, he said, had taken the controls during the crossing of Cook Strait.

Captain W. JL Marlow was next, flying ZK-AAZ, one of the Canterbury representatives, with Mr. D. E. Grigg as a passenger. A few minutes later a speck in the southern sky grew to a Moth upon whose blue-grey body and wings stood out the tricoloured bull’s-eye of the New Zealand Air Force. Down it dropped to a perfect landing, and out of it stepped Captain J. C. Mercer (Canterbury instructor), Miss Aroha Clifford emerging from the front cockpit. The machine is at present on loan to the southern club. Captain Mercer stated that the start was made from Christchurch at 8.15 a.m. apd Blenheim was reached at 11.5. After a ten-minute halt at Blenheim the journey was continued. Good weather had been experienced all the way at an altitude of 6000 feet. Northern Machines. At 1 p.m. ZK-AAV and ZK-AAS, the two Hamilton Airways’ aeroplanes, piloted by Captains M. C. McGregor and Gibbons, appeared overhead and circled together before alighting. Captain McGregor was first in No. 3 (a green and vellow Gipsy Moth). The pair had left Hamilton, he said, shortly- before 8 o clock and had encountered rain and bad weather round about Raglan. A cross wind had been something of a hindrance. Both machines landed at Hawera to refuel, and from then on it was an hour and a half’s steady going to Wellington. It was thought by the Canterbury pilots that the two Gloster Grebes under Captains Buckley and Burrell would probably remain overnight at Woodburn aerodrome, Blenheim, and come up this mornThe next to arrive was Messrs. Goodwin and Chichester’s Aero-Avian ZKAAN, which put in an appearance at 3.15, with Captain Bolt at the stick and Mr. Goodwin as passenger. The latter gave details of the flight. The bop-off was made from Christchurch at 9.45, and at 12 o’clock the aeroplane reached Blenheim. Passing along the Kaikouras the scenery was magnificent, said Mr. Goodwin. The going was a bit bumpy in places, but on the whole it had been a good trip. Blenheim was* left at 2.45. Half-an-hour after the arrival of the Avian Captain McGregor took aloft Mr. E. Lloyd, of the Wellington Club, and together they flew over the city distributing pamphlets. Scarcely had they disappeared when a Gloster Grebe appeared flying very high over Melrose, the deep, staccato cough of its engine contrasting with the regular roar of the Moth. Bad Tidings. Captain Burrell had bad news to bring. Captain Buckley, he informed the waiting officials, had met with a serioub mishap at Blenheim, his Gloster Grebe crashing just after the take-off, with disastrous results to the machine. Luckily, however, the pilot escaped without injury. Describing the accident, Captain Burrell said that the two aeroplanes were taking off together, with the other machine about two chains ahead. He had just “opened her up” when suddenly Buckley’s machine swerved across his path, and he instantly shut off, thinking that the other pilot was turning. Suddenly, however, he noticed that the ailerons were not responding and the Grebe crashed—one wing down—from a height of about five feet. After the crash it was found that the controls had jammed tight. , ' On hearing this news the Milrlborough Club members present generously asked Captain Burrell if Captain Buckley would avail himself of their other machine to make the trip, and. Wing-Commander Grant Dalton gave his consent to the proposal. Arrangements For To-day. Provided the weather.is fine enough the general public who attend the pageant to-day should be assured of a display of flying such as has never previously been seen in New Zealand. As sections of the streets and roads which would ordinarily be available for parking will be closed for the occasion, motorists are advised to arrive early. Regarding the programme itself, the list of events is fairly lengthy, and all races will be got off punctually, At 1.50 p.m. the Mayor (Mr. G. A-. Troup) will speak, and then take'off with Captain McGregor in the Hamilton Airways’ machine. Following this there will be a parade of 'planes, probably one of eaeh type. At the commencement will be a landing contest. Machines will be required to'take off in order, gain 1000 ft.. and glide to rest as near as possible to the target circle. Low- flying ’planes will then indulge in a bombing contest with flour bags. Formation flying will follow. The star event on the programme, however will •be beyond doubt the Aerial Derby, over n ten-mile course, which will probably be flown in beats. After this is scheduled the aerial battle, although there is a possibility of this being cancelled owing tn the mishap to the other Grebe. At_4.3o P.m. flic slow race will be flown at an altitude of about 500 feet, last mnn home being the winner. Then there is height guessing, for which valuable prizes are being offered. Stunting will be done at about 5 o’clock, and at this time also there will be the spectacular bombing of the old house nt the end of the aerodrome, which will be carried out at 2000 feet by n trio of Moths. Parking has been arranged for 800 cars nt Is. each in an enclosed area. Signals of Postponement.

Should inclement weather render postponement necessary fill Monday. November 18. signals will be flown at 11 a.m. to-dav as follow :—Four flags. Mount Victoria Signal Station ; one flag, Town Hall: tone flag. G.P.O. The public are re-

minded of the passenger flights, which will be given next week by Captains McGregor and Gibbons.

MAYOR TO MAKE HIS FIRST FLIGHT TO-DAY

WELLINGTON’S UNIQUE AIRPORT The Mayor of Wellington, Mr. G. A. Troup, will make his first aeroplane ascent at the air pageant to-day, and will be the only passenger to go up to-day other than members of the Aero Club. Speaking of to-day’s pageant, the Mayor said it would mark a unique occasion in the history of Wellington, the real commencement of commercial aviation, while it was true there were other aerodromes in New Zealand .at the present time, there was not one in operation in the boundaries of a city such as there was at Lyall Bay. If commercial flying were to be established, then it could be imagined how convenient the location will be for passengers arriving, when they can step out of an aeroplane and into a tramcar or motor, which will convey them into the city in a few minutes. Groat Possibilities, “While no immediate returns to compensate for the expenditure can be expected, yet I think the future holds out very great possibilities for commercial flying must come about in the same way as it had in other countries,” continued the Mayor. “Time, now, is the essence of things, and if a man can do in one day what otherwise would take him two days to do, he undoubtedly will take advantage of the means that will enable him to save a day, and possibly two, because while travelling by aeroplane may be more expensive than travelling by rail or steamer, the saving in hotel expenses will more than make up the difference.” Three, Days to One. The Mayor instanced the trip to Napier, which takes a day to reach by train from Wellington, leaving no time to do business the same day. The second day is taken up with business, and the third day for the return trip. By aeroplane one could leave Wellington at 8 a.m., be in Napier by 11 a.m. take four hours for business, and leave between 3 and 4 o’clock in the afternoon, getting back to Wellington between 6 and 7 p.m. “For some time to come,” said the Mayor, “people will naturally be somewhat shy, but the fact that the airport provides' means for flying, and being so close at hand to the city, will in a very short time help in creating the air sense, when people will come to regard flying as an ordinary means of transport.” The Mayor pointed out that the conditions on which the pageant was being held was that the profits must be expended in the purchase of an aeroplane to be located in Wellington for the Aero Club. PILOTS’ RECORDS Brief records of the careers of some of the pilots who will be flying to-day are as follow: — Captain Euan Dickson served with the Royal Naval Air Service and won both the Distinguished Service Cross and the Distinguished Flying Cross. He was the pilot of the first machine to cross Cook Strait on August 25, 1920. Captain M. C. McGregor is perhaps the best-known New Zealand pilot. He has flown more than thirty different types of ’plane, including the French Spad and the German Fokker and Paltz. His war record showed that he had spent 1000 hours in the air, and he has the Distinguished Flying Cross, with a bar added. Captain N. H. Barlow has 276 hours of wartime flying behind:.him. He has piloted four types of German ’planes—the Albatross, the D.F.W.. and two different models of the Paltz. Captain Seabrook, who has 1200 hours’ flying time to his credit, wears the Air Force Cross. Captain Harkness gained the Distinguished Service Cross for his brilliant conduct in an air raid into enemy territory. He was forced to land in Holland. where he was interned as a prisoner of war. A student of Canterbury College, he worked his passage to England as a second engineer, and with the money thus earned learned to fly and entered the Naval Air Service. Captain Parke, who will fly the Monocoupe. spent 1400 hours aloft in the Great War and won the Meritorious Service Modal. Captain G. H. Bolt learned to fly at Walsh Brothers’ Flying School at Kohim a rani a in 1917.