AIR TOURISTS SAY GOOD-BYE

Dominion, Volume 29, Issue 225, 19 June 1936, Page 12

AIR TOURISTS SAY GOOD-BYE

Herrick anti Chichester

AVIATOR'S THIRD BOOK TO BE PUBLISHED

When the liner Wauganella leaves Auckland this afternoon for Sydney, part of Iter cargo will be a little blue and silver Puss Moth aeroplane, and two of her passengers the aviators, Mr. !•’. <’. Chichester and Mr. F. D. Herrick. The parting of paper ribbons between ship and quay will, mark tho outset uf their adventurous journey, planned to take them via Darwin. Maiiehiikiin. Siberia and tire Arctic Circle to Europe, .-11111 eventually to London.

In an interview before leaving Wellington, Mr. Chichester told-" The Dominion” that, after the weary and at limes depressing months of preparation, lie was glad to be selling out. Mr. Herrick, too, was keener than ever, and they wore looking forward to leaving Sydney as soon as possible for Narrabri, their first objective. Mr. Herrick was anxious to visit certain back-country stations in Australia ou the way across tho Continent. It. had' been their intention to visit British North Borneo, but. a cable message from the authorities there to Now Zealand officials asked, “'What floats is Chichester using? No landing grounds in North Borneo.” “Of course, that makes us keener than ever to go there," said the pilot, to whom adversity has always proved a stimulus. In the East the travellers expect to cross three zones where, if active warfare is not actually proceeding, there is every chance of the airmen witnessing hostilities. These areas were the civil war area of Central China, and the Mancliukuau frontiers bordering on China, Mongolia, and Russia. Mr. Chichester said that he understood armed troops were permanently massed along these frontiers, and he thought, they were quite liable to be hold up by the authorities.

Flight Across Russia.

As yet no permission to visit Russia had been received, but they did not expect; to obtain, these papers until they reached Peking. In the meantime, he understood, the Prime Minister had consented to communicate with tho Russian Government asking that the two New Zealanders should be granted every facility, and. if possible, should be given every opportunity to see something of the collective farms iu which both of them are keenly interested. The crossing of Russia by way of Blago Rukh, Bodaibo, Ilimsk, Yettiseik. Samarovsk, Obdorsk, UstTsilma to Archangel would take them practically the whole length of Russia, Obdorsk being right on the Arctic Circle. It was a distance of over 4000 miles, nearly one-third of their total flight. Mr. Chichester said that it was amazing what, interest was being taken in the venture. As he went about the streets of Wellington he was continually being stopped and questioned about it. He had received numbers of presents from unexpected sources, not the least practical being a patent spanner presented him by a garage mechanic. He stated that both he and Mr. Herrick were at present particularly hale and hearty, and looking forward eagerly to the adventure. Trials of an Author. Well known already as an author, having described two of his three previous flights under the titles “Solo to Sydney” and “Seaplane Solo,” Mr. Chichester intends, of course, to col lect material for further literary en deavottr during his travels. This third book, “Ride on the Wind,” is to be published shortly in London, by Hamish Hamilton. News that the firm had definitely decided to publish the work, and had signed the contract, was received only this week. Although obviously keen, they previously baulked at certain outspoken passages, describing the manuscript as “too dangerous to liubiish as it stands.” The passages referred to were apparently hostile comment on certain persons whom the aviator had encountered on his flight from Sydney to New Guinea, the Spice Islands, the Philippines, Formosa and Japan, which was the subject of his book. He was uncertain exactly what agreement his Loudon agent had concluded about altering the offending passages, which he was well content to leave as they stood. “What’s wrong, anyway?” he demanded, thrusting out his beard aggressively, “I only said what I thought.” Much of the , manuscript has been written actually in the air, being scribbled in pencil in au octavo notebook. It describes in staccato phrases the panorama of the tropics slipping below the flying machine, and the mental reactions of an air pilot flying alone over strange lands and dangerous waters of the Eastern Archipelagoes.