EVEREST FLIGHT

Evening Post, Volume CXVI, Issue 26, 31 July 1933, Page 8

EVEREST FLIGHT

DINNER TO AIRMEN

TOUCH OF LORD NELSON

(From "The Post's" Representative.) LONDON, June 15.

Last night the Parliamentary Air Committee entertained at dinner Lord Clydesdale, M.P., and the other members of tho Mount Everest Might Expedition. Lord Stonehav«n proposed the toast of "The Expedition," and pointed out that the whole expedition was British. . . , :

Air-Commodore Fellowcs said that the principal objoct of .the expedition had been to survey the approach to the southern slopes.of .Mount (Everest, and it had been completely, successful, in spite of any orders which might have come from home. His orders had been that no further flights were to be carried out, and ho. told, the pilots that they.wero not to go beyond gliding distance of flat spots..- They had interpreted flat spots as clouds. Their survey had givon very valuable indications of what could be done in the future. It had been impossible for thorn to fly over such countries as Belgium, Italy, and Germany without realising that the old shibboleth that the man who flew-could not administer and that tho man who administered could not fly had been definitely discarded, and that must havo a great effect on the future. In the Italian Air Force, for example, they found that, every officer, from pilot-officer to general, was an active and up-to-date pilot. In Germany .they found that aviation had been placed under the coutrol of some of the most outstanding pilots. Those countries had found it, unwise to cover ignorance of .flying with all its developments by a wide and expensive knowledge of other matters. Concluding, he remarked on the ivido opportunity offered to aviation in Tndia, and said that there was: a'great and expanding market which could be taken advantage of in that country, OVER THE MOUNTAIN. Lord Clydesdale, who also acknowledged the toast, remarked on tho rude awakening which awaited a member of Parliament returning to his duties after a three months' absence. Ho said it was something of a shock to find no fewer than 18,000 items of corre-" spondence awaiting him from members of co-operative societies who wore also voters in his constituency. He took I refuge, he added, in the Church of Scot-' land, and in the General Assembly he i was greeted by one Doctor of Divinity who congratulated him on having in a very short space of time impersonated both God and the devil. He (Lord Clydesdale) discovered that this referred to the story lie had already told concerning tho delivery of a message by air which was picked up by an old man, who was heard to say that ho could now depart in peace because he had Seen God. It also referred to the belief of certain natives at another place, whero the aeroplane landed for the first time, that the devil himself had arrived. " , Speaking of the flights over Everest, Lord Clydesdale said that from the pilots' point of view the adventure meant really very little. Any qualified pilot if he wero physically fit could easily havo done it. They had excellent machines and engines, and the only uncomfortable moment occurred on the first attempt when, approaching Everest, they encountered a down current which caused them to lose a certain amount of height. He had ' had similar oxperienco in tho Grampians and over the Swiss Alps. If those over Everest were rather more violent this was compensated by the fact that they, had better aircraft and more powerful engines. Before making the attempt ho had cherished the hope that they might find some ■ trace of Mallory and Irvine, who wore so tragically lost in 1924; When they went over tho top, however, it becamo practically certain that no trace had been left. ■ ■