TASMAN FLIGHT

Evening Post, Volume CXVII, Issue 52, 2 March 1934, Page 9

TASMAN FLIGHT

TESTING THE COD/JCK

NEW ZEALAND' PLANS

Mr. Wilfrid Kiugsford Smith adVises that Sir Charles and his wife will leave Sydney next "Wednesday by tho Monterey, arriving in Auckland on Saturday, March 10. Tho second half of his New Zealand tour will commence on Sunday, March 11. Arrangements havo been completed for the special aerial survey and photographic flight over. Mount Cook, tho Franz Josef Glacier, and tho Southern- Aips and Southern Sounds, commencing at Christeliurch and finishing at Invcrcargill. This night will take place on March 1(5 and will be of great interest as a, wide area will be flown over that has^ never been viewed from the air. Tests of tho Codock monoplane at Sydney will bo very thorough. For a start taxi-ing on the ground to test engine power and-undercarriage stability will be done, and then a short flight will bo made by Sir Charles Kingsford Smith, flying solo and equipped with xiaraehute. He will ascertain the flying capabilities of tho machine and its sensitiveness to the controls. After that longer flights will be made. Squadron-Leader T. W. White will finish the tests after Sir Charles's departure, and will thoroughly try out heavy loading capabilities.. The Codock will also bo flown through bad weather to learn its behaviour. A long-distance flight over land of 1000 to 1200 miles will be made, and after everything is satisfactory tho machine will bo ready to fly the Tasman. As tho Codoek is built mainly 'on Fokker orthodox lines, embodying all tho latest improvements in aircraft, it. is not expected that any major troubles will be encountered in the tests. It is hoped that the Codoek will be sufficiently tested to fly the Tasman before tho completion of the forthcoming tour of the Southern Cross, as the two big monoplanes will then visit the remainder of the places together. Sir Charles Kingsford Smith will fly the Southern Cross over the Tasman on his return to Australia on March 28. The large petrol tanks will be rofitted at New Plymouth on the previous day, and provided there is no bad weather on the ocean the flight will start before . 6 o'clock in the morning.