ULM'S FLIGHT

Evening Post, Volume CXVII, Issue 112, 14 May 1934, Page 10

ULM'S FLIGHT

TASMAN HANDSHAKE

GOOD-WILL GESTURE

HIS SEVENTH CROSSING

At 4.43 p.m. on Saturday the Faith in Australia, piloted by Flight-Lieutenant C. T. P. Ulm, touched ground at Rongotai and completed a memorable flight from Australia, a flight undertaken for no other purpose than to express to the people of New Zealand the very good will of the people of Australia. Mr. Ulm brought with him and personally delivered today letters of greetings and good wishes from the Governor-General of Australia, State Governors, the Prime Minister, Ministers of the Crown, and other officials. Letters from • the Governor-General, Sir Isaac Isaacs, and State Governors to the Governor-General of New Zealand, Lord Bledisloe, could not be delivered by Mr. Ulm in person •without delay, and so were posted to Auckland, where Lord Bledisloe is at present in residence, last evening. "I was indeed pleased to have the privilege of making this goodwill flight to New Zealand to express to you all the good wishes and most friendly feeling of the people of Australia, and to express also my personal feelings of high regard and friendship to New Zealand," said Mr. Ulm. "It has been a flight that I and my companions were most pleased to undertake." The flight occupied 17 hours 17 minutes from tho Richmond aerodrome, Sydney, to Rongotai, a brief call being made at New Plymouth, sufficient only for Mr. 111 m and his co-pilots to drink a cup of tea and to remove from tho tail wheel a streamer of electric wiring which had been caught as the Faith in Australia rose from the Richmond aerodrome. The weather conditions were patohy, with a good deal of rain and heavy cloud. The motors and equipment functioned perfectly throughout the journey, and tho crossing was uneventful, as should be so in any flight when adequate preparation is made, remarked Mr. Ulm. Though no definite advice was received until late in the afternoon as to the probable timo of arrival of the Faith in Australia at Rongotai, word spread round in some mysterious fashion and a crowd of some hundreds of people gathered a little before tho big monoplane flew over the city and circled above Moa Point for an easy landing. As night-Lieutenant Ulm stepped from the' cabin ho was welcomed by Squadron-Leader T. M. Wilkes, Director.General of Air Services, Mr. D. Ardoll, representing the Government, Messrs. J. Stellin and C. W. Batten, representing the Wellington Aero Club, and Mr. A. W. Nisbet, secretary of the club. la conversation with a "Post" reporter soon after landing, Mr. Ulm said that a little time ago lie had read in- Australia a published .letter from the Prime Minister of New ■Zealand (the Rt. Hon. G. W. Forbes) to tho Prime Minister'of Australia (the Rt. Hon. J. A. Lyons), in which, among other things, Mr. Forbes stated that trahs-Tasman flight achievements were doing much to still further strengthen good will and the ties of commerce between the two countries, and he had also read that Mr. Lyons was framing a good-will message of reply to Mr. Forbes and the people of New Zealand. "I personally have received tremendous hospitality from- New Zealand people on the now several flights I have made across the Tas'man,'' said Mr. Ulm, "and have had the opportunity of visiting most of the centres of the Dominion, and I was able to write to our Prime Minister and endorse all that Mr. Forbes had said from a personal kuow]edgp of the great good will that exists between New Zealand and Aus.tralia. GOOD-WILL FLIGHT APPROVED. "The Governments of the two countries were most generous in their treatment of Sir Charles Kingsford Smith and myself in the original Tasman flight in 1928 and tho Australian Government has also given generous. recognition of other aviation work I have been ablo, to do in Australia. Again, a certain amount of interest is always created by a flight across the Tasman—and as I like New Zealand people, I suggested .to Mr. Lyons that it would perhaps be fitting that his letter of good will to Mr.Forbes should be flown across and that tho name of our machine, Faith in, Australia, .was a fitting one. Mr. Lyons accepted the offer with enthusiasm and so we have arrived on a Goodwill Flight, bringing to New Zealand messages from the Governor-General of Australia (Sir Isaac Isaacs), the Governor of New South Wales (Sir Philip Game), the Governor of Queensland (Sir Leslie Wilson), the Prime Minister of Australia (the Rt. Hon. rf. A. Lyons), the Minister of Defence (Sir George Pearce), the Minister of Commerce- (tho Hon. F. A. Stewart), the Lord Mayors of Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane, the Federal president of the Returned Soldiers' and Sailors' Imperial League, Sir Gilbert Dyett, tho State president of the New South Wales Returned Soldiers' League, Mr. L. A. Robb, C.M.G., tho president of the Australian Flying Corps Association, Major A. W. L. Ellis, M.C., and other officials of my country. APPRECIATION 01 TREATMENT. '.'My offer to make the flight to carry ■these messages was made that I might in some way record my own appreciation of the very kind treatment I have always received at tho hands of both Ihe Australian and tho New Zealand Governments," continued Mr. Ulm, "and, of course, the flight would also afford me the opportunity of gaining the experience of two more flights across the Tasman Sea. When the return flight is completed, starting from tho Ninety Milo Beach on Tuesday, I will have made the crossing eight times, during tho months of September, October, December, February, April, and May, and so will be well on towards completing a survey of .the route from a point of view of having flown the Tasman at least once during every month of the year. Apart from the very valuable weather forecasts given us by tho meteorological bureau in each country, therefore, I will have had experience of actual flying conditions at all-times of the year.

"I am convinced that -we arc very close to the time when it will be possible to operate a completely safe regular air service between Australia and New Zealand, but of course I must yoint out that the type of aircraft I am,

now using la not designed for this class of work, and. it would not be the type to be used in such a service. Shortly there will be available aircraft cruising at between 150 and 200 miles per hour, capable of accomplishing tlie whole of the journey with 50 per cent, of its power units out of action, and it is such a type -which I believe will be used in the trans-Tasman service. During the next few weeks I will be submitting to both the Australian and the New Zealand Governments very definite suggestions regarding the establishment of a regular trans-Tasman service. GENEROUS ASSISTANCE. "I have had several most pleasing experiences in connection with this good-will flight,", continued Mr. Ulm. "My offer was well received in Australia, and that alone was pleasing, and a few days after the announcement of its acceptance I received a communication from the C. C. Wakefield Company, of which Lord Wakefield of Hythc, tho 'Father of British Aviation,' is head, offering, iv view of past associations, to carry the expenso of the return trip. It was an offer thoroughly typical of tho friendliness and helpfulness to aviation of Lord Wakcfield and his organisation. Another 'fine gesture was made by the Sydney 'Sun,' which printed a special New Zealand edition on tho afternoon the flight was commenced and delivered to the Richmond aerodrome ready to be stowed away in tho Faith in Australia." Several hundred copies of this special edition were handed to the Mayor, Mr; T. C. A. Hislop, by Mr. Ulm this morning with tho suggestion that they should be disposed of for. charity, an idea which Mr. Hislop readily approved. NO 'COMMERCIAL SIGNIFICANCE.

There was no commercial significance whatever in tho flight, said Mr. Ulm when asked whether mail was carried and would be carried on the return flight. He did not apply either to the Australian or the New Zealand Government for permission to carry mail, nor would it have been possible in the brief time available for organisation for the Postal Departments to have mado arrangements for tho collection of mail matter from all parts of tho two countries, as must bo douo in the arrangement of an air mail.

Speaking of the trip itself, Mr. Ulm said that it was all straight going. "As, indeed, all properly-arranged flights, from Wellington to Christchurch or from Australia to New Zealand, arc," he added. They took off from the Richmond aerodrome, tho R.A.F. station iv New South Wales, at 9.37 o'clock on Friday night, and were seen off by a largo number of friends who were attending tho Air Force Squadron ball at the station. The weather at Richmond was quite clear, bright, and starry, and an easy take-off was made, but after "they had been in tho air for about an hour Mr. Allen received a wireless message that tho machine had touched some overhead electrical wiring near the boundary of the aerodrome and advising that the undercarriago shouldbo. inspected.

An inspection of the undercarriage with torches did not reveal anything, said Mr. Ulm, and apparently everything was 0.X., and a message was scut back to Sydney accordingly, but in tho morning they discovered that a streamer of wire cable caught in the tail wheel * stretched out in tho wind s for several • hundreds of feet. "It was unusual; but not serious," he added, "and when wo landed at New. Plymouth it was only a matter of landing well up tho runway to mako sure that tho' streamer did not drag over trees and fences. I suppose we broke the Customs regulations, but w< • can always plead that we didn't racai 1 to." ; PATCHY WEATHER. A good deal of rain was encounter 3d on the way over, said Mr. Ulm, patei iy, | and heavy in the patches, so that at times they had had to fly by iusfc rumeuts. Tho night hours wcro flowji at between seven and nine thousand fi jet, but just after daylight they drop; pod through the cloud layer to between 3 .500 and 2000. feet to check drift and correct the course. For the greater part of the remainder of the trip the B 'aith in Australia was kept below the eh auds. Egmont was completely obscure d as the New Zealand coast was nearer 1 and there was heavy rain all rounc1 1 the cape, but tho town and aerodrorua were clear. A stay of about thirty ni J mutes only was mads at New PlymoT ith to comply with the necessary Oi astoms formalities, and to have a cvp1 of tea and a cigarette, and, of course, to receive a weather report as to con ditions about Wellington. The engine is were left running during the stay. Ti ; e takeoff was made in pouring rain- and so low wore the clouds that a ecu rse was made round the capo to Havjv >va, but from there on no rain was met. Rongotai was excellent from tho airman's point of view on Saturday even ing said Mr.'Ulm". ' •■■■.--.

Mr. Ulm paid the highest po< ?siblc tribute to his colleagues, Mr. G. U. Allau and Mr. R. N. Boulton. Ji [r. Allen, who was on his fifth cross!' ag of thp Tasman, acted as co-pilot su id navigator and also had charge of t' ho wireless equipment.. As onpreviou s occasions his navigation was pcrfeo* I(j .snid Mr. Ulm. Mr. Boulton, a qu* Jifled pilot, also made his fifth crossing on Saturday. His duties were tb oso of engineer, but the flying was shared between all three. ;■'-■'

On Saturday evening JSt c. Ulm turned to social engagements, having dinner with Squadron-Leader Wilkes and others interested in avial ion, and later attended the Savage Clut , evening. Yesterday was a free day, i but today has been a full, one for Mr . Ulm and his colleagues for the me? sages of good will have been delivqre- d in person. The Faith in Austral' a will probably leave Wellington tomo? row for Ninety Mile Beach, via New 3 ,'lymouth.

Asked srhethcr he ' ,vas taking messages back to Austral' ia, Mr. Ulm told a "Post" reporter thitf ; ho had received in Sydney a cablefj: n from Mr. Forbes stating that ho was looking forward to receiving messages from Australia and that ! no would be glad to take advantage c >f the opportunity of Mr. Ulm's return flight to send replies to Australia. ,