Perfect Landing—On Time

Evening Star, Issue 21308, 12 January 1933, Page 6

Perfect Landing—On Time

Kingsford Smith’s Third Tasman Crossing An Uneventful Flight 10,000 Spectators at New Plymouth Sir Charles Kingsford Smith and party, in the Southern Cross, made a perfect landing at New Plymouth at 7 p.m. yesterday, having done the long ocean run from Gerringong Beach (Sydney) to the New Zealand airport in 14hr ISmin. There was a crowd of over 10,000 people assembled, and the great airman had a wonderful reception. The engines func- < tioned perfectly, and the issue was never in doubt. The only steamer sighted on the flight was the Maunganui.

THE ARRIVAL FIVE PLANES AS ESCORT SMITH’S CHARACTERISTIC SPEECH A BIT OF SHUT-EYE NOW [Per United Press Association.] NEW PLYMOUTH, January 11. Making a characteristically perfect landing, Sir Charles Kingsford Smith brought'the-Southern Cross alongside the dais erected at the Bell Block aerodrome exactly at 7 o’clock to-night and waved cheerfully to the applauding crowd of 10,000 assembled in the grounds. . The last radio message received from the machine at 6.45 p.m. intimated that the aviators expected to land in about five minutes’ time, and the escorting planes thereupon left the grounds to meet the monoplane, i It was not tor some time, however, that they picked up the Southern Cross, and the first of several false alarms was t raised as the formation flew back over the ground prior to making a second sweep to the westward in search of the monoplane. Eventually the long graceful lines of the Southern Cross were discerned high = above the rays of the setting sun, and a few moments afterwards the escorting formation, flying at a considerably Tow altitude, came into view'. ■ 1 The Southern Cross circled widely above New Plymouth and then circled again upon reaching the aerodrome. Meantime, all but one of the escorting planes had landed. A great cheer arose from the crowd as the monoplane landed immediately behind the last of the escorting group of planes. The aviators were welcomed by Mr A. E. Sandford (president of the New Plymouth Aero Club), Mr H. V. S. Griffiths (mayor of New Plymouth), Mr S. G. Smith, M.P., and Mr G. M. Spence (president of the New Zealand Aero Club), all of whom congratulated them on their flight. Telegrams of congratulation, including one from the Governor-General (Lord Bledisloe), were also read. Sir Charles Kingsford Smith, on approaching the loud speaker, was greeted : by a roar : of applause. He expressed gratification at the welcome. He said that nowhere else in the world—and he had been in most parts—had he received such warm welcomes as in New Zealand. It was especially gratifying to be received in such a'manner on the present occasion when he was appearing in the humble capacity of earning his living. The Southern Cross during the trip had run like the good old thoroughbred that she was. He personally had done nothing clever. He had don© something much more clever . recently—he would remind them that he had a 91b son, (Cheers.) He was glad to be back in New Zealand. “ Cheerio, I am going to have a bit of shuteye now,” he concluded. Renewed cheering broke out, and the crowd enthusiastically sang “ For He’s a Jolly Good Fellow.” The party was again cheered as it left the ground for the hotel. PERFECT LANDING CONDITIONS THIRTY VISITING PLANES The weather conditions throughout the'flight were ideal, and the party landed on New Zealand soil at the close of a perfect day. There was practically no wind, the sky was cloudless, and Mount Egmont fairly scintillated. in the brilliant sunshine. Countless motor vehicles were parked in the grounds, and the gaily dressed crowd spent a happy day listening to the broadcast reports of the machine’s progress. Nearly thirty aeroplanes of various types and from all parts of the dominion arrived at the aerodrome from time to time, and sorrie excellent exhibitions of stunt flying were provided. . The official escort for the Southern Cross consisted of machines piloted by the following flying officers: —l. Keith, ."Western Federated Flying Club, and instructor to the New Plymouth Aero Club: E. R, Boucher, president of the Auckland Aero Club; M. Archibald, Wellington Aero Club; Squadron-leader White, Timaru Aero Club; and Captain Mercer, Canterbury Aero Club. Flyingofficer Keith led the formation and also led the Southern Cross in the landing. Among other machines on the ground was the plane in which Mr Oscar Garden made his famous flight. It is now privately owned by a Hamilton airman.

A WALK-OVER SMITH OH THE FLIGHT GO6D VISIBILITY THROUGHOUT WILL FLY BACK “ If you could guarantee conditions such as those under which we made the crossing to-day, I would gladly fly the Tasman every day,” said Sir Charles Kingsford Smith in an interview tonight. “ To-day’s trip was a walkover. It was the first time the Southern Cross has crossed an ocean without encountering bad weather, and it was certainly a contrast from the trip four years ago. We had about fifteen minutes’ blind flying shortly after taking off, but as soon as dawn broke the visibility became perfect. “ We did not have the help wo expected from westerly winds,” proceeded Sir Charles, “ and consequently the flight took a little longer than we had anticipated. We flew most of the way at between 5,000 ft and 7,000 ft to obtain the assistance of a north-westerly and to avoid the surface wind, which was north-easterly.” Sir Charles paid a warm tribute to the behaviour of the engines during the crossing. He said there wex’e only two occasions on which he had a moment of anxiety. On one of these an exhaust manifold appeared to be coming loose, and it was not until after landing that he learned that it had been constructed in. ,such a way as to give that impression. On the other occasion an oil gauge commenced to fluctuate, displaying the same symptoms as it would if the machine were running short of oil. It must simply have been some temporary blockage, however, because there were still tons of oil, in the machine when it lauded. Apart from these few minutes of apprehension he had an absolutely untroubled trip. Sir Charles remarked that their deviation to the south was early indicated by the sextant readings, but he had preferred not to alter his course as he considered it better to strike the New Zealand coast midway than to risk flying beyond the northern extremity of the country. This risk would undoubtedly have existed in the event of his altering his course on, possibly, wrong sextant readings. GAPE FAREWELL SIGHTED When he first sighted land, Sir Charles recognised Cape Farewell from a distance of between 150 and 175 miles. He was heading straight for this point, a circumstance which bore out the accuracy of the sextant readings. He then altered his course 25deg to the north, and soon sighted Mount Egmont. “ The visibility was amazing,” he said. “ We were fully 160 miles away when we saw Egmont, and we were then still a long way out at sea.” Sir Charles himself undertook the bulk of the work of piloting the machine, while Captain Taylor did most of the navigating. At intervals, however, Captain Taylor relieved him at the controls while he himself checked up on the navigation readings. The actual flying time, according to the clock fitted on the Southern Cross, was 14h smin 30sec. The monoplane’s wheels left Australian soil at 2.50 a.m. (Australian time) by this clock, and touched New Zealand soil at 6.55 p.m., by the same instrument. “ The engines of the Southern Cross are in better condition than they were four years ago,” Sir Charles declared. “ I keep them that way; they are my bread and butter nowadays.” _ He intimated that it was his intention to fly back to Australia, _ but this would depend on two conditions—the state of the engines after what ho hoped would b© a strenuous tour and the state of the weather at the time he proposed to return. Ho would be prepared to wait several days, if necessary, for a break in the weather. Ho was seriously considering taking off from Ninety Mile Beach in the event of his returning by air. In the first place, there should bo ample provision for an excellent take-off in that locality, and in the second place, it would shorten the distance by about sixty-five miles. The distance from New Plymouth to his destination would be approximately 1,300 miles. Ho considered that the total distance of today’s flight was about 1,350 miles, taking into account the deviation to the south. Touching the subject of commercial aviation between New Zealand and Australia, Sir Charles expressed the opinion that any practical venture in this direction was still about ten years distant. When the time came _ and when the business .available would justify the use of multi-engined planes, which could, if necessary, bo repaired en route, there should be no further difficulty in the way. FAITH IH HINKLER “Is there any news of Hinkler?” Sir Charles asked. “ I have great faith in Hinkler,” he added. “ Ho is nn extraordinarily resourceful man. I am by no means unduly alarmed. He has probably landed somewhere on one of tho various mountain ranges on his route, and is beyond communication.” He remembered that ho did not agree with Hinkler’s policy of maintaining

secrecy about his projects, because it must be realised that the more that was known about an airman’s intended route and other plans the greater was the possibility of his being located in the event of a mishap accurring. THE GROUND STAFF CONGRATULATIONS EXCHANGED Mr J. T. Pethybridge, chief engineer, Mr H. Affleck, aircraftsman, and Mr H. Purvis, mechanic, who constitute the ground staff attached to the Southern Cross, had arrived at New Plymouth the previous evening, and as the outcome of the flight depended so much upon the work they had performed on the other side of the Tasman they were among the most exhilarated witnesses of the landing; of the machine. Mr Pethybridge leapt on to the wing of the plane, and Sir Charles Kingsford Smith, leaning out from the cockpit, warmly grasped the hand which the engineer extended. The other members of the ground staff exchanged congratulations with the airman, who then turned to greet Mr M'Williams (radio operator on the former New Zealand flight), who had climbed into the fuselage to offer his felicitations. “ Bog tired.” was Sir Charles’s reply to Mr M‘Wi!nams’s inquiry as to now he felt. Mr Nielson was the first of the transTasman party to step from the plane, and he was followed by Sir Charles Kingsford Smith, Mr Stannage, Captain Taylor, and Mr Pervical. In company with his brother, Mr Wilfred Kingsford Smith, Sir Charles ascended the steps of the dais, and the cheering of the crowd swelled into a mighty roar. NAVIGATION UNO GdMIiICATIOH TAYLOR AMD STANDAGE REPORT “My job was navigation, and the flight was in command of Sir Charles,” said Captain P. G. Taylor. “ Consequently i: can talk about nothing but the navigation side of the trip.” A strong north-east wind was encountered tor a start, be said, and the heavy breakers below showed lines of foam that enabled the fliers to observe the machine’s drift some time before daylight. During the morning the plane’s position was checked by taking drift sights as mentioned, while sights of the sun were taken for placing the position of the machine by longitude. Sights for ascertaining the latitude were taken at noon. . All through the day the conditions were ideal for ascertaining and checking the position of the machine, continued Captain Taylor. When the northerly eased off after noon there were no breakers from which drift sights could be obtained, so special aluminium powder bombs were used. When they struck the water the bombs caused a bright patch to appear on the sea, and from such patches the drift could be observed. That method was used all through the latter part of the flight. Sights of the sun were taken in the afternoon to fix the longitude. “ Everything went wonderfully well,” sand Mr" Stannage, the wireless operator. “ I was in communication with both sides all the time. Never at any time did I fail to receive messages. The Maungnnui was most helpful, for we arrived in her vicinity just at a time when the magneto noises made it impossible to receive from cither side, but like a good friend the ship solved the difficulty by relaying the messages both ways.”

Mr Stannage said it was unfortunate that he had been unable to use telephony during the flight. Right up to the last moment it had been hoped to do so, but the negotiations for a service fell through, and they had to confine themselves to the Morse. The trouble arose through some complications in connection with the international regulations. Up till the last every effort was made to overcome the difficulties, but without avail. RADIO LOG FINAL MESSAGES APPROACHING COAST The following are the final messages sent from the cockpit of the plane.approaching New Zealand: — 1.35 p.m. (Sydney time) : New Zealand weather favourable. Five machines coming to meet us. Expect arrive 7 p.m. (New Zealand time). “ Smithy ” says he got a scare a while ago when port motor oil pressure dropped, then came back again just as he was beginning to worry. Sea dead calm. Fleecy clouds below. Had trouble petrol pump. Maunganui very close now. Hope to see her and check our position. “ Sorry have been pushed so much that couldn’t keep regular schedules. As New Zealand weather reports favourable expect arrive 7 p.m, (New Zealand time). ‘ Smithy ’ has been kept busy mending leak in petrol pump. Sea glassy smooth. Now sun shining; hazy horizon. It will bo two hours yet before we see Mount Egmont. Altitude 4,000 ft. Speed ninety miles per hour. Taylor just working out final position. “ Expecting to sight land within next hour or so. Have seen gulls on water, also streaky current marks, indicating land is fairly close. Getting a bit tired, and will welcome good sleep tonight.—Kingsford Smith.” 4.41 p.m. (New Zealand time) : “ Have made landfall. Everybody very busy. ’ ‘Smithy’ is flying, and Taylor busy checking up last sight. His sight puts us not far ahead of the Maunganui, so hope we seo her so we can get definite course to New Plymouth. What a marvellous sight the sea is now! I’ve crossed this one many times, but have never scon it like this; just a mill pond. Not a cloud to be seen on port side; on starboard side a great bank way on the horizon to south. Machine flying faultlessly.” 5.7 p.m.: “ Sighted land, presumably Cape Farewell, a long way off. Have set course for Egmont. Expect arrive 4.30 (Sydney time). Will confirm this later.” j 6.5 p.m.: “ Mount Egmont looks dead ahead now. Blue sky perfectly clear.” DELIGHT IN SYDNEY Press Association—By Telegraph—Copyright. SYDNEY, January 11. (Received January 12, at 0.15 a.ra.) The news of the sate arrival of the Southern Cross in New Zealand was published by the ‘ Sun ’ this afternoon in time to excite the interest of homegoing business people, who treated it as cheerful news, and expressed the highest admiration for tho noteworthy achievement by Sir Charles Kingsford Smith and his colleagues. A chatty story of the flight is featured from Mr Percival. The radio signals from the Southern Cross wore very weak for the first few hours, but improved, and interesting reports arrived at intervals, stating that the plane was making good progress at about ninety miles per hour. Later the signals expressed a fear that tho plane might have to land in tho dark owing to being blown in a southerly direction off her course. Lady Smith was delighted on receipt of the good news.

GREETINGS FROi MINE DIN MAYOR’S MESSAGE On liis way to New Plymouth to meet Sir Charles Kingsford Smith, Mr H. M. Mackay, of New Zealand Airways Ltd., paid an early morning call on the Mayor of Dunedin (Mr R. S. Black), who is at present spending a holiday in Timaru, and offered to convey an official, letter of greeting to the Australian airmen. In the course of a short note to Sir Charles, Mr Black, on behalf of the people of Dunedin, extended a very cordial welcome to the visitors, and expressed the hope that they would thoroughly enjoy their stay in the dominion and would make many friends in all parts of the country. He referred to Sir Charles as “ the king of the air,” and said he hoped that the great Australian aviator would add many more achievements to the notable feats which he had already accomplished.^ Tins letter was taken on to Now Plymouth by Mr Mackay when he left Timaru at a quarter to 6. k PASSENGER’S LOG SMTH FLYING ALPS MADE THE LANDFALL [By Jack Pebcival.] NEW PLYMOUTH, January 11. Although it was reported that Kingsford Smith during the flight had trouble with the oiling apparatus of the triple motors of the Southern Cross, such trouble was not serious, and did not in any way warrant the anxiety expressed on arrival in the dominion. Sir Charles took off at 2.50 a.m. with the aid of flares, and the only bumpy weather experienced was when the plane was leaving the coast of New South Wales. At Gerringong Beach, although the locality was out of the way, hundreds of enthusiastic admirers gathered to farewell the famous aviator and his crew of four. Two motion picture equipment trucks were on the beach, and contributed to safety in the take-off, as they lit flares, which illuminated the beach for many hundreds of yards. At the wish of Sir Charles the drivers of motor cars kept their headlights switched on, making a mark for him to adjust his course by for the first few miles. Dull weather was encountered, and “ Smithy ” was forced to fly blind for 350 miles out over the Tasman. The weather proved beautifully fine. The crew had breakfast at 7 a.m., with the Southern Cross flying over a thick layer of clouds, through which glimpses of the sea were visible. The altitude of the plane at this particular stage was 5,000 ft, and the going was particularly smooth. The weather improved as the Southern Cross progressed on her way. The cloud bank cleared, and myself and Nielson took turns in pumping petrol from the reserve tanks into the main tanks in the wings. At the outset of the flight adverse winds wore experienced, but later the wind veered, and was not as detrimental as earlier. At this stage “ Smithy ” took refreshments. The sea was calm, and the sky quite clear. In the main cabin it was so warm that the crew removed their coats. No ships were sighted. The Southern Cross had behaved remarkably well up to date, and “ Smithy ” was pleased. At 9.30 a.m. Captain Taylor (navigator) dropped aluminium powder bombs on the sea. These spread out like huge pieces of silver paper on the surface, and Smith manoeuvred the

plane around the marks for observation purposes. The position of the plane was about 530 miles from Gerringong Beach, From 5,000 ft the sea looked calm, but tiny ripples that were seen at . this air tituclo might well have been huge Tasman rollers, John Stannage reported that the wireless gear was functioning perfectly. From this stage the Southern Cross'was Hying at an altitude of 4,700 ft in a slight haze, Nielson reading magazines, “Smithy ” at the controls, and Taylor making observations. Stannage reported’ that he was getting excellent radio results. Our true course was south 75deg east. A west-south wind was prevailing, and the cruising speed of the plane was ninety miles an hour. Shortly afterwards the Southern Cross caught upon banks of low. sombrehued clouds, but they were bathed in sunshine, and the crew hoped for the best. “Smithy” was at the controls, while Taylor made observations. Sir Charles was intent on the instruments before him in the cockpit, Nielson and myself intent on photos of the clouds. We saw two giant fish basking under the surface of the water. The Southern Cross rapidly passed them, and we came to the conclusion that they were probably whales. Taylor dropped two more aluminium bombs on to the surface of the sea to fix an object for observation purposes. This was 1.10 p.m, Smith then expected to make New Plymouth at 7 p.m., New Zealand time. Weather reports on the New Zealand coastal conditions were then received by Stannage, and proved very favourable, practically assuring a happy landing in New Zealand in about four hours time. We were then 4,000 ft up, leaving behind a big blanket of low-lying clouds: and the Southern Cross had 420 nautical miles to fly before reaching New Plymouth. The weather was still very clear, with scudding clouds I,oooft below us, and we were then making ninety miles an hour. Lunch was served by Nielson, consistiug of camp pie, cheese sandwiches, and fruit. The high altitude had made all rather hungry. : The next news was a report by laylor that we bad only 130 miles before reaching land. There was a scare when Taylor asked if any member of the crew had binoculars, because it was thought that land had been unexpectedly sighted on the left. A message was then received from the New Plymouth Aero Club to the effect that five planes were coming to meet us. Stannage told us that he had been in communication with the Maunganui, and we were advised to keep a look-out for it, although visibility was difficult on account of cloud banks. About 6.30 Smithy called from the cabin to the cockpit as he sighted land. There were scenes of jubilation, and a toast was drunk. The plane was directed straight towards terra firma, and it was then estimated that wo were about 100 miles from New Plymouth. We could see the coast plainly, and a small launch crawling along below us. Our altitude was 4,000 ft mid our speed 85 miles per hour, and we expected to land within 30 minutes (4 p.m., Sydney time). The distance from the shore proved confusing, and it took much longer to get a clear sight of Mount •. Egmont than was anticipated. . , The trouble regarding the pumping apparatus, which evidently caused a scare in New Zealand, was easily rectified. With his usual efficiency Smith had two pumps installed in the cabin of the Southern Cross. One developed a slight leak, and as topis had been made available in the cabin he personally supervised the switching over of the connections. When this was done it was found that one of the pumps had developed unexpected stiffness. After sometime, and on the repeated petitions of the crew ; it was decided to revert to the original pump, which worked easily, although there was a seepage of petrol through the packing of the joints. When the Southern Cross was in the vicinity of Mount Egmont the crew was quite happy in the fact that the plane still had a number of hours’ Hying range as far as petrol supplies were concerned.

The first plane to make contact with the Southern Cross was a machine sent up by Universal Pictures, whose film ‘ Air Mail ’ was the only cgjga carried, by the Southern Cross. Before the start of the flight Sir Charles was caused some perplexity owing to the restrictions of the international telegraphic laws. He had apparently made some arrangements with a particular broadcasting company. The Southern Cross took the air as a registered post office, with the restriction that any amateur wireless enthusiast who picked up messages from the machine and used them did so afida* own risk. - . The Southern Cross experienced remarkable weather conditions during the whole flight. Smith, suffered one thrill during the flight, when it was reported that the oil pressure on one of the motors was at a low ebb. This was rectified. ' ' The big point underlying the conclusion of yesterday’s successful big hop was the inauguration of a trans-Tas-man passenger service. Smith is confident that within the next few years air mail and passenger services will be regularly flown between Australia and New Zealand. During yesterday’s big flight Sir Charles demonstrated the efficiency of the multi-engined passenger plan© compared with the single-engine machine. He declares that 70 per cent, of the original Southern Cross now remains compared with the machine that stood in the hangars of the Fokker Company prior to the big transatlantic hop, during which Stannage was associated with him. The features new to the Southern Cross on the trans-Tas-man flight were a 60,000 candle-power landing light installed under the fuselage, power for which is supplied by a small wind-driven propeller: the use of a three-blade metal propeller on the central engine in place of the usual two-blade variety; and the installation of a soundproof wireless cabin for the convenience of the wireless operator. The exhaust pipes had been rearranged, and had their outlet over the wings instead of under the fuselage. In the flight Sir Charles was handicapped by the severe drift, which necessitated taking frequent observations.. He aimed for the Alps in the South Island, because he argued that they presented the best navigation landmark. As soon as he sighted New Zealand he readjusted the course and made New Plymouth in record time._ During the major portion of the flight the Soiithern Cross was forced to fly crabwise in order to counteract the rather severe contrary winds. A feature of the flight was the testing of radio telephony, which Sir Charles expects to become a leading factor in the future of mail plane flying.