LANDED ON ISLAND

Evening Star, Issue 22212, 14 December 1935, Page 15

LANDED ON ISLAND

AUSTRALIAN AIR LINER NO LIVES LOST Press Association—By Telegraph—Copyright MELBOURNE, December 13. Another Holyman air liner of the Lepena D.H. 86 type, carrying two pilots and eight passengers, made a forced landing on Hunter Island, off the west coast of Tasmania, to-day owing to a wing crumpling in mid-air. The passengers were in grave peril; but it is reported that nobody was injured. PLANE PRACTICALLY WRECKED WING. IN MID-AIR. MELBOURNE, December 13. From meagre reports it is gathered that the air liner Lepena left Launceston for Melbourne via King Island, on the north-west coast of Tasmania, with a heavy load of mail due to the shipping hold-up. The- chief _ pilot noticed one wing collapsing when in the vicinity of Hunter Island, which is lonely and uninhabited, and decided to rush there and try t» land. Meanwhile he sent radio messages describing his plight, which were received by both the Tasmanian and Victorian stations. Ho brought the machine down in rough country without injuring the passengers, but the Lepena was practically wrecked. A light aeroplane has been sent from Tasmania and a, launch to bring the passengers and crew back to Launceston. , , The Minister of Defence , (Mr R. A. Parkhill) announced this afternoon that it had been decided to suspend the certificate of airworthiness for all D.H. 86 aircraft in' use in Australia. The suspension will apply immediately, even to machines which are outside Australia carrying English air mail. DE HAVILLAND COMPANY SURPRISED. LONDON, December 13. (Received December 14, at 10 a.m.) An official of De Havilland’s says : “ The suspension of the D.H. s6’s is incredible. We have no information on the decision, and it is impossible to comment. The machines < have a splendid record for airworthiness in England. It is true that the snapping of a flying wire on the wing is unusual, but this is not desperately serious, as the ultimate safe lauding of the machine in question should have shown.” NIGHT SPENT ON ISLAND PILOT PICKED UP BY LIGHT , PLANE. ' MELBOURNE, December 14. (Received December 14, at 11 a.m.) Dispensation has been given to enable D.H. 86 machines carrying English Christmas mail to go to Singapore, but they may not carry passengers. The eight passengers in the Lepma spent the night on the island beside the wrecked plane. There was not even an emergency landing field on Hunter Island, consequently the pilot’s brief message: “Plano wrecked. Passengers safe,” was received with great relief by Victorian and Tasmanian stations. A Holyman plane will pick up the passengers to-day unless a launch from Smithton (Tasmania) should reach the island first. A light piano which arrived at Hunter Island last night was able to take off the pilot only. Food was loft for the passengers.