AIR LINER LOST

Grey River Argus, 22 October 1934, Page 6

AIR LINER LOST

OFF VICTORIAN COAST With Twelve Aboard (Aus. & N.Z. Cable Assn.) MELBOURNE, October 20. Grave fears are entertained lor Hu* safety »of the Tasmanian aL* lii-.er. Miss Hobart, which left for Melbourne yesterday morning and which it is feared has fallen into Hass Strait. There were ten passengers and -wo pilQ's aboard. Three planes searched fruitlessly Mst evening and n-ntil an early hour this morning, but nothing was heard of the missing liner. The machine carried two pik»ts namely, Captain V. Holyimtn (chief pilot), and Pilot. Gilbert Jenkins. The names of the passengers are

ns follows: Mr and Mrs Colin Jones and infanj, Mr and Mrs Drummond. Miss K. Mercer, the Rev. H. W:i'* ven and Messrs R. Caldwell. S. Quon and GourTay. The plane was last heard from vlii'ii she sent a wireless message about- 11 o’clock yesterday morning, giving her position as over Redondo Island, eight miles off Wilson's Promontory. The message ended: - ‘‘Everything 0.K.” 'There is some evidence. of the machine having passed opr Wilson’s Promontory, but nothing further hns been heard of it. I' is probable that the plane was forced to lard in uninhabitated country, ami this i s the opinion of Captain Joh iron. Control ler of Civil Aviation. Miss Hobart was a four-engined Do Havilliand, wilder contract to 'he Commonwealth Government. It was engaged on the Hobart-Ln u ncosl onMel bourne mail and passenger service. It left Launceston in the morning and was expected nJ Essendon at noon LATE IL The Soutlrampton flying-boat that is searching for the missing Tasmanian airliner. Miss Hobart, sent a wireless message to the Air Hoard telling of the finding of a patch of oil on Ibo sea near Gape Lipr-ip. 2o

miles north-west of Wilson ’* Promontory. There was no sign of wreckage and seven planes are continuing the THEORY OF ACCIDENT. (Received October :’l at T.1'.1l pan I METJtOI’RN E. October There is now a general belief among airmen Hint the missing plane, Miss Hobart, lost her tail, ami nose-dived into Bass Q'rait. Among the rumours is a report that wreckage unlike that of st fishing limit has been seen from the din's at Lome. Oil was diseovred o n the sea yesterday, and it was examined by airmen, |.vho said thaf they did not think it was from an aerop'ane.