CENTENARY AIR RACE

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXIV, Issue 97, 7 April 1934, Page 5

CENTENARY AIR RACE

N.Z. Entrant Not Favoured Dy Telegraph—Press Association. WELLINGTON, April 5. Neither tho proposal made by the Auckland Aero Club that an appeal should be launched for the collection ot' up to £lO,OOO to provide means for a New Zealand pilot or pilots to enter for tho England-Melbourne Centenary Air Race nor the suggestion made by the Canterbury Club that a fund should be built up by public subscription or otherwise to make possible the offering of a prize of £5OOO for the continuation of the race across the Tasman has met with support from tho Wellington Aero Club, for after a discussion of both proposals the executive decided to advise the New Zealand Aero Club, through whom advice of the suggestion was received, that Wellington regretted that it did not favour eithei scheme.

In the opinion of the executive neither scheme would result in as great n benefit to aviation in New Zealand as if the money was spent here direcfly in one or more of several necessary directions.

Although Cabinet has yet to consider the proposal, inquiries made today in Ministerial circles indicate that the Government does not feel justified in using public funds to support the entry of a New Zealand machine for the Melbourne Centenary air race.

Little hope was entertained of the Government finding any money for the proposal, and it was generally agreed that any funds available could be put to better purpose. Young people brought before the Birmingham Juvenile Offenders Court last year numbered 1431. Of this number only 9'2 were girls.