ENGLAND TO INDIA

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXIV, Issue 234, 15 September 1934, Page 11

ENGLAND TO INDIA

Cobham’s Refuelling Flight

FIXED FOR SEPTEMBER 21

An effort to fly non-stop from Portsmouth to Karachi, India (52UU miles;, in 48 hours is tu made by Sir Alan Cobham and Squadrou-Leader W. Hel more, refuelling and revietualling a.s they fly. They will start on September 21. The airmen will use an Airspeed Courier low-wing six-seater monoplaaie with retractable under-carriage, driven by a 240 horse-power Biddeiey Lynx engine and capable of a maximum speed of 160 miles an hour, with a cruising speed' of 140 miles an hour. Its normal flying range is six hours, but extra tanks will make it 17 hours.

The Air Ministry is officially co-oper-ating, and has released SquadronLeader Helmore. Royal Air Force machines will re-fuel Sir Alan’s monoplane twice during the flight, which will be the culmination of two years’ intensive experimental work in the possibilities of refuelling commercial aircraft during long transcontinental journeys.

The flight already has cost £12,000, Lord' Wakefield contributing largely toward the expenses.

The machine will leave Portsmouth at full moon with a normal load of petrol and oil, and will circle round the aerodrome while 100 gallons of petrol are fed to it from a “tanker” aeroplane. This should enable it to reach Malta, where an air liner from England will supply 180 gallons of petrol. This should suffice for the journey to Homs (Tripoli) and Alexandria (Egypt), where the monoplane will be dtie at dawn on September 22 for further refuelling and revietualling. The final refuelling will be at Basra, Irak.

Sir Alan states that the flight is in no sense a “stunt,” but is aimed al commercialising aviation to a greater degree than at present. His refuelling system, he thinks, will enable a machine of 10 hours’ normal range to remain in the air for 30 hours. Both airmen have had some narrow escapes while experimenting when their own and the tanker machines have been near collisions, but they believe they have perfected an almost fool-proof system.