FLIGHT TO AUSTRALIA

Manawatu Standard, Volume L, Issue 75, 24 February 1930, Page 7

FLIGHT TO AUSTRALIA

KAY-PIPER VENTURE

THRILLING ADVENTURES

BATTLE WITH SNOWSTORMS

(United Press Association —By Electric Telegraph—Copyright.)

Received February 24, .10.5 a.m. KARACHI, Feb. 22. Flying Officers Riper and Kay, the New Zealand airmen, left here for Calcutta, via Jodpore and Allahabad at eight minutes past seven o'clock this morning after fitting a new cylinder. The journey from Jask yesterday occupied six hours. The New Zealanders had a thrilling experience at Jask, which they told when overhauling their engine at the Karachi civil aerodrome last evening.

“We took off early in the morning in pitch darkness from the Jask aerodrome and turned seawards, when five minutes after the start the engine failed,” Flying Officer Ivay said. “We did not know where we were, but we turned the machine about and planed at as flat an angle as we could, fully expecting to hit the sea. The bump we received in landing told us that we had hit something more solid, and when daylight broke we found that we had just managed to make the beach.”

Flying Officer Piper said that when the engine was stripped he found that one side of a piston rod had melted, and blobs of aluminium were adhering to the cylinder. The latter was removed and found not to be so badly scored as was expected. The cylinder was scraped and cleaned with caustic acid and the piston rod replaced. The valves, which at first were thought to be causing the trouble, were cleaned of aluminium deposits and the engine was reassembled. It gave no trouble in yesterday’s flight from Jask. Describing the earlier part of their journey, the fliers said that they encountered awful weather through Southern Franco from Avignon to Italy. There was a series of snowstorms, and they' were often flying with the ground obscured and at a low altitude. The weight of snow on the aeroplane retarded their progress. Landings were made short of destinations, so that petrol supplies were difficult to obtain. While travelling across Italy head winds impeded them until half-way, when they were helped by a change of wind. They then made good progress to Malta. They flew to Bangazi against contrary winds and much rain.

Progress was slow along the North African coast, many of the landing grounds being boggy; the mud was still adhering to the under-carriage of the machine. When over Rutbali Wells they found the desert aerodrome under water, so they decided to fly to Bagdad, which was reached when the petrol was almost exhausted. A rapid flight was made to Jask, and they thought their luck had changed, when the engine failed. The fliers had no intention of attempting anything spectacular, but will progress steadily to Australia. This morning they are flying to Jodhpure. and, if time permits, to Jhansi, thence to Allahabad and Calfor nia.