SEARCH FOR AIRMEN.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20252, 11 May 1929, Page 11

SEARCH FOR AIRMEN.

aeroplanes scrapped. SOUTHERN CROSS LANDING. MISSION SIGNAL MISREAD. INCIDENT AT DRYSDALE. (Received May 10, 10.5 p.m.) SYDNEY, May 10. A telegram from Melbourne states that five Royal Australian Air Force aeroplanes were sent into Central Australia recently to search for the Kookaburra. Of these only two are likely to return to the base at Point Cook. Two machines already have been written off as scrapped because of engine faults and ;i third was burned after it had been used in escorting the packhorse party back to Wavo Hill. A message from Forth says word has been received by the Chief Secretary, Western Australia, Mr. J. M. Drew, from Captain Crane who was sent from Wyndham to organise the native parties who searched for the Southern Cross. This is to the effect that the Southern Cross airmen could have descended at the Drysdale Mission station, but mistook the beckoning signs of the missionaries to como down for an indication that Wyndham was in a south-westerly direction.

The message which Squadron-Leader Kingsford Smith dropped from tho monoplane asking for direction had not then been seen. It was found three days later.

la an interview about this statement Kingsford Smith said: We attached our mcssago to a pocket torch and flew at a height of 50ft. over tiio mission station. We thought we saw the torch picked up by two people resembling aborigines. One of them pointed south-west and the other threw white objects like pieces of wood in the same direction.

It is just possiblo that we were mistaken and that they were really pointing to the ground and inviting us to land.

BODIES IN DESERT. EXPEDITION MAKES READY. SPECIAL TRUCK SECURED. (Received May 10. 10.5 ii.ni.) SYDNEY, May. 10. The Federal Government has arranged for a truck of the rigid six-wheeled variety to be sent from Oodnadatta shortly on an 80-mile dash to the scene of the Kookaburra tragedy in the desert, in order to bring back the bodies of Lieutenant Keith Anderson and Mr. R. S. Hitchcock.

The party in charge of the truck will have a terrible task in traversing the scrub, though it is specially suited to that kind of journey. The expedition will take 600 gallons of -water and will be directed from Air Force aeroplanes. No charge is to be made for the truck.