BOY, HUSSAR'S FLIGHT.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 21100, 6 February 1932, Page 2 (Supplement)

BOY, HUSSAR'S FLIGHT.

FRENCH-LEAVE USE OF MOTH. I " I WANT TO BE A PILOT. 4 an exciting adventure, ' Because he wanted to travel in or on something faster than a horse—fo quota > the solicitor who defended him in tr.e police court—a young Hussar still in his teens " commandeered " a Moth aeroplane when no one was looking and went off for a joy-flight on his own. It was his first air trip solo —his total flying e& perience was no more thaa eight hours—but he managed it beautifully. When ho came down because petrol was running short, he rang up the aerodrome authorities and told them all about it. Naturally the authorities had to do'something drastic, and the amateur airman was hauled before the magistrates. V Interesting as the court story certainly .was, it remains commonplace beside the young Hussar's own narrative of the great | adventure. Charles G. Hale, trooper in His Majesty's 11th Hussars, has one ambition in life. He wants to be an airman—not a ''i soldier. He made that confession quite j frankly to the magistrates at Woking when he was called to account for his unauthorised use of the aeroplane. Actually he was charged with flying and piloting the machine without a certificate and licence; a more serious allegation of stealing the aeroplane, petrol and oil. vf: being abandoned by the Brooklands Aeroplane Club. Trooper Hale is 19. The circumstances in which he took off in the machine and covered a good slice of Hampshire before coming to earth again are best told ( by himself. It was an amazing by a youth who had not been in a cockpit for two years and whose flying experi-, ence was limited to eight hours under the , eye of an instructor in 1929. Defending counsel asked Hale, " Are aeroplanes your one idea in life ?" and the youth answered unhesitatingfy, " Yes, I want to be -a pilot." " But you know this was a foolish thing to do," counsel reminded him. ' I realise that," said Hale, " and I am very sorry now." . The adjutant of the 11th ■ Hussars assured the magistrate that Hale had an exemplary military character, and only once was guilty of a minor breach of discipline. He took French leave to see the race for the Schneider Trophy. Satisfied that Hale's little escapade was nothing more serious than a yonthfnl prank, the Bench bound him over and ordered him to pay three guineas costs. Hale Tells His Story. Here is Hale's own story as he told it •' t the News of the World:— . '• • " Brooklands had an irresistible call for 'ne that afternoon. I wanted to see the Moths again and the Bristol Bulldog fighters of the R.A.F. At lunch-time a Gipsy Moth.landed and taxied up to the rest of the machines. I helped to pull it into line as the pilot and passengers got out. Everybody went away, and there was I alone with all those machines. " I lopked at the Moth again. 'lt. was fatal. I felt I should never rest unt'l I had flown her on my own.. So, on with the engine switch and round and round with the propeller. She started first time. Then into the pilot's cockpit, a touch to the throttle, and the Moth was away—a ' bumpy ' take-off they said in the policecourt. That wa> because I went across the wind a bit. "For a few. minutes I flew dead straight, until the machine had made 1000 ft. Then I turned and circled the railway running by the race track, ana I decided to follow it to Andover and Tidworth. Fog obscured the horizon. I throttled down to 1900 revolutions, strapped myself in, and closed the small door on my right. This was the life. " The haze increased in density, and caution prompted me to shut off the engine and drop to 500 ft. At this height I spotted two or three express trains southward bound. They seemed to lie at a standstill, because my own speed was round about 95 miles an hour. Enveloped In a Cloud. " As the Moth turned for Basingstoke the sun came through, and I went up and up to 2500 ft. Ah, Basingstoke down there. I knew it instantly. Over the town, and everything became a grey blank again. I had bundled into a cloud. Off with the engine once more and into another glide by the aid of the airspeed and inclinometer. Even as I looked at the altimeter she had on, the dial came loose and dropped off. That wag one gadget out of commission. " Again, the mist cleared and 1 re* opened the throttle. There was a railway . to the left now, and I commenced to follow it. For the first time I became apprehensive of pursuit, but no machines were scorching up behind me. Far off to the left was another town, which I guessed must be Andover. I guessed wrong. The prominent buildings were all unfamiliar tq me. ' " Two R.A.F. bombing planes came racing up, and scared of a collision I steered clear. Three miles away I could see an R.A.F. aerodrome quite distinctly. It suggested Salisbury and the Old Sarum aerodrome, but the absence of a cathedral proved me in error again. Definitely it was not Salisbury. ' i "So I swung back to the railway, picked up the Andover line, and followed it. A Bristol Bulldog single-seater fighter went tearing by. The pilot turned aiid had a look at me, and then was lost_ in the mist. It was hopeless to follow him. His speed was o"*9r 170 miles an hour. Feet Nearly Frozen. " Presently 1 realised that both my feet were nearly frozen. I had on a flimsy pair of slipper?i admirable for the seas»ie, but foolhardy things fo? the air. The fact that I had no gloves, helmet, or goggles, however, did not disturb me; * was perfectly comfortable except f°r chilled feet. And then the Moth ana 1 . . came to. Andover, unmistakable because of the stalls in the market place. " " Over the aerodrome at 800 ft., ana | now a sharp look-out for other aircraft. Anxious not to get lost again, I followed the railway to Ludgershall, picked up.'- 1 ® barracks at Tidworth, and flew straight for thein. As I circled ijound I no'ire' a g fall in the petrol gauge, and that decided jg me to land and look at the tank. R " Smoke'columns gave me the direct'on ■ of the wind, and shutting off the engine fe I was thrilled by a perfect landing on j| Dunch Hill, a mile from the barracks. | Exactly two gallons of petrol remained, X so I taxied the Moth to a sheltered spot! I covered her up and telephoned from iff l I barracks to the Brooklands School of r'y* I ing to tell them al) about it. • i I " After tea in the barracks two friends | walked back with me to my landing plac* | and wo folded the wings of the Moth antl I put everything in order for the night. | " Then I went to a cinema in Tidwoi tn and saw a picture called ' Gaol Birds. 1 Three hours later I saw something again—but not on the screen. The resb | you know." s