RECORD FLIGHT

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 21345, 21 November 1932, Page 9

RECORD FLIGHT

MRS. J. A. MOLLISON

ENGLAND TO CAPETOWN

HUSBAND'S TIME BEATEN

KING'S CONGRATULATIONS

By Telegraph—Press Association —Copyright

(Received November 20, 5.5 p.m.) LONDON, Nov. 19

Despatches from Capetown yesterday stated that Mrs. J. A. Mollison (Miss Amy Johnson) had succeeded in beating her husband's record of 4 days 16 hours for the flight from England to Capetown by 10 hours 24 minutes.

Practically unassisted Mrs. Mollison repaired the fault in the oil pressure of her machine at Benguella, to which place she had returned after the trouble developed, She resumed her flight at 4.20 p.m., having lost nine hours.

The airwoman rested three hours at Mossamedes and left at 2.50 a.m. on a non-stop flight to Capetown. On her arrival she circled the aerodrome there and a crowd of people awaiting her broke the barriers and cheered her wildly. " On alighting Mrs. Mollison remarked : " It is fine to see Capetown again." She immediately telephoned to her husband in London. Mrs. Mollison had only had five hours sleep since starting, and found the strain terrific. She was delighted, however, that she had beaten her husband's time, though she said she would not be surprised if he hopped into an aeroplane and attempted to break her record. The worst stretch, she said, was from Duala to Benguella, which she flew at night. Congratulations from the King

The King telegraphed to Mrs. Mollison conveying his heartiest congratulations on her splendid achievement. He said: " I trust you are not too exhausted." In a broadcast speech relayed to London the airwoman said: "I undertook the

flight to test my endurance. I slept overnight on the flight to Australia, but I have now flown day and night and am still quite fresh and ready to return." Latest despatches state that Mrs. Mollison shows little distress after 14 hours' continuous sleep. In an article in the Daily Express written before her departure Mrs. Mollison said: "It is not a pioneer flight, but I want to be the first woman to fly solo over this route." She wanted to " keep her hand in " for long-distance flying and to satisfy herself in regard to her powers of endurance.

Husband Delighted With performance In a telephone communication with his wife at Capetown Mr. Mollison assured her of the personal pride he felt in her performance which, he said, would probably do more to advance British aviation than any single flight yet done. When Mr. Mollison suggested that she must be very tired after her flight she said she was not too tired to go on talking.

Speaking at a dinner of the Brooklands Racing Club, Mr. Mollison said that it was nearly the happiest day of his life. He knew his wife had the skill to beat his record, but did not think she possessed sufficient endurance. Mr. Mollison had expressed the opinion that his wife would lop 10 hours off the record. He said she had followed his advice to " go all out " while she was fresh and to avoid his experience of getting behind which only necessitated long hops at the finish. After listening to his wife's broadcast of her experiences Mr. Mollison said he would wait until the record was broken again before reattacking it.

TANGIBLE RECOGNITION

PRESENT OF £IOOO

CONGRATULATORY MESSAGES

LONDON, Nov. 18

Mr. A. E. Whitelaw, the Melbourne merchant who gave Don Bradman £IOOO for his record score in a test cricket match, has given Mrs. Mollison £IOOO in recognition of her performance. Captain Broad, the noted King's Cup airman, describes her feat as the most magnificent that any airwoman has achieved. M. Costes, French Atlantic flier, says it would be fine for any man but is still finer for a woman, though there was no reason why any female, whom he places on an equal footing, should not emulate a male aviator.

Mrs. Mollison used Aeronautical Association maps previously supplied to her husband. Congratulatory cablegrams were sent by the Marquess of Londonderry, Lord Wakefield, the Aeronautical Society and Captain Hope, King's Cup winner.

Mrs. Mollison's machine, the Desert Cloud, is a standard de Havilland Puss Moth cabin aeroplane fitted with a Gipsy Major engine of 130 horse-power and equipped with special petrol tanks. Normally these machines carry tanks with 35 gallons capacity, but by utilising the space occupied by the back seats for fuel tanks, the capacity is increased 120 gallons, the range being also increased from 650 to 1850 miles. The route taken was the most direct possible.

Mrs. Mollison left Lympne aerodrome at 6.37 a.m. on November 14 in her attempt to beat her husband's record for the flight to Capetown. She flew via the same east coast route as that followed by her husband ancl crossed the Sahara Desert. When she left she wore a neat blue costume. She financed herself at a cost of £2OOO. Mr. Mollison took of? at the same time as his wife, hoping to escort her to the French coast, but he missed her owing to the poor visibility. The airwoman reached Oran, Algeria, at 7 p.m. on November 14. She refuelled her Puss Moth monoplane and resumed her flight to Capetown at 11.30 a.m. next day. Mrs. Mollison said she proposed to fly the next stage to Niamey, French West Africa, in a single hop. The weather conditions were favourable when she . left Oran. "No news was received of her for some time after sho left Oran, but it transpired later that she had landed at Gao, French West Africa, at 12.30 „p.m. on November 15. Later she proceeded to Duala, south of Nigeria. She had passed over Niamey, French West Africa, several hours ahead of her husband's time. Mrs. Mollison cabled her husband from Benguella, Angola, West Africa, on November 17 stating that she had made a forced landing there owing to engine trouble. The oil pressure failed and she doubted if it could be rectified-where she was. However she adjusted the trouble and completed her flight.