TOO MANY CRASHES

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21911, 21 September 1934, Page 13

TOO MANY CRASHES

WELLINGTON AERO CLUB / DOMINION'S HIGHEST LOSSES PROBLEM OF INSURANCE Severe comment upon the financial losses incurred by crashes of Wellington Aero Club machines was passed by the president of the club, Mr. T. C. A. Hislop, at the annual meeting. "We do feel that no small part of the loss that we have had to meet—such as last year, when there was a deficit of £9O0 —-was brought about by crashes," Mr. Hislop said. "The deficit this year is lower because we have had fewer crashes of a serious nature, but we cannot help feeling that these losses and the financial position of the club may be due not entirely to overhead expenses, but to some extent to avoidable expenses in general flying activities.

"1 know that that may strike many of you as being a somewhat serious statement to make, but when [ went through the balance-sheets of this and last year, so as to compare the losses of this and other clubs, I found that the result was astonishingly in our disfavour.

"The losses due to crashes in the Wellington Aero Club are the highest in New Zealand. The only club that comes anywhere near us is New Plymouth. Otago beats us hollow; Auckland is ahead of us, and so on down the list. That position makes one begin to think as to just how well we are running our flying activities." The unthinking might attribute the crashes to Rongotai, but the conditions at Rongotai had, in the main 4 had nothing to do with them, the accidents having taken place when the wind disadvantages associated with Rongotai were non-existent or having taken place away from Rongotai.

"The position is one which the club must take into very serious consideration, for unless we can get away from this loss we are going to have very great difficulty in carrying on, not only because we are hard up lor capital for the purchase of new machines, but because we are going to find very great difficulty in getting insurance," Mr. Hislop continued.

"For the first time it has become possible for aero clubs in New Zealand to get a comprehensive, policy for all types of loss, and i know that one club has had an extraordinarily favourable offer of insurance. That has been done because it has been carrying on for d long time without unnecessary loss, and it is going to be very difficult for us, if we cannot improve on the position, to get any insurance."