AIR DISASTERS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22694, 5 April 1937, Page 6

AIR DISASTERS

CONCERN IN AUSTRALIA ;demand for full inquiry TWO MORE MEN KILLED MACHINE BURNED AFTER CRASH [from oub own correspondent] SYDNEY. March 31 There is a widespread demand for a complete inquiry into aerial passengercarryiiig services of Australia, following a series of accidents, the latest of which, last Sunday, resulted in the incineration of the pilot and a passenger shortly after a Stinson machine had left Archerfield aerodrome, Brisbane, /for Townsville. It was a similar type to that involved in the recent crash in the Macpherson Ranges which resulted in the loss of five lives, and, like it, was owned and operated by Airlines of Australia, Limited. The latest accident occurred in a heavy fog. The pilot was Thomas Cameron, and the passenger Ernest Chang, a Chinese merchant of Cairns. The Stinson took off at 5.30 a.m. and the pilot did not anticipate any difficulty from the fog. He was confident that he could take off safely with cha aid of the instruments in the machine. He got away to a long take-off. The aeroplane was lost to sight in the fog as soon as it started, but the engines could be heard roaring for several minutes. Sharp Explosion As the officials and were dispersing,- however, satisfied that the aeroplane was safely on its way, the dull whirr of engines in the distance was punctuated by a sharp explosion and then came a tremendous crash. The bystanders rushed to a car, but it was several minutes before they located tne wrecked machine in the bed of a dry creek. The fog was so thick that they could not see more than 15ft. ahead. The glow of the burning aeroplane guided, them to the spot, but the terrific neat w-ould not allow them to get close to it. One official played a fire extinguisher on the flames, but it made no impression and they had to stand back and -tfatch the wreckage burn to ashes. JWithin 10 minutes it was a smouldering mass, with the flames from two trees, which had caught alight, lighting up the scene. The pilot and passenger, to judge from the wreckage, must have been killed instantly. Crash Into Trees Subsequent investigations showed that as the pilot turned about half-a-mile beyond the aerodrome to head northward, the machine crashed into a 60ft. tree, lopping off several of the upper branches. It skimmed the tops of several other trees for about 30 yards before it crashed into two oak trees on the bank of the creek. It then dived into the base of a heavy tree on the bank v .The fact that several trees close to where it crashed were not damaged suggested that the pilot succeeded tem- j porarily in his efforts to lift the machine, but he failed to clear the top of the 60ft. tree. The whole top of this tree was carried away, and a smaller tree about 20 feet away, was torn out of the ground. At the second impact, it appears, the port wing was dragged off the machine and the port engine carried away and fell about 15 feet further on. After tearing through two trees, the Stinson apparentlv dived and turned completely 'over. It was on its back with the centre engine -plunged deep into the base of a tree oni;. the bank of the creek. CAUSES OF ACCIDENTS

TASMANIAN PREMIER'S VIEW Strong criticism of a lack of adequate precautions, which he alleged had brought about recent air tragedies in Australia, was made by the Premier of Tasmania, the Hon. A. G. Ogilvie, who was a through passenger by the Mariposa, which arrived at Auckland on Saturday. Mr. Ogilvie contended that there had been disaster after disaster due, in his opinion, to the lack of beacons and the insufficiency of the ground service. "Civil aviation in Australia is at least five years behind America," Mr. Ogilvie said. He deplored the lack of ground facilities, and said that the recent tragedies amounted to a scandal on account of the lack of supervision, the absence of two-way radio installations and the pilots' long hours. There was strong agitation in Australia for a Royal Commission to investigate the position, Air. Ogilvie explained, and he had been demanding a full inquiry for a number of years.