FLIGHT ENDS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 23083, 7 July 1938, Page 14

FLIGHT ENDS

SYDNEY REACHED EMPIRE SERVICE CHALLENGES WELCOMED DUTCH LEAVE TO-DAY By Telegraph—Press Association— Copyright (Received July 6, 7.40 p.m.) SYDNEY, July 6 The Qantas Empire Airways flying-boat Challenger landed at the Hose Bay anchorage at 4.25 p.m. today, completing the inauguration of the last stage of the Empire flying-boat service, between Singapore and Sydney. Tho passengers left Southampton on June 26. Tho Challenger was given a hearty Tvelconte by tho occupants of small craft which gathered round tho flyingboat. No delay was occasioned the disembarking passengers. Mr. R. Monson, of tho London "Daily Telegraph, said: "Darwin made a bad show. The remainder of tho trip was without a hitch and was most educational." The Dutch air liner, which arrived yesterday from Amsterdam, v isited Canberra to-day, tho passengers and crew being tho guests of tho Prime Minister,• Mr. Lyons,, and Mr. H. V. Thorby, Minister in charge of aviation. The aeroplane, which later returned to Svdney for another festive gathering provided by tho Royal Netherlands Indies agents, begins the return trip to Java, to-morrow, covering the journey to Darwin in one hop.

The' Challenger reached Darwin on Sunday last, but was unable to leave for Sydney until Tuesday owing to damage caused to a float by collision ■with a fuelling boat. The passengers complained of delays and discomforts before they wore allowed to land at Darwin.

After this flying-boats for Australia will- leave Southampton every Thursday and Sunday, while England-bound craft will depart from Sydney every Tuesday and Friday. Tho Singapore-Australia section of the route is operated by Qantas Empire Airways, an associated company of Imperial Airways. Up to the present they have employed landplanes, using an overland route across Australia, to Brisbane. Recently Qantas took delivery of six - Imperial type flying-boats. These will supersede the landplanes on tie main Singapore-Australia route. From now onward there will be a change-over to a marine air route, and flying-boat bases which have recently been established on the east coast of Australia will be used by service aircraft. The new route from Singapore is:—Klabat Bay, Batavia, Sourabaya, Bima, Koepang, Darwin, Groote Eylandt, Karumba, Townsville, Gladstone, Brisbane, Sydney.