SIR HUBERT WILKINS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20961, 26 February 1930, Page 9

SIR HUBERT WILKINS

ACCOUNT OF FLIGHT. SNOWSTORMS ENCOUNTERED. (United Press Association.) (By Electric Telegraph—Copyright.) (Copyright.) ' LONDON, February 25. (Received Feb. 25, at 10.30 p.m.) Sir Hubert Wilkins, iu a message from Montevideo, says: “ After leaving Deception Island on January 25 we ran into high seas and snow squalls. We rounded the edge of the pack southlands of lat. 7, long. 145, and there awaited better weather. The season was fast passing, and the weather continued bad. We were disheartened, and the men suffered severely from seasickness. The wind changed to the south on February 1, and we launched the plane in dangerous conditions. Cheesman, who was at the controls, dodged the scattered ice and managed with great skill and courage to Set the plane into the air. Visibility was bad, and the air was rough, and it was impossible to keep the machine on an even keel. Wc proceeded 100. miles south and encountered a snowstorm. The damp air filled the cabin, and the fog was like thick smoke. The engine 'evolutions died down, and the machine seemed choking, and sank lower and lower toward the rough ice. Suddenly the atmosphere cleared, and the engine picked up. We plugged further south, and 50 minutes later Cheesman excitedly drew attention to a dark mass looming where Cook’s strong appearance of land is marked on the chart. We .were positive that wc could corroborate the explorer’s discovery, but we decided to keep on our course, and we soon ■ discerned more dark looming masses, and decided that there must be land behind the barrier. Elatedly we hurried on to what wo thought would be a great new land discovery.”