AERIAL MAIL SERVICE

Otago Witness, Issue 3442, 2 March 1920, Page 40

AERIAL MAIL SERVICE

• FURTHER EXPERIMENTS. (Psa United Pbess Association.) WELLINGTON, February 28. The successful trial of conveying mails by seaplane which was made in December last between Auckland and Dargaville has encouraged the Postmaster-general to make fairly substantial experiments with seaplanes and next week mail matter will be carried by machines from Auckland City to Thames; Whangarei, and Dargaville. The Hon. J. G. Coates (Postmaster-general) informed a Post reporter to-day that an agreement has been entered into with the" New Zealand Flying School at Auckland for experimental flights for the carriage of mails extending oyer a period of one or two months. There will probably be two trips a week, or even a third each week, over each of the routes named. In these experimental trips the contractors take all risk of loss or accident. As the weather is the ruling factor, the department will not be able to give more than one day's notice of the projected, departure of the mails. No additional rate is to be charged during the trial services for letters, but when regular trips are inaugurated it is proposed to impose special rates, as letters would really be telegram-letters without limitation of words. He thought they would be very, popular. The Postmaster-general hopes that when more powerful machines are available and the .benzine Ishortiage not so acute, trial trips will be made over other routes