PLUCKY AVIATRIX

Southland Times, Issue 21262, 8 December 1930, Page 5

PLUCKY AVIATRIX

MISS SPOONER PART IN ADVENTURE PRAISED ' PLANE DIVES INTO SEA (‘United Press Assn.—By Telegraph—Conyright.) (Rec. 5.5 p.m.) London, December 6. Miss Winifred Spooner’s own narrative of the mishap during her flight to Cape Town with Flying-Officer Edwards throws new light on the adventure and shows that the aeroplane flew directly into the sea. After leaving Rome she went to sleep. Three hours later she awoke, and noticed that they were flying in a fog. She asked Edwards their whereabouts, and he asked for the navigation chart. While reaching for it there was a terrific crash. A few moments previously the altimeter showed 11,000 ft. She could not understand how the mistake occurred. Directly the machine struck the sea water entered the cabin. “I made an exit through a window and began to swim,” she said. “I called out to Edwards ‘Swim for it.’ He apparently did not hear me. I swam for two hours before I reached the shore.” The Italian Air Force dismantled Miss Spooner’s machine for despatch to Naples whither Edwards and Miss Spooner will proceed prior to going to London in Edwards’ Moth. A message from Rome states that Miss Spooner and Edwards are both at Belmonte recovering. The machine has been found to be damaged beyond repair. The Italian authorities sent a. seaplane to be entirely at their disposal. The Italian Press publishes lengthy articles praising Miss Spooner’s part in the adventure. According to these accounts she was asleep and Edwards was piloting at the time of the crash. Miss Spooner was thrown violently into the water and lost sight of the aeroplane in the darkness, but through a driving rainstorm she saw a light at a station and managed to struggle ashore after swimming in heavy flying clothes for two hours. She asked that, search parties be sent to look for Edwards and went in one of the rescuing boats. They found Edwards almost unconscious from loss of blood and exposure. He was clinging to the tail of the deeply submerged aeroplane, but insisted on remaining there to supervise the towing of the plane into harbour.