The Daily News FRIDAY, MARCH 16, 1928. TRIUMPH AND TRAGEDY.

Taranaki Daily News, 16 March 1928, Page 8

The Daily News FRIDAY, MARCH 16, 1928. TRIUMPH AND TRAGEDY.

Almost simultaneously with the news that the King had conferred upon Captain Hinkler the Air Force Cross in recognition of his amazing single-handed flight to Australia, there was received another cabled message from London containing an account of the tragic end of the life of the famous high speed pilot, FlightLieutenant Kinkead, who nosedived into the Solent soon after he had started on a powerfully engined machine in the hope of wresting from Italy the honour of the world’s greatest speed record. Well may the London Daily Express say: “We shall learn in time all the details of Captain Hinkler’s flight, but we may never know what robbed Kinkead of the glory of a memorable achievement. It is the splendour of the effort that counts, whether the end be triumph or tragedy.” There should not at the moment be any inclination on the part of the public or Government circles to enter upon any discussion as to the wisdom or otherwise of breaking air flight records. Rather should the thoughts of all concerned turn to both enterprises with the object of extracting therefrom the very pointed lesson they convey as to the length some men will go, and the risks they will take to add to their country’s honours, though they may perish in the attempt. The spirit of rivalry in air-flight records is probably no greater than in other fields whereon men excel, but the risks are very much greater and the contestants few and far betwen. It seems to be a fixed law that not all who strive for prizes are victorious, and it is because in aviation competitions there are so few fitted to be in the front rank that when a tragedy does occur the shock is world-wide in its operation. Not long ago Lieut. Kinkead took part in the Schneider Cup contest when the coveted trophy was wrested from Italy by Lieutenant Webster, and the honour was Britain’s. It was only natural that Kinkead should turn his attention to attaining a greater speed record than that made by Major de Bernardi (an Italian), which was equivalent to two hundred and ninety-seven miles and three-quarters an hour. lienee Kinkead’s aim was to attain a speed of three hundred and two miles and three-quarters, in a super-marine Napier racing seaplane, equipped with engines of 875 horse-power, and being identical with the machine which won the Schneider trophy. But disaster overtook the intrepid aviator before he got properly started, for when only four hundred feet in the air the machine nose-div.d into the sea, and it was only after twenty-four hours’ search from the time that Kinkead set out on his mission that his body was found, imprisoned in the fuselage, and evidently death had been instantaneous. The tragic happening is bound to be deeply deplored by the people of many nations. By a coincidence which, however, has no direct bearing upon the

sad-fate of Lieut. Kinkead, on the night previous to the deplorable fatality, the British Air Minister (Sir Samuel Hoare), when introducing the Air Force Estimates in the House of Commons, paid a warm tribute of praise to the members of that force, who, he said, had never failed in any difficult, responsible tests. Referring to airships, he said if it could be proved that they were safe and l dependable they would never need to sail over foreign territories in their journeys from one part of the Empire to another, and it was incumbent on the Government to make the experiment. Airships had a range of two to three thousand miles. It may possibly be thought that the greater the distance the greater will be the dangers to be met with, but that has yet to ’be proved. On one point, however, there can be no doubt, namely, that British aviators will be found ready and willing to navigate these air monsters with skill and resourcefulness. They will not be in any way deterred by any accidents of the past, but will surely take the keenest pride in securing further laurels for their country and the Empire. Life is made up largely of successes and failures, triumphs and tragedies, but probably those who navigate the air have greater reason to be gratified with their achievements than those in any other branch of national service.