COURAGEOUS AIRWOMAN

Taranaki Daily News, 11 February 1933, Page 9

COURAGEOUS AIRWOMAN

SWIM FROM CRASH RECALLED. Miss Winifred Spooner, English airwoman whose death occurred, recently, joined the London Aeroplane Club in 1927, and soon showed skill, caution and courage in handling machines. In her first race, the Suffolk Handicap, for, light plants, in 1928, she won the contest, . In the contest for the King* s Cup—Britain s premier trophy—in the same year, she was third, and in the round-Europe touring plane race of 1929 was also awarded a prize. In February, 1930, she flew from South Africa to England, and a month later was declared by the International League of Aviators to be the world champion pilot, and was awarded its woman’s trophy. In August she was fourth in the round-Europe flight. With 416 marks of a possible 500 she was only 11 behind the German winner, and it was held that, if her machine had been provided with certain technical appliances for which points were given, she would have been first. Three weeks later she was placed fourth in the air race round Italy, and received the special’ cup for the Naples district and two gold medals. . . ' In December,'. 1930,' she and FlyingOfficer Edwards started from London on an attempt to fly to Cape Town in five days—four days under the record. Shortly after they had passed the Italian coast they ran into fog and crashed into the sea. Miss Spooner was jolted'out of the machine,, and had to swim to shore, two miles. away. Edwards, meanwhile, remained in the machine, which had floats, without knowing what' had become of her. As soon as she could get help, despite lier exhaustion, she went out in a boat to rescue him. Both of them were injured, though jidt severely; The machine was so badly damaged that the flight had to be abandoned.