TASMAN MAIL SERVICE

Taranaki Daily News, 25 March 1935, Page 6

TASMAN MAIL SERVICE

KINGSFORD SMITH’S PLAN SYDNEY TO NEW PLYMOUTH. DOUGLAS MACHINES MENTIONED HIGH SPEED; MAXIMUM SAFETY. Provided he obtains the approval of the New Zealand Government and is Able to form a company with a capital of £125,000, Sir Charles Kingsford Smith proposes to operate a seven-hour aerial mail service between Sydney and New Plymouth, flights each way to. be made twice weekly. It is reported that Sir Charles plans to use Douglas aeroplanes with a cruising speed of 185 miles per hour which will be capable of carrying 14001 b. of mail. plans of organisation have been forwarded to the New Zealand Government for-approval, and a request has been made for a mail license under the following conditions: — 1. The company to operate services . twice weekly in each direction between Sydney and New Plymouth, and give precedence to the carriage of mails. 2. That the New Zealand Government, in conjunction with the Commonwealth Government, guarantee the company a weekly revenue of £l2OO for carriage of mails across the Tasman Sea, being a - charge of 6s a pound on an average payload of 1000 pounds of mail a trip, or 4000’pounds of mail a week. 3. That in the event of the annual mail carried by the company exceeding a weekly average of 4000 pounds the company shall be paid only 4s a pound in respect Of the excess. Friday and Tuesday are mentioned as •/, the likely days for flights to be -made. Under normal weather conditions the flight should take 7J hours at 185 miles an hour. Oxygen equipment will be fitted to the planes, which may have to ascend \ to the service ceiling of 23,600 -feet to escape bad weather. •- ■ . Provision has been made also for twoway telephonic communication, long and short-wave transmission and reception, and shore direction finding. The safety measures include the installation of an emergency radio set operative from the ■ surface of the water and the carriage of a seaworthy boat. The navigator will have complete equipment for air navigation. RANGE OF THE PLANES. The distance from Sydney to New Plymouth is 1230 miles, and the planes will have a range of 1700 miles to provide an ample margin of safety in case Of continned headwinds. The petrol tank capacity will be such that by reasonable .overloading, the range may be increased approximately to .1900 miles to guard against head, winds, up. to 50 miles an hour for the whole distance. Included in the capital requirements of the proposed company, which have been estimated in Australian currency, is a sum of £53,022 for two complete twin- ’ engined Douglas machines. ’ This includes assembly costs and expenses incidental to obtaining a certificate of airworthiness. The sum of £7OOO has been allotted for hangars, workshops, tools and equipment at Sydney and New Plymouth and £5OOO to provide radio equipment hind stations, the cost of four mobile direction finding units, two in Australia and two in New* Zealand, and a short-wave equipment at the two terminals.

Remuneration of £5OOO is payable to Sir Charles for supervising the inauguration of the service and proceeding abroad to purchase equipment, and £19,517 is set aside for contingencies. ~ Operating expenses include £l2l 9s a week for fuel and oil, £lO2 13s for replacements, £163 for insurance on aircraft, pilots and buildings, and £243 12s ; for depreciation. Overhead expenses have been estimated at £lB5 10s weekly; and it is proposed to pay the technical staff' a total of £93 a week. The staff is to consist of two pilots at £2O a week each, two radio' 'operator-navigators £lO each, three engineers £7 each, one en-gineer-aircraftsman stationed at ' New Plymouth £7, and two boys £2 10s. The operating expenses of such a service have been estimated by Sir Charles Kingsford Smith at £9lO a week, leaving a net profit of approximately £11,687 a year.