BIG SHIPPING PLAN WILL SPEED ENGLISH MAILS TO AUSTRALIA.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 17984, 22 October 1926, Page 9

BIG SHIPPING PLAN WILL SPEED ENGLISH MAILS TO AUSTRALIA.

FLEET OF FAST LINERS MAY BE COMMISSIONED. fey Telegraph.—Press* Assn.—Copyright. A us. and N.Z. Cable Association. LOX'DOX, October 21. Sir James Connolly. ex-Agent-General for Western Australia, is associated with Sir John Biles, Sir Eustace Deyncourt and Sir Charles Parsons, in issuing in the British Press an outline of the fast steamer scheme, mooted in March last, of which it is now stated: “The Commonwealth Government has expressed its approval ci the principle, subject to the technical practicability of the scheme and a satisfactory measure of co-operation by the Imperial, dominion and colonial Governments concerned.” The published outline of the scheme draws attention to the fact that the mailships on the Australian and Indian routes are no faster to-day than they were a quarter of a century ago. The promoters therefore propose to form a company with £11,000,000 capital to build and operate seven 24,000-ton liners. These will maintain a fortnightly service between Southampton and the Australian ports, calling at Bombay and Colombo both ways, with a guaranteed speed at sea of twenty-two knots, compared with the fifteen knots of the. present mailships. The effect will be to reduce the transit time for English mails picked up at a Mediterranean port and landed at Fremantle by seven days, to Bombay by five days, to Colombo and New Zealand each by four days.

The outline of the scheme emphasises the importance of a reduction in the time shown on the carriage of goods on all the sea routes. Thus, from England to Fremantle the time will be twenty-two days compared with thirtythree days by the existing mailships; England to Adelaide, twenty-five days compared with thirty-seven; to Melbourne. twenty-six, compared with thirty-nine; Sydney, twenty-eight, compared with forty-two; Brisbane, thirty, compared with forty-four. All ships will be manned with white labour. Each ship will accommodate 500 first-class and 1300 second and third-class passengers. The refrigerated space will be double that of the present mailships, while the reduced voyage will enable Australia to ship chilled instead of frozen meat to Britain as well as fresh fruit shipments. The establishment of the new line will be conditional upon the Commonwealth and the Imperial Governments giving the new company a mail subsidy approximating to the present rates, also guaranteeing to give the company the transport of assisted migrants over and above those carried on the Commonwealth Line of Bay steamers. both contracts to be for a fixed period of years. It is understood that the scheme will be considered by a committee of the Imperial Conference.