NOT BEFORE 1937.

Star (Christchurch), Volume LXVI, Issue 20625, 28 May 1935, Page 7

NOT BEFORE 1937.

Trans-Tasman Air Service; Haste Deprecated. Per Press Association. WELLINGTON, May 27. Sir Keith Smith arrived in Wellington to-day by the Monowai from Sydney. He said the object of his visit was to see the trials at Auckland of the new Vickers yildebeest bombers which are at present being assembled at the Hobsonville Base. He is Australian and New Zealand representative of Vickers (Aircraft), Ltd. He said he expected to return to Australia about June 0. Discussing Sir Charles KingsfordSmith’s unsuccessful Tasman flight, Sir Keith said he did not think that flight would prejudice the public against eventual establishment of a transTasman air service. When a company could offer them a perfectly organised and entirely efficient service that would be able to pay for itself the public would lend their support. It would have to be a thoroughly punctual, regular and safe system, ready to link up with Imperial Airways, Ltd. Sir Keith did not think such a service would be offered before 1937 at the earliest. It was important to consider whether there was yet a demand for such a service. It would be better to

concentrate on internal airways than to rush into the establishment of a heavily-subsidised service which would be a burden to the taxpayer and would ! carry only one or two passengers and a

few pounds of mail. lie did not con sider that the obtaining of machine: would present much difficulty. In hi: opinion the flying-boat would be th« most suitable sort of ’plane.

During the year ended April 30 12C members of the Youth Hostel •Association have visited hostels on Banks Peninsula, and 95 have visited hostels on the West Coast, states the annual report of the association to be presented a c the annual meeting in the Chamber of Commerce Hall on June 13, at 8 p m. The total number of bookings in the. two districts shows a decrease on last year’s figures, which the report attributes to the unusually hot weather at Christmas and New Year.