AIRCRAFT SUNK

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 83, Issue 167, 18 July 1939, Page 8

AIRCRAFT SUNK

PLANE CAPSIZES AT AITUTAKI WALRUS FROM H.M.S. ACHILLES SECOND AMPHIBIAN LOST THIS YEAR. WELLINGTON, July 17. The cruiser Achilles lost her Walrus amphibian aeroplane off Aitutaki, Cook Islands, yesterday, according to cabled advice received from Rarotonga and officially confirmed last night by Royal Naval headquarters in Wellington. The aeroplane is understood to have capsized when coming alongside the warship after a flight, preparatory to being hoisted aboard, and to have sunk. There were no casualties. The Achilles, with the GovernorGeneral and Lady Galway on board, sailed from Auckland on July 6 for hei winter cruise to the Island, which was to include a Vice-Regal tour of inspection of those groups under New Zealand jurisdiction. Her first call was at Rarotonga, and she was to visit others of the Cook Islands before going on to Samoa, Fiji, and Tonga. Second Plane Lost, I This is the second Walrus amphi- | bian to have been lost by the Achilles jthis year. A similar mishop occurred a few months ago when she was passing through the Red Sea on her rciturn from recommissioning in England, i On that occasion the aeroplane cap-

sized and sank when taking off for a routine flight. The aeroplane had been lowered into the water when the ! cruiser was between Port Said and I Aden on her way out. It was ta-'-ing | to take off, and was about a quarter j of a mile from the ship when one i wing float collapsed and the aeroplane ! tipped on its side and sank. The pilot, Sub-Lieutenant J. Sykes, and his crew jumped into the collapsible boat, which is a part of the aeroplane’s equipment, and escaped i ! uninjured. A boat was lowered from . the warship, but the crew had already 1 rescued themselves. 1 A somewhat similar accident, when, 1 however, the aeroplane was recovered, t took place on Wellington Harbour in i November, 1937, when thu Walrus < amphibian belonging to H.M.S. Lean- i der capsized on landing after a flight. The aeroplane struck the water i with a tremendous splash, throwing up j a column of spray. The accident took i place midway between Oriental Bay t and Pipitea Wharf, and the noise of ; the impact could be heard all round 1 Lambton harbour. The aeroplane < settled slowly by the nose, and the i pilot Lieut.-Commander G. W. R. i Nicholls, and crew escaped by crawling through the rear cockpit. They were rescued by a naval launch, which attached ropes to the aircraft and assisted in towing it back to the warship. It was righted and recovered without serious damage. Eyes of the Fleet. The Walrus is a type of amphibian designed primarily to serve as the "eyes of the fleet," carrying out reconnaissance and fleet-spotting work. It is constructed to be catapulted fully laden into the air, and the Achilles and Leander are fitted with the apparatus for this method of launching the planes. After landing, however, the machine must be hoisted aboard by means of a special crane. Machines of this type were ordered in large numbers for the Royal Australian Air Force, and were adopted by the British Admiralty for use in the Fleet Air Arm as long ago as 1935. They are single-engined "pusher" biplanes, with boatshaped aluminium hulls and small floats under the wingtips. Having retractable wheels they are able to alight either on land or sea. The cruising speed is 95 m.p.h., the maximum speed 124. and the cruising range of the aeroplane 600 miles. Accommodation is provided for pilot, navigator, observer and two gunners.