AIR LINER CRASH

Waikato Times, Volume 118, Issue 19634, 22 July 1935, Page 7

AIR LINER CRASH

HITS MOUNTAIN SIDE.

THIRTEEN PEOPLE KILLED.

THIRD TRAGEDY WITHIN WEE&

United Press Assn.—-Elec. Tel. Copyright-

MILAN, July 20.

The third machine of the Royal Dutoh Air Line to meet with disaster within a week is the Ph— AKQ., of the "flying hotel" type.

The air liner was en route from Milan to Frankfurt when it or.ashed near San Bernadlno, Switzerland, during a severe storm.

The 13 occupants were killed. Nine were passengers, who Included two Britons. The others were Dutch. The cause of the disaster is not known.

A telegram from Berne says the twd British passengers who were killed were Commander Arthur Walts and Mr Louis Mariano Nesbit, mining engineer and author of romantic books on Abyssinia, where he had many adventureswhen travelling in districts from which white men formerly had not returned alive.

Commander Watts was hastening from Italy to rejoin his wife, who recently gave birth to a son.

Ran Into a Fog

An official of the Air Line Company states that the pilot, Vandervcist, when crossing the frontier of Swilcrland encountered a log and asked for his bearings from Milan 15 minutes bel’or the crash) Then lie wound in the aerial owing to a thunderstorm. Tlie pilot flew the machine out of the clouds and found it was too near the ground. Therefore lie attempted lo cMmb up through the clouds, but collided with the side of a mountain.

Villagers at San Bernadino state that the aeroplane crashed into a pine forest which clothes a deep ravine. The impact was of such violence that debris was flung upwards. Later tlie propeller was found embedded in a tree 50 yards distant. Rescuers rushed to the spot. They found all the occupants of the liner dead but Mademoiselle Hermanides, the first of four stewardesses recently engaged, who was making her first trip from Holland. She was hastily extricated but died a few minutes later. The Publlo Shocked.

A message from the Hague says the public are deeply shocked at this third disaster in a week after a long almost free from tragedy. The Royal Dutoh Air line announces the suspension of the Milan service until the cause of the disaster has been -established. It will be operated by the Lufthansa Company.

Seven British passengers were on, board the Royal Dutch air liner (K.L.M.) which crashed at the Amsterdam aerodrome on July 14. Two passengers and four members of the orew were killed.

The second disaster occurred on July 17 lo a Dutch mail aeroplane which crashed at Bushire when tak-ing-off for Bagdad and was completely burnt and the mails destroyed. Seven passengers and four of the crew escaped with only slight injuries.

SHORTAGE OF PILOTS. A SERVICE CLOSED DOWN United Press Assn.—Elec. Tel. Copyright, AMSTERDAM, July 21. Owing to the shortage of pilots, due to the two recent crashes, the K.L.M., shortly will close down the Amstcr-dam-Liverpool service.

AEROPLANES IN COLLISION.

AUSTRALIAN PILOT KILLED

DROPPED LIKE A STONE

United Press Assn. —Elec. Tel. Copyright

MELBOURNE, July 21

One pilot, Harry Zacker, was killed, and another, Theo Allen, miraculously gilded to safety, when two Aero Club .Moths collided in mid-air at the turning point over Maribyrnong during a race yesterday.

The propeller of the machine which landed salcly sliced off the tail and part of the fuselage of the other one, causing it tu drop like a stone.