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Aviation History
1926
1926 - 0372.PDF
JUNE 3, 192 THE KING'S CUP AIR RACE THE race for the King's Cup will be held at the Hendon Aerodrome on Friday and Saturday, July 9 and 10 next. Course.—The course for each day is as follows :— Hendon-Martlesham and back, 144 miles. Compulsory stop at Hendon of 30 minutes. Hendon-Cambridge and back, 90 miles. Compulsory stop at Hendon of 30 minutes. Hendon-Coventry and back, 160 miles. Compulsory stop at Hendon of one hour. Hendon-Cheltenham and back, 170 miles. Compulsory stop at Hendon of 30 minutes. Hendon-Salisbury and back, 160 miles. Total, 724 miles. Competitors.—The entrant and pilot or pilots must be British subjects. The entrant must be an individual and not a company. The word " competitor" includes the entrant and all persons taking part in the race except passengers. Aircraft.—The race is open to any type of aircraft. The aircraft, including the engine or engines, must have been entirely constructed in the British Empire. Entries.—The entry fee is £10. This fee, together with the entry form, must be received by the Royal Aero Club, 3, Clifford Street, London, W. 1, not later than 5 p.m. on Friday, July 2, 1926. The entrant is responsible for the accuracy of all particulars supplied by him to the club relating to the aircraft and engine. The officials may require the entrant at his own expense to verify these particulars after the race, and for this purpose may require part of the engine to be taken down for examination. Handicap.—The aircraft will be handicapped on a time- allowance basis for the two courses, and half of the total handicap will be allotted to each course. The handicapping will be by formula, particulars of which may be obtained on application to the Royal Aero Club. Full regulations and details as to the turning points will be announced later. <s> <$> TO THE NORTH POLE BY AEROPLANE Commander Byrd Entertained at the Royal Aero Club ON Friday of last week, May 28, Lieut.-Commander Richard Byrd, U.S.N., and three of his companions were entertained at a luncheon given by the Royal Aero Club of Great Britain, presided over by Lieut.-Col. Frank McClean. The Chantier, the steamer on which Commander Byrd's expedition made the trip to Spitzbergen and back, had arrived at Gravesend at 10 o'clock the night before, so that the Royal Aero Club took the very earliest opportunity to entertain the men who had been the first to reach and return from the North Pole by air. Lieut.-Col. McClean said that such meagre information concerning Commander Byrd's flight to the Pole and back as was available had been obtained from the general press, and as the flight occurred at a time when this country was suffering from the effects of the general strike, comparatively little had become known concerning the details of the flight, and he would therefore leave it to Commander Byrd to tell his own story of the wonderful achievement. Before calling upon Mr. T. O. M. Sopwith to say a few words as Chairman of the S.B.A.C, he would point out that Commander Byrd's venture was not subsidised in any way by any Government, and was of the purely private and sporting type which we in this country admired so much. Mr. T. O. M. Sopwith said it seemed to be a very small gathering to mark a very great event, and he pointed out how remarkable it was that after the struggles to reach the North Pole which had preceded Commander Byrd's successful attempt, by making use of aircraft they were successful at what he described as " the first flick." This was a very great triumph for aviation. Lieut.-Commander Byrd, who was received by loud and prolonged applause, said he was very pleased indeed that the Royal Aero Club of Great Britain, the oldest and greatest of all the world's aero clubs, should be the first to welcome him and his companions home from their Polar flight. He was, he said, very pleased that the chairman had referred to the fact that the venture was a purely private and sporting one. The ship in which they had made the trip to Spitzbergen carried a crew of 50 all told, all of whom were volunteers, and all of whom had put their very best into the venture. Before coming to the North Pole flight itself, Commander Byrd recalled that his first glimpse of England was obtained from a stretcher. At the time he was a midshipman in the U.S. Navy, and was brought ashore to go into hospital. Commander Byrd referred to the sad accident to the airship R.38, in which so many American and British lives were lost. He himself was to have made one of the members of the crew of R.38, but arrived too late to go up. In the accident he lost a great number of friends, and he himself rescued the body of General Maitland from the wreckage. He paid a warm tribute to the work and courage of General Maitland, and said that when found, General Maitland's hands were grasping the life lines, which showed that right up to the end he had done the only thing he could do to try to save the airship, and he died, as he had lived, a very gallant gentleman. Commander Byrd next recalled briefly the various attempts that had been made to reach the North Pole by air, and related how he was with the Macmillan expedition last year, and told a story of how, during a flight in the intensely cold atmosphere engine trouble developed in one of the engines, and how Mr. Floyd Bennett, his pilot on the polar flight, climbed out on the wing with a spanner and put the trouble right. To appreciate what such an act of bravery meant one had to recollect that the cold was so intense that in a very short time face and hands became frostbitten. Turning to the North Polar flight itself, Commander Byrd gave a very vivid account, told in the most breezy manner, of their adventure. He went to the Secretary of the Navy to get leave for himself and his companions, and although this was granted he was told that he was starting from the wrong end, and that he should have chosen Alaska as his point of departure for the flight. With this view he did not agree, since it was something like 1,200 miles from Alaska to the Pole. By choosing Spitzbergen as the base this distance was reduced to something like 650 miles. Commander Byrd caused a great deal of amusement by relating how he went to an American millionaire and asked for financial support. When this millionaire heard on what kind of a ship it was proposed to reach Spitzbergen he said he would not give Commander Byrd one cent, as they would never reach Spitzbergen, let alone the North Pole. He would, however, give Commander Byrd 10,000 dollars on his return, " to pay for the wreckage." Fortunately, there was no wreckage, but Commander Byrd expressed his determination to trouble the millionaire for his 10,000 dollars. On reaching Spitzbergen it was not found possible to tie up the Chantier at the wharf, and so other means had to be found for getting the machine ashore. Ultimately the problem was solved by lashing together four lifeboats, upon which the machine was ferried ashore through the slush ice. If the wind had turned and blown off-shore, the machine would probably have been blown out to sea and lost, but fortunately the wind did not turn and the machine was safely landed. The preparations for starting the flight were soon completed, and a runway had to be prepared for the take- off. The first attempt was made with what was considered the best pair of skis for the machine, but one of the skis broke, and the attempt was unsuccessful. The next best pair of skis was put on, and a test flight was successfully made. Then Commander Byrd described how everything was ready for the start and how he and Bennett said good- bye to their companions, cinematograph films were taken, and all was ready for the commencement of the flight. The machine started to taxy, but by the time it got to the end of the runway it was still not lifting and they finished up in a large snow-drift. After that Commander Byrd decided there should be no more official leave-taking, or cinematograph film shooting, and the actual start was made more or less un- expectedly, after the machine had been lightened of some of the petrol carried, and everything that he considered^could 318
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