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Aviation History
1927
1927 - 0184.PDF
MARCH 17, 19 7 THE URUGUAYAN AIRMEN'S ADVENTURE THE adventure that has befallen the four gallant Uruguayan airmen has revealed that the romantic spice in aviation is by no means at an end. Their exciting story even caused Paris newspapers to send their correspondents by air to the Spanish Sahara Coast. In our issue for February 24 we gave primary particulars of Commandant Larre-Borges' intended Transatlantic flight in the Dornier-Wal flying-boat called the " Uruguay." On March 2 it left Casablanca in perfect weather lor the Canary Islands, which was the second stage of the flight from Malaga to Montevideo, but failed to arrive, and it was thought the Canary Islands had been missed owing to clouds. A search was carried out down the Atlantic coast by the French naval dispatch vessels, " Vanneau " and " Forfait," the Spanish gunboat, " Bonifaz," and also Portuguese vessels. Major Sarmiento Beires, who was also waiting at Casablanca for a favourable chance to cross the South Atlantic in the course of his world flight, flew down the coast as far as Rio de Oro but without discovering any sign of his less fortunate brother airmen. Considering the importance of his own mission, it was meritorious on his part to risk his machine. What happened to Commandant Larre-Borges and his companions was as follows :—After four hours' flight out of Casablanca, a broken oil pipe was discovered by the mechanic Rigoli, and a forced landing was found imperative despite a heavy sea, which was made between two huge rollers. For a while the seaplane rode the waves, then three successive waves struck it heavily and smashed the hull. The engine units were displaced, and a drift seaward followed from the coast, which was then half-a-mile away. After a keen struggle to keep the machine buoyant and direct it inland, the crew's efforts were finally defeated by a larger wave, which completed the destruction and threw them into the sea. After a desperate struggle for half-an-hour, in which their heavy clothes were a great handicap, they were swept on to the beach, together with the wreckage of the seaplane. Scarcely had they survived this danger when a large 1 ,iiul of Moors appeared from the surrounding dunes, most un- expectedly, and made them captives. They were strippe! of their clothing and effects, and even the linings of their v>nu were slit and the soles severed from their shoes to sa isf\ their captors' greed for all they possessed. The booty *•;(!. divided, and accordingly the chief kept the bank notes ami coins, whilst his followers generously received certain cheques for large nominal amounts, but of doubtful negotiable value. The chief was immensely pleased with a pair of si]',; pyjamas, with which he adorned himself to preside at the distribution of the spoils. F.ven the wrecked seaplane w;b rifled and stripped. The captives were then marched iniand on a long journey, sharing the doubtful comforts of pedestrian- ism and camel-riding, and reached the native village of Puerto Cansado. The first step towards their release was the dispatching of an emissary to the Spanish post of Cape Juby some seventy miles south, by the Moorish chief. Meanwhile a search for the missing airmen was being carried out bv two Latecoire aeroplanes piloted by MM. Mermoz and Villv who, whilst making their customary flight with the mail from Dakar to Casablanca, had been informed by wireless of tin disappearance of the " Uruguay." Flying very low alon« the coast they spotted the wreck, and made their report at their next landing place, when the local aerodrome super- intendent there, on his own responsibility, immediately wirelessed to Cape Juby for the two machines stationed there- to continue the search. MM. Riguel and Guillaumet sei off, circled the wreck to make sure that no Moors lurked in the dunes, and then landed and left their engines running while they examined the wreck. Forming the impression that the missing crew were being taken into the interior, they set out again to make a reconnaissance, and very soon sighted the caravan moving across the desert ; but as they flew low to detect the missing crew the Moors opened a fusillade of shots, and they were consequently unable in f" FLIGHT " Photographs THE NEW SPORT : The first experiments at Stag Lane with " balloon-jumping '' unfortunately ended in disasier, Aircraftsman Dobbs being drifted by the wind against an electric cable and electrocuted. The mishap was not of course, directly due to the nature of the new sport, and was a regrettable accident of a kind never likely to happen again. It would seem, however, that before the sport can become popular it will be necessary to ensure a closer and more rigid connection between the man and the balloon, so that when a jump is made the ball >on is given an initial upward push, instead of, as at present, merely being relieved of the man's weight. The photo- graph on the left shows the type of harness used, and on the right a short jump. The balloon, on this occasion, was insufficiently buoyant. The " paddles " were intended to give a certain amount of manoeuvrability, but as might have been expected, were a failure. A previous reference to Balloon Jumping was made in "Flig't" for January 27 last. 164
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