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Aviation History
1931
1931 - 0748.PDF
FLIGHT, JULY 17, 1931 the maximum air speed reached as Paris came into sightbeing 132 m.p.h. It was then that the really exciting part of the journey began—to those who know the perilsof driving through Paris traffic the comparative safety of the air will be well understood. Actually we appearto have created something of a record in getting through the Imperial Airways headquarters in Rue de 1'Opera,having had only a minor collision with one taxi. After lunching as the guests of Imperial Airways atthe Hotel Chatham, the party broke up until 3 p.m., when we reassembled and sped out to Le Bourget for thereturn flight, Hannibal taking off at 4 p.m. precisely. The sky was heavily overcast and a fresh N.W. wind hadsprung up. Our rate of climb was even more remark- able than when leaving Croydon, 4,600 ft. being reachedin the first seven minutes. For an hour we continued to climb steadily above a thick cloud bank, whichblotted out France completely, until 11,500 ft. was reached. Tea was in progress when about mid-Channel,through a break in the clouds we could see both coasts simultaneously. The flight over France in brilliant sun-shine above that white blanket was not without interest, for the beauty of the cloud formations simply beggarsdescription. At 5.40 p.m. we crossed the English coast directly over the point of Dungeness at 8,800 ft., theremainder of the journey over Kent being made most Civil Aviation in India THE Bombay correspondent of The Times states thatthe Government of India recently wrote to the Bombay Chamber of Commerce that it had found it necessary torefer the whole question of air services to the Retrench- ment Committee. The Chamber, in reply, state that theGovernment assumed certain responsibilities for the Indian section of the England-Australia air route. If that schemeis now abandoned without any satisfactory arrangement tor an alternative service, the Government will, in theChamber's opinion, be guilty both of neglecting its obliga- tions under the International Air Convention, to whichthey are parties, and of grave dereliction of its Imperial responsibilities. The Chamber understand that Messrs.Tata are prepared to start a service between Karachi, Bombay, and Madras, involving a very small and decreas-ing subsidy for the next two or three years, and there- after nothing. There is no reason, therefore, why thisservice should be held up from motives of economy, and the Chamber hope that no obstacles will be placed in theway of Messrs. Tata's starting the service at the earliest possible date.Imperial Airways STATISTICS issued by Imperial Airways show that thelarge triple-engined air liners used on the " Silver Wing " service between London and Paris have now covered2,000,000 miles without any mishap resulting in injury to either passengers or crew. The air liners of the wholefleet have, during the last seven years, flown 7,285,587 miles, carrying 1,760,579 passengers. Imperial Airwaysalso announce that, as from July 27, their head office and London terminus will be Airways Terminus, Victoria interesting by virtue of the excellent visibility, smallfluffy clouds only obscuring the view occasionally. At 8,000 ft., locating our position on the maps thought-fully provided for each passenger, was an easy but fascinating amusement. From 8,000 ft. we commenced agentle glide towards Croydon, and, spiralling anti-clockwise over the aerodrome, we touched at 6.40 p.m.; the pilothowever, was not satisfied, and opened out, immediately taking Hannibal up to 1,000 ft. in a wide sweep overthe aerodrome. It was observed during the last portion of the glide that the auto-slots provided in the upperplanes appeared to be in some doubt as to whether they should open or not—this was the only occasion duringeither trip when they appeared to come into operation at all. This time a perfect three-point landing wasmade, the tail wheel actually touching an instant before the main wheels. It had been a splendid flight back,and although actually it took 40 minutes longer than the outward journey, it seemed all too short. Those of theparty who wished were conveyed back to Airways House, where we thanked our hosts, particularly Mr. Handoverwho accompanied the party, and congratulated them OD the excellent of the organisation of the demonstra-tion. Yes, Hannibal is " great," in every sense of the word. K. E. K. Station (Continental Departures), London, S.W.I. (Tele-phone, Victoria 2211 ; Telegrams, Impairline, London.) The entrance to the new premises is exactly opposite theRoyal Waiting Room and entrance to the Continental departure platform, and taxi-cabs with air passengers willapproach Victoria Station in exactly the same way as if they were taking passengers for the boat trains. Passen-gers for the services of the German Air Company, Deutsche Luft Hansa, and for those of the Belgian Company,S.A.B.E.N.A., as well as those of Imperial Airways, will use this Air Terminus, and thus the great majority oftravellers to the Continent, by whatever means they cross the Channel, will start from and arrive at the same pointin London. The present office at Airways House, Charles Street, will be retained as a branch West End passengerand freight booking office and inquiry bureau, but car services between London and Croydon will run from theAirway Terminus at Victoria to Croydon, and vice versa, from July 27.Peking-Berlin Air Mail in Trouble ONE of the Junkers machines of the Eurasia Corp.—operating on the eastern section of the recently formed Pekin-Berlin air mail service—is reported to have beencaptured by Mongolian tribesmen, and some anxiety is felt for the safety of the German pilots. The machine, enroute for Manchuli from Peking, was forced down on July 2 in Outer Mongolia, and on July 4 a relief machinediscovered the missing aircraft surrounded by troops. When the relief machine came down low the troops openedfire, causing slight damage to the former, which managed to get away with some difficulty. There was no sign ofthe other pilots. THE JAVA-AUSTRALIA AIR MAIL: The 3-engined Fokker monoplane " Abel Tasman," piloted by Pattist, refuelling at Rambang on May 12 on the first Dutch Air Mail Service from Holland to Australia. .;:.--. -.--••• -~r- . ' 702
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