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Aviation History
1936
1936 - 0556.PDF
FEBRUARY 27, 1936. FLIGHT. 241 Commercial Aviation To the Goldfields THE new Australian company, Airlines (W.A.), Ltd., about uhich details'were given in Flight some time ago, has; now Ftarted operations with a Monospar S.T.25. A single- engimJ machine is held in reserve. The route, which is a circular one embracing Perth and the goldfields, is covered on Thursday and Friday of each week, a night being spent at Wiluna. The manager and chief pilot is Capt. C. W. Snook, with F/O F. Townsend as assistant pilot. The L.Z.129 THE new Zeppelin L.Z.129 is expected to leave Frankfurt on May 6 on her maiden voyage to Lakehurst, New Jersey, carrying passengers as well as mails an'd freight. Other flights will be made across the North Atlantic during the year. Presumably, the new airship base at Frankfurt- on-Main will be opened at the same time. It is possible that a trial flight to Java will also be made during the year. The Netherlands Steamship Company is one of several which are interested in promoting a regular airship service between Holland and the Dutch East Indies. The Graf ZeppeHn will leave for her first South American trip on March 30. Twenty-two trips are scheduled for this year—some being made by the L.Z.129. An American. Traffic Record I S the annual report of traffic returns which has recently been published by United Air Lines, it is reported that, on its coast-to-coast and other routes, the company flew 87,108,711 passenger-miles last year, a figure which, it is stated, has never been equalled by any other air line in the world. The report also shows that the number of passengers carried by this com pany increased by 21 per cent.—147,139 were carried in 1934 and 177,457 in 1935. A substantial increase was also shown in the amount of mail carried. The traffic controlled by United, in fact, represented 30 per cent, of passenger-miles in the U.S.A., 40 per cent, of all air mail, and more than half of the country's air express. The fleet of fifty machines wore flown 14,503,197 miles in scheduled operation during 1935, or approximately a million miles more than in the previous year. The larger portion of the company's increased traffic has lieen on its New York-Chicago-Pacific Coast route, with a satis factory gain also on the Seattle-San Diego route. In the near future United Air Lines will have completed the sound-proofing and redecoration of its fleet. Irish Developments in 1935 T^OR the first time since the Irish Free State was first con- -L stituted, just fourteen years ago, the Government of that country is showing a live interest in civil flying. Until November, 1935, the successive Governments of the Free State had adopted a policy of laissez-faire with regard to flying, the only previous gesture made being the granting of permission to the Irish Aero Club in 1928 to use the military aerodrome at Baldonnel, Co. Dublin, and the subsequent voting of a grant-in-aid of ^1,000 to this club. Last year, however, the Department of Industry and Com merce and Sir Alan Cobham discussed the establishment of an air service between Great Britain and the Irish Free State. These negotiations were dropped during the latter end of the summer, but were later reopened by Olley Air Ser vice. In November it was announced to the Dail by the Minister for Industry and Commerce, Mr. Sean Lemass, that an air service would be established between Dublin and Bristol, and Dublin and Liverpool early in 1936. The ser vice, he said, would be operated jointly by an Irish board and Olley Air Service. A vote of £3,500 for a wireless instal lation at Baldonnel aerodrome was passed and the contract for this was awarded to the Marconi Company. The Irish concern will, at a later date, become a subsidiary of a national air transport company, which is to finance air craft operating companies. Legislation to put this into effect is now being drafted. An order was also issued by the Free State Government prohibiting the establishment of air routes between the Irish Free State and Great Britain (or other countries) except with the permission of the Minister for Industry and Commerce. Earlier in November Mr. J. P. Walshe, secretary of the Depart ment of External Affairs, and Mr. Sean Leydon, secretary of the Department of Industry and Commerce, went to Ottawa for a conference with representatives of Great Britain, Canada, and Newfoundland, regarding the establishment of the Trans atlantic air service. At the present time the general indica tions are that Foynes, near Limerick, on the River Shannon, will become the eastern terminal or refuelling base for such a service. Northern Ireland made considerable progress during the summer of 1935 when three services were operating between Great Britain and Belfast. These used Ards Airport, Co.« Down, which was then operated by Airwork, Ltd., for Lord Londonderry, who has now taken over the complete control. SOUTH AFRICAN PROSPECTS Unprecedented Activity Among the Clubs : Shortage of Instructors and Air-line Pilots IT seems to be the general impression (writes a correspondent) that the South African Government is the only potential purchaser of aeroplanes in South Africa. Aeroplane manu facturers and those industries which cater for aeroplane accessories and aerodromes also seem to be somewhat dubious about their opportunities in the South African market. To some extent this inactive attitude has been encouraged by the fact that the South African Government has made con siderable purchases from Germany. The situation, however, is not now so black. As reported some time ago in Flight, Airspeed have supplied several Envoys to the Union Govern ment, and these should be operating on the South African a "" routes this summer. Another firm, De Havillands, have th p1 their JonanneSDurg general manager to take space at m S Empire Exhibition, and Imperial Airways are taking the whole of their exhibit, until recently on view in the Science Museum at South Kensington, to South Africa. is a mistake, however, to regard the Government of South a as the only purchaser, or" potential purchaser, of aero- and accessories. During the period 1927-34 ten flying Planes an accessories. >vere established in the Union, iithout State assistance, ^ Johannesburg, Germiston, Pretoria, Bulawayo, Witbank, . "Dan, East London, Port Elizabeth, Cape Town and Bloem- For some time, owing to financial stringency, most fonte howevT Clv,bS WeTe comPelled lo cease flying. During 1934, flvinn r'i 1 cluhs at Johannesburg and Germiston, and a '^school at Cape Town, flew a total of 5,276 hours, >*4i passengers and trained fifty-three pupils for their carried "A ' licences. The number of Civil Aviation Licences aud Certificates issued to the Union up to the end of 1934 vvas as follows: 269 "A" pilots, 100 "B" pilots, 79 ground en gineers, 71 aerodromes and 134 aircraft. At the present time South Africa's fortunate financial con dition has made it possible for her to show practical interest in air transport. That this is so is illustrated by the fact that Durban's aviation enthusiasm has gone ahead so rapidly that it has beaten the sponsors of the flying school. For weeks past the authorities of the school have been trying to obtain the services of additional instructors, but in spite of their having scoured the Union and Rhodesia they have failed. More than sixty pupils are enrolled in the Durban school, and the registrations are increasing weekly. The Government schemes for making aviation more popular have had the effect of causing what is tantamount to a rush on the aviation schools by the youth of the country. The shortage of pilots is being felt increasingly, and it is considered likely that even South African Airways (the English service operated by the Union) will feel the shortage keenly when the new British passenger machines arrive in the country for service on the South African Airways' routes. All this means that the prospects for British aircraft manu facturers and suppliers ot accessories and the makers of aero dromes are most promising. Particularly aerodrome furnishers should find the market full of promise, since South. Africa's vast area calls for a considerable increase in the number of aerodromes.
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