The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1919-05-26
Defect in Water Filter
Forced Them to Drop
to Ocean.
We EPI 3KEOUPB PBY TRAMP
Whole World Thought. They
.,,.,rH rHSdp erished in At
tempt.

LONDON, May Missing for six
days and virtually given up for lost,
Harry G. Hawker and his navigator,
Lieutenant Commander Mackenzie
Grieve, Britisha airmen who essayed a
tAEkf &ef6ss the Atlantic ocean with
out protection against disaster save
what their frail afrplane afforded, are
safe.
Some 1.100 miles out from New
foundland and 500 from the Irish
coast, on Monday May IS, the ayia-
tors. making the best of an engine
which was failing to function prop
erly, were forced to alight on the wa
ter. The little Danish steamer Mary,
bound from New Orleans and Norfolk
for Aarhuus, Denmark, picked the
wayfarers up and continued on her
lnorthward voyage.
4 Lacking a wireless outfit, the cap
tain OF the steamer was obliged to
Withhold the good tidings of the res
i,cue until he was opposite Butt Of
Lewis, where the information was sig
nailed by means of flags that Hawker
and Grieve were aboard the ship.
4 Immediately word was flashed to
the British admiralty, which sent out
Idehtroyers to overtake the Danish ves-
seN and obtain confirmation. This
was done and one of the destroyers
| took the airmen off and later trans
ferred them to the flagship Revenge.
From this safe haven Hawker sent
message that his machine had stop
ped owing to the blocking of the wa
ter circulating system.
When the airplane sped away from
her starting point Pilot Hawker let
loose his wheels and under gearing.
thereby tightening the weight of the
machine by a considerable amount,
but making q possible landing on the
soil oil ireland a more hazardous yeh-
ture. This, however, probably prov
ed OF much advantage when 1t became
necessary to alight on the surface of
the water. The airplane remained
afioat without difficulty during the
houd and half 1t took the Danish
steamer to come up and effect res
cue.
The first report of the aviators
since their Jump off" alst Sunday
came when the Mary rounded the
/ Butt of Lewis yesterday and wigwag-
ged the fact that she had Hawker and
Grieve aboard.
Saved hands of sopwith airplane, {"
was the signal.
SIS 1t Hawker?" was the question
sent out by the flags from the Butt,
which Is the most northwesterly point
of the Hebrides group off Scotland.
"Yes," 'laconically replied the
Mary.
The admiralty Immediately sent
out fast torpedo boat destroyer in
an endeavor to intercept the Mary
and take off the aviators. There was
an anxious wait of several hours,
when word was flashed that the de-
stroyer had come across the steamer
had transferred Hawker and Grieve
and was taking them to Thurso. on
the northern coast of Scotland about
100 miles east of the Butt Of Lewis.
Hawker sent the following message
from the Revenge to the Daily Mall:
"My machine stopped lowing to the
water filter in the feed pipe from the
radiator to the water pump being
blocked with refuse. such as solder,
the like shaking loose in the radiator.
"It was no fault of the Rolls-Royce
motor, which ran absolutely perfectly
| from start to finish, even when the
water had boiled away.
1--WE had no trouble in landing on
the sea, where we were picked up by
the tramp ship Mary, after being In
the water for ninety minutes. we
leave Thurso at p. m. Monday, ar
irving London Tuesday evening"
The London Daily Mail, which Of
fered a prize of $4,000 for the first
flight by a heavier-than-air craft
across the Atlantic ocean, will give
Hawker and Grieve a consolation
prize of 5000 pounds.