Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1919-05-20
TRIO OF AMERICAN
PLANES ARE SAFE
AFTER OCEAN TRIP
Flagship NC-3 Taxis Into
Horta Under Her Own
Power.
COMMANDER READ STARTS
FOR LISBON THIS MORNING
NC-4 Will Make Stop at Ponta
Dclgada to Procure
New Supplies.
Hopes TO END TRIP BY NIGHT
Aviators in Azores Praise Hawkcr
and Are Anxious for
His Safety.
COMMANDER READ STARTS
FOR LISBON THIS MORNING
Hopes TO END TRIP by NIGHT
Aviators in Azores Praise Hawkcr
and Are Anxious for
His Safety.

HoRTA, AZORES. May la.-All three
of the American seaplancs are now
accounted for. NC-3. the missing mas
ship OF the squadron. came into the
harbor of Horta this afternoon under
her own power after having been sixty
Commander Towers and his crew
were in good condition, but tagged
our By, lack OF rest and also in need
ricd rations for only one day.
Lieutenant Commander y. &. Read
Will leave lIorta, fayal, tomorrow at .
Washin gton timc). If weather conditions
permit. y stop Will be made at Ponta
DcGada.
The early hour set for the start of
the flight TO Ponta Dclgada was inter-
preted by naval officials that Comman-
der Read would attempt tomorrow to
nautical miles to Lisbon. Portugal. the
real end of the TRANSATLANTIC hiEht
to be planned for the purpose of OBJ
tanning supplies.
NC-3 Tn,is Into Port.
Searching battlcships and dcstroyers
were securing the seas and naval Of
the safety of the lyinS ship NC-3 and
her crew of five when warships at
Ponta DeiEada saw the plane taSiine
Meanwhile, Lieutenant Commander
a. u
weatherbound AT Horla, and Tie NC-I,
third ship Of the aerial fleet, was Of
ficially described in almost sinking
condition thirty miles OFT Corvo Island,
Azores, with the destroyer Fairfax
BelilnGer and his crew of the NC-l
Horta, definitely out. of the race, ac-
cord!nE to BellinGcr's own report on
the condition Of mis- machine.
With his arrival at Ponta Delsada,
Commander Towers again takes
tive command Of the hight situation
Pays Tribute TO Hnwkcr.
Even under tho depression of earlier
hours, however. officers were quick
with tributes TO the Eallantry OF Har-
ry q. Hawier, the daring Australian,
whose single handed attempt to cross
and that of his navigator on pure luck,
appealed TO them strongly as Il sport
ing. venture. Officers said the Aus
tralian had tho best wishes OF the
American naval service and should he
succeed from no one would he receive
heartier congratulations.
When told OF iIawkcr'a start from
the Americans across. Read said
Well. ] have to hand it to Hawker.
] didn't think he was going to jump
Off.
Speaking Of his own nisht, he said:
We were certainly lucky. IL feels
pretty good TO he the only one of the
three planes that started To reach land"
DO You think YOU are lucky enough
to vim he was asked.
Tin not superstitious," no replied.
lin too hard -headcd for that"
The salient points of the flight of
NC-f were given by Lieutcmant- Com
mandcr Read AS follows.
After the take-on. the plane stood
stroycr was passed, with all ma refinery
functionlnS property
Misses Several ships.
When darkness set in tac planes
e1 li,.l. i'm
destroyer by wireless until we had
passed No. Is a, $50 T. NJ. From that
time o. We did not see any more de-
stroycrs until VIC picked up No. .: at
l2:0S Saturday morning. We missed
the next station OH account of fos.
Finally we landed at llorta.
The elapsed timo of tho flight was
fifteen hours eighteen minutes. and the
number of miles covered was 200
we were in good condition The
weather decided our landing"
Lieutenant commander BcllinEcr, OF
NC-l, which was forced down in the
fog off the Island of Flores and bad
ly smashed UP by contact with the
rough rough seas; seas; said today that only ad.
plane from completing tho flight sue
ccSsfully. Telling Of the flight. he
said:
we passed all stations without
trouble from the time NC left 'Rcpas-
Scy until we arrived between stations
"a and is and found banks of fog.
rms was about IL o'clok Saturday
morning ca O'Clock New York timc)
I'VE kept our course until l:lO T.. NJ.
and then landed in the water, think
ing that the best plan, because We
did not know our position.
The weather conditions were the
cause Of our landing. We had no Gu
ginc trouble at ali. We were dying
al about 5000 feet when we decided
TO land. AS We came down we found
the fog. denser. AS we turned the
planes head into tho wind we sighted
the mastS of a steamship Oh the horizon.
VIC learned later this was the Ionic
which picked us up.
AT O'Clock, when we were about
In latitude 39.5S north and longitude
30.i5, we started taxing through
the rough seas. but the swell was
heavy and choppy, and the machine
began to break up.
"rhc Ionia, which was headed for
Gibraltar, sighted us when we were in
distress and took our crew off in small
boats.
"Thc rescue called for a display OF
the most expert seamanship. and was
accomplished without n hitch.
"Thc NC-1 could have kept on.
nevertheless, II it hadn't, been for the
fog. Although We had only one en-
gine working when VIC were picked
up and the was extremely rough
the situation WAS not altogether out Of