Evening star., 1924-06-15
WORLD FLIGHT PROGRESS
By j. Brown, r- Chairman World Flight Committee

The world flyers are temporarily de-
layed at Tourane. French Indo- China.
while Lieut. Smith. commander of
the expedition, installs a new engine
in his airplane. 1t is significant of
the completeness of the plans for this
exposition that each time a new en-
CINE has been needed by any of the
flyers ii has been available within
few hundred miles.
The motor for Lii lut Smith was 500
miles away at Saigon. French Indo-
China. He was forced down at Hue. a
few miles north of -Tourane. French
lndo-China, on the shore OF the China
Sea. The engine was rushed TO Lieut..
Smith from Saigon on board a United
take about twenty-four hours to in
stall it, and the flyers should arrive
at Saigon about the end OF this week.
AT Saigon, French Indo China. the
hight Will be at its farthest southern
point and at the nearest place to the
equator on the whole route. At this
place they will be within less than
2.oGo miles of Akyab. where the Brit
lSh flyer was forced down several
weeks ago. and is now preparing to
continue his journey
Feeling Hottest Weather.
Saigon is known as the Paris of the
Orient" The ayiatorS will be here in
the hottest climate which they prob
ably will encounter during the entire
course. 1t is said of Saigon That il
is as hot as summer in winter, and in
summer it is az hot as hell"
The route through this division of
the flight follows the shore line of
French Indo-China TO Bangkok, Siam:
cuts through a pass in the fountains
near Mount koni. 100 miles south of
Bangkok, on the Malay Peninsula, 20
the town of Tenesserirn; then pro-
IN
thence to Akyab and Calcutta The
route across this narrow point in the
Malay Peninsula will be followed
rather than proceeding around the
peninsula, touching at Singapore,
which would add 1000 miles to the
flight. Originally a much shorter
route to Calcutta WAS planned over
land. using wheels for landings and
stopping at Hanoi, French lndo-
China. and Mandalay. Burma, famous
in song and story.
Investigation of the route through
this section showed that landing
fields were very scarce and the cost
of making them prohibitive, SO that
pontoons are being used and the
shore line followed, as outlined above,
as far as Calcutta, India, where land
ing wheels will be attached and pom
toonS removed
Dinicult for Landing.
Furthermore, the inland route
across French Indo-China and Burma
lies over mountainous country unln
habited where forced landings would
be disastrous The coastal route now
beng followed, even with its croco-
diles, SWamps and barbarlans. put
with a chance of rescue by passing
vessels in case of forced landing, was
preferable to the risk OF landings IN
mountains and trackleSs jungle, un-
inhabited except by wild beasts ano
poisonous insects, with its hopeless
ness of rescue in case or forceo lano-
ings before succumbing to the terrors
OF the jungle.
The route from Tourane TO Cal
cutta, with mileage, is as follows.
Saigon. French Indo-China,
$50 miles, to
Bangkok, Siam. e!a nlies' 70
Rangoon, Burma, a5O mics 10
Akyab. Burma, 449 Hliies' Io
Calcutta India, 400 miles,
Two British flights attempting the
of the globe have met
with disaster at Akyab. The present
one. commanded by Maj. MacLaren
of the royal air force, is planning 10
continue the fight in a new aIrplane-
In 1921 a British airplane attempting
the world flight was forced down
forty miles at sea OFF Akyab. The
two flyers on the expedition hoated
about. clinginE to the wreckage of
their plane for several days
Natives Thought Them Devils,
The superstitious natives, who IN
habit the Malay Peninsula IN thls
vicinity rowed out in small oeats TO
within shouting distance, but did not
ing deyoured by what they thought
to he the devils of the deep. the
British pilots, officers of the royal
air force, were finally rescued by
Dassing vessel. 1t viii be relief TO
the American flyers to successfully
negotiate neg this section of the route
which lies through equatorial re-
gions and along the stormy Bay OF
Bengal and avoid the "Jinx OF
Akyab." -,
At Saigon, the flyers will have an
opportunity of spending few hours
in checking over THE arplanes ano
repiacing worn parts, as this is one OF
the subsidiary depotS for the eGpeol-
ton. With the arrival OF tine night
al this southernmost stop, it may De
lodged the typhoon season OF the
China Sea. although TIE rigors OF
the torrid heat and The lnonsoons OF
India are still to be contenoec Wlta.
The next major depot for giving
the planes complete renting ana
installing engines is at Calcutta
india, which marks the departure
from, the third division of the flight
and the entrance into the fourth di-
vision. The advance officer of the
third division, First Lieut.. Malcom S.
I.awton. completed his survey or TINS
section several days ago and is await,
ing the Hight at Calcutta TO ieno
every assistance and expedite the
overhaul Of the airplanes.
Emergency Areas Marked.
These advance officers not only
made special arrang cement at each OF
the scheduled stops along the route,
hut marked emergency areas between
ff,e main stops where the flyers could
nut in in case they were forced down.
so that a survey was made O. the
entire route almost mile by mile and
the Information gathered sent TO the
flight fn ample time SO that they
could use il while passing over the
section 10 which the report referred.
The radiators removed at Toxic
from the airplanes, in order to per-
NIT the installation of booster radi-
ators with larger cooling surfaces to
withstand the torrid heat, have been
shipped through the United states to
Brough, England, and will be placed
ent radiators are removed in England,
so that the same radiators will be
used over the North Atlantic Ocean
as were used over the North Pacific
Ocean.
At various times during the flight,
each of the airplanes has been de-
layed and forced to follow the bal
ance of the expedition, and in each
case the pilot of the plane has dem
onstrated his ability to ny alone and
successfully reach his destination.
The first of these cases was at the
very beginning of the flight, when
three airpaanes .proeeeded. leaving