Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-10-05

port however, and the disappearance remained
as mysterious Is ever.
It was only partly cleared up by the finding
near Troaasoe Of one Of the seaplane'S p0n-
icons. The float gave evidence Of having been
wrenehed violently from the body Of the plane,
POSSIBLY when It crashed with the water. Were
AmMndsen and his companions killed instantly
in such . crash? Or did the grizzied veteran
Of many polar explorations miraculously escape
death, ut least for time? And what became
Of the SIX men who drifted OF with the Italia's
gas bag? Did they land safely? The world
would give much to know the answers to these
questions.
A MOTHER air mystery which bafaed Europe
was the loss Of the French dirigible DIX
nude with all on board-52 officers, members
Of the crew and Observers. This drigible was
originally the super Zeppelin La, which Ger
many built for an attempt to bomb New York.
Taken over by France prize of war and
renamed, the Dixmude left Toulon on Tuesday,
December IT, 1928, for an observation flight
over the Mediterranean and the French posses
sions In North Africa. The trip was expected
to last three days. As the dirigible was out to
exceed its world duration record Of $500 miles.
made in the previous September, French air
oGacials accompanied 1t Is observers.
The flight proceeded successfully to Insalah,
Southern Algeris. But on the Friday afternoon
that 1t was expected back at Toulon the air.
ship reported fighting It's way eastward
toward Ttmis against strong headwind. Then
It apparently became helpless, drifting before
the wind like free balloon. On Saturday the
first ofacial worry about the dirigible began 10
be felt when no communications were forth
coming On Saturday the announcement was
made that the Dixmude was missing somewhere
over the Mediterranean or tl1s dry sands Of the
Sahara.
French warships combed the sea while search.
ing parties spread out over the desert. Reports
Of the dirigible came from various points, but
nearly all proved false. Late In December the
body Of Capt. Grenadan, its commander, was
found in a fish net of the coast of Sicily,
giving rise to rumors that the crew had mu-
tinted and thrown him overheard But in Jam
uary backened parts of the dirigible were found
in Sicilian waters, proving that disaster had "
occurred there. Was it caused by fire, explosion
or lightning? The French board Of inquiry
favored the lightning theory, but the tragedy
Of the Dixmude remains q mystery.
TRANSOCEAN flights have contributed q
large number of air disappearances. Two
had happy solutions. In 1919 Harry Hawker
and Kenneth Mackenzie-Griev British avi.
ators. attempted a nonstop flight from New
foundIand to Ireland for q prize of $4,000
offered by the London Daily Mail for the FIRST
TRANSATLANTIC hop. When the plane disappeared
hope was soon abandoned, but after a period
W nOuIAiixlS ~ was learned mat cneVZ
had been rescued in midocean by a ship which
was not equipped with wireless.
The first attempt to reach Hawaii by air
also had happy ending. In 1925 Comdr
John Rodgers. Of the United States Navy and
three companions left San Francisco for Homo
lulu IN a seaplane. They were forced down on
the ocean $50 miles from the goal ana drtftea
about while d search was made by every avail
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