TRAGEDY, Aviators "Attempting Long-Distance Record Killed London, Dec. 17.
Two Royal Air Force officers, eadron-Leader Jones Williams and PlightLicutenant Jenkins, started from Cranwell aerodrome in Lincolnshire at 11 o'clock this morning in a large Fairey Napier monoplane in-an attempt to fif without a stop to South Africa, a distance of 6,000 miles; and thus establish a world Tong-distance record.
The present record is held by the Frenchman, Captain Costes, with) 4912 miles.
Squadron-Leader Jones Williams and Flight-Lieutenant Jenkins made fan attack on the long. distance record last April. They left Cran-well in the same monoplane as they are now flying, but, after covering 6,130 miles, they were forced down) by petrol shortage at Karachi, India, The weather conditions over a large part of the route on this occasion are reported to be favourable and the airmen expect, if all' goes well, to arrive at Capetown on' Thursday' afternoon after a fight!
about 55. hours, The machine was reported 60 mil off the northwest coast of Sardinia fat four o'clock this afternoon. The route after leaving Sardinia will be bby way of Tunis, Ghat in the French Sahara, Duala in Cameroon, Penjualla in Portuguese West Africa ind Wolfish Bay in South West Africa, Avoiding the Mountains The course selected enables the pilots to avoid mountainous country, particularly the earlier stage: In order to beat the existing record, it is necessary, under the international regulations, to fly at least 100 kilometres, or 62) miles more than the French figure, so that the. British pilots must fly a minimum of 4,975 miles, measured on a. great circle course, to secure the record for Britain. "This means that they oust reach a Africa, about 30 miles south of the Cunene River, and about half way between Penjualia and Wolfish Bay.
Their aircraft. ie fitted for this ight with a shortwave wireless rmitting set and will transmit routine reports giving its position every four hours at eight 'o'clock, trrelve flock and so forth, Tt will
Jequipped to receive messages dir ansmit on $3.71 metres. Its not the Aight. Private wireless stations therefore, asked to refrain from transmitting on this wave-length as they are liable to jamming and may thus prevent the reception of urgent messages.
There is always the possibility of] a forced landing. To meet such an emergency, the airmen are equipped With sporting guns and ammunition They have alto with them curious hich they will lieable Zo eat tae scimitar-shaped knives by means
yy through a jungle, if necessar)
Tragie Conclusion Dee. 18, There has been no news of the Fairey Napier monoplane in which Squadron-Leader Jones Williams and Plight Lieutenant Jenkins left Cranwell Aerodrome, in Lincoln shire, yesterday morning in attempt tin make a record non-stop fight to South Africa, since a wire-Jess was received from the neighbourhood of Sardinia at four oclock yesterday afternoon, For this reason apprehension was excited by an announcement made by the Air Ministry this evening that, according to an unconfirmed report from Tunis, natives saw a large aeroplane descend south of Tunis (which is on the route of the airmen in their projected flight to the Cape).
The Air Ministry adds that i mediate action is being taken to investigate the report and ascertain the condition of the crew.
Later Lord Thomson, the Secretary of State for Air, announced in the House of Lords that he had heard from the British Consul-General at Tunis that the monoplane which the R.A. F. officers were attempting to reach the Cape had crashed 20 miles south of Tunis and that both Squadron Leader Jones Williams and Flight Lieutenant Jenkins had been killed. There were.no further details.
Reuter's correspondent at Paris wires that, according to a report from Bizerta, 37 miles) berth-north-west of Tunis, natives ju the region of Zaghouan saw. a aeroplane crash and its two oc-
'All Doubts Set' Aside Tunis, Dee. 19.
An examination of the papers in the pockets of the dead pilots has confirmed the regrettable fact that the plane wrecked on the mountain near the village of Sainte Marie to the North of Zaghouan is the Royal Air Force monoplane, which was attempting to fly to South Africa.
The accident was doubtless due toa storm, which was raging at the time and also to the fact that the fliers, when attempting to land, were unable in the darkness to see the roughness of the locality.
The first news of the tragedy was brought by a native horseman who chanced to pass the scene of the disaster and immediately notified the Civil Controller of the District, but owing to the rough and uninhabited character of the locality the monoplane was only found late in the afternoon.
A detachment of soldiers is now guarding the wreck—Reuter.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.