J. F. Raeburn, aged 25, both officers of the Imperial Airways liner Dardanus, are being detained for questioning by the Japanese authorities at Waichow Island where their ship was forced down on November 8, This Was revealed by a Japanese Navy spokesman at the press conference yesterday during the course of a statement in connection with the forcing down of the plane.
The three passengers. of the machine, Messrs. A. Hertzberg, en-Kineer, a Norwegia aged 34, O. Cuevas, a merchant of American nationality, aged 39, and V. Levy, a Persian merchant aged 25, have been sent to Canton, the spokesman revealed, while the aeroplane "is still at Waichow Island awaiting repairg In his statement the spokesman said that Waichow Island was located approximately 240 kin. from Haiphong Which had been occupied by the Japanese troops during the course of military operations some time ago. At about 10.35 (Japanese time) on the morning of November 8, he said, an aeroplane appeared at a point five miles south of Waichow Island at an altitude of about 1,200 metres.
'A Japanese plane on patrol duty over the island, the spokesman continued, went out and from the course of the Imperial Airways machine it seemed apparent that the British ship appeared to be intent on recon-noirring over the island. On February 6, he said, the Japanese naval authorities, through the Japanese Consulate-General in Canton, had advised the various interested Powers that no flying would be permitted within a fifteen mile radius of Wal-chow Island and that planes in that vicinity would have to maintain an altitude of 500 metres.
"It is evident that the Dardanus was flying within the prescribed zone," he added, "and that she was flying above the prescribed altitude. The plane, when forced down, had a puncture in its left tyre and so the machine was landed without damage to itself or occupants" The passengers, he went on, were taken io Canton by a Japanese naval air transport where they were handed over to the British Consul-General, while the two members of the crew Were being detained for questioning. The plane, he said, would be returned when it was in a condition for flying.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.