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Romance of Aerophilately, Pt. 11

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Romance of Aerophilately, Pt. 11 Yesterday in STAMPS: Romance of Aerophilately, Pt. 11 By an Unknown Author (From STAMPS Magazine, July, 18, 1942, with images added— final installment in the series) In our previous, February 2015, installment I noted that “For some reason, the author omitted the unsuccess- ful 1919 trans-Atlantic flight attempt of Lieutenant H. G. Hawker, pilot, and Lieutenant Commander K. M. Grieve, navigator. However, as the attempt had significant historic and philatelic significance, I will cover it here, then pick up with the 1942 series.” As it turns out, he covered it—in this final installment, after his Alcock-Brown article. So, I will place within our anonymous author’s final installment the illustrations that I used in my coverage of the Hawker flight. In addition, he writes about U.S. Navy attempts, which in fact resulted in the first successful trans-Atlantic flight, but not the first non-stop flight that was subsequently achieved by Alcock and Brown. So I also have added at the end of this article some information and images related to the U.S. Navy flights. JFD. * * * * * Transatlantic Flights of 1919 The World War of 1914-18 aroused a tremendous in- terest in flying, and when hostilities ceased, the impetus which the preceding four years had given to aviation was immediately directed into more constructive channels. In 1919 the London Daily Mail made an offer of £10,000 for the first successful non-stop crossing of the Atlantic by an aeroplane, and at the same time plans were brewing in Washington for an attempted crossing by Navy planes, but with a stop at the Azores. Early in the spring four British planes with pilots, navigators and ground crews, arrived in Newfoundland. Shortly afterwards three flying boats of the United States Navy appeared out of the sky and also made their head- Issue 52 - April 3, 2015 - StampNewsOnline.net If you enjoy this article, and are not already a subscriber, for $12 a year you can enjoy 60+ pages a month. To subscribe, email [email protected] quarters there. Thus the race to be the first across as- sumed an international flavor, and rivalry became keen as pilots and crews strove to complete preparations and steal a march on their competitors. On May 16th, the NC-1, 3, and 4 of the U.S. Navy, took off and set their course for the Azores. News of the departure of the American planes was phoned to the Brit- ish pilots; and the public, sensing that something was up, began to flock to the British camps. Preparations for the flight had not been completed, although the Sopwith plane, piloted by Harry Hawker, was nearly ready to go. Final preparations were frantically made, with Hawker keeping one eye on the progress of his American rivals, fully determined to take off himself as soon as it appeared absolutely necessary for him to do so in order to be the first across. Reports concerning the American planes gave him assurance that there was still a little time to spare, for only one of the three flying boats had reached the Azores in perfect condition, and a delay of a few days was planned, before completing the last leg of the flight. [See the end of this article for additional information on these U.S. Navy flights.] The Sopwith Atlantic of H. G. Hawker and Lieut-Cdr. K. Mackenzie-Grieve at Glendenning’s Farm, before their take- off on the North Atlantic attempt of 18 May, 1919, from http://flyingmachines.ru/Site2/Crafts/Craft30094.htm On Sunday, the 18th of May, Captain Raynham was supervising some alterations in his Martinsyde plane when he heard the familiar sound of Hawker’s motor. A few sec- onds later, the Sopwith plane appeared over Raynham’s camp, on what seemed to be just another test flight. As Issue 52 - April 3, 2015 - StampNewsOnline.net Hawker and Grieve taking off for their Transatlantic attempt Raynham stood by, idly watching, he was suddenly elec- trified to see the undercarriage of Hawker’s, plane detach itself, make a few lazy revolutions, and fall just beyond the boundaries of his own field. Dropping the undercarriage could mean but one thing. Hawker was off! Raynham, although caught by surprise, made arrangements to follow Hawker immediately, but as his heavily loaded plane surged down the runway the roughness of the ground caused the undercarriage to col- lapse, and Raynham and his navigator narrowly escaped serious injury. Neither the Handley Paige nor the Vickers Vimy planes were ready to start, and so as Hawker drifted out to sea and disappeared in the distance, he became the sole British contestant in the race to beat the Americans across. In spite of the fact that the weather was far from perfect and that his own preparations were not complete, Hawker felt that the time had come to start, for the NC-4 seemed ready to complete the flight from the Azores to the main- land at any moment. A hurried consultation had been held between Hawker and MacKenzie Grieve, the navigator, and they, agreed to go as they were. The weather ahead was characterized by Hawker as “Not good, but possible,” but the time was too short to permit them to wait for better conditions. Issue 52 - April 3, 2015 - StampNewsOnline.net On Monday morning the newspapers of the world gave praise to Hawker’s daring in headlines three inches high, for Hawker was flying a small land plane over a di- rect course, north of the usual shipping lanes, while the American planes, in contrast, were safeguarded by a fleet of warships, which had been stationed 100 miles apart (see page 11), from Newfoundland to the coast of Europe. Hawker had faith in himself, and his daring caught the fancy of the entire world. A typical cartoon which appeared in the newspapers at that time showed Hawker flying over an angry sea, led on by “Ambition,” pursued by “Death,” and dropping his undercarriage “Precaution.” While the world acclaimed Harry Hawker on Monday, by Tuesday they began to mourn him, for the newspaper headlines of that day had but one message: “HAWKER GIVEN UP AS LOST!” No word of any kind had been received from his wire- less set, apparently no ship had seen his plane, and his gasoline supply would have been exhausted by Monday night, at the latest. Headlines of Wednesday and Thursday were the same: “ALL HOPE ABANDONED FOR HAWKER AND GRIEVE.” Newspapers on Friday gave a few lines to the telegram of condolence, which His Majesty the King had sent to Mrs. Hawker, but Saturday’s papers did not mention Hawker. Apparently the incident was closed. On Sunday, the 25th, a week after Hawker’s take-off, the small Danish steamer “Mary” appeared off the “Butt of Lewis,” the most northern point in the Hebrides, near Scotland, and an officer on a passing ship noticed that the Danish vessel was trying to attract his attention. He acknowledged their signals, and prepared to receive their message. The message came, consisting of just five words: “SAVED HANDS OF SOPWITH AIRPLANE.” Quickly he signaled back, “IS IT HAWKER?” The single word, “YES!” in reply left no further doubt. A wireless message was sent immediately to the Admi- Issue 52 - April 3, 2015 - StampNewsOnline.net The wreck of Hawker’s Sopwith Atlantic after being pulled from the sea. ralty. The Admiralty was skeptical, but dispatched destroy- ers to verify the astonishing news. The “Woolsun” was the first to arrive, and Hawker and Grieve were taken on board, to be transferred later to the Flagship “Revenge.” The “Hands of the Sopwith Airplane” landed the same day upon British soil, in triumph, and the Hawker home became the scene of an impromptu celebration, as the good news spread across England. Hawker carried the first official air mail over what was hoped might eventually prove to be a regular transatlan- tic air mail route from America to Europe. The mail bag received a thorough wetting, when motor trouble forced Hawker down, after covering 1,100 miles. The plane settled in the water, but fortunately remained afloat. The descent had been seen by lookouts on the “Mary,” which was some distance away, and the ship came alongside an hour and a half later, rescuing the fliers, as well as the mail bag. The first transatlantic air mail flight must ever remain a matter of historic interest, and it was felt that some ar- rangements should be made for the conveyance of at least a congratulatory mail from North America to Europe. The Sopwith machine was the only one on the island early in April, and it then seemed certain that the flight would be Issue 52 - April 3, 2015 - StampNewsOnline.net made during the month. As a matter of fact, attempts were made on April 11th and 12th. On April 5th, the following letter was sent to Capt. Fenn, of the Sopwith company: “On what terms will you carry a small official mail, the number of letters not to exceed ten, and the weight not to exceed one pound? “As an alternative proposition, and subject to such limitations as may be agreed upon, on what terms will you carry a general letter mail? “The above inquiries are made on the supposition that yours will be the first attempt to cross the Atlantic by Air- ship. “(Signed) J. ALEX ROBINSON, “Postmaster-General.” Capt. Fenn replied as follows: “With regard to your proposition for carrying an offi- cial mail of ten letters, weight not exceeding one pound, my Company will be prepared to accept this on the two following conditions:— “(1) That the Sopwith Aviation Co., Ltd., be allowed to carry a maximum of a hundred letters in excess of the ten mentioned above.
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