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Show Vivid Picture of Fatal Flight of NC-1 Given by Commander Bellinger Account Includes Adventures From Time Aircraft Left Newfoundland Until It Met Grief in Rough Seas. on our course, until 12:50 (S:00 a. m. .New York time) -when we ilecided to come down near the water and get our bearings. Intending then to fly underneath under-neath the fog. We came down to an altitude of about seventy-five feet. The visibility there was about half a mile. The air was bumpy and the wind shifted from MO to 2il0 magnetic. Water Too Rough for Another Getaway. "Ve changed our course to conform with the new conditions and sent out ra-d,o ra-d,o signals requesting compass bearings by wireless. We decided to land if the fog thickenod. A tew minutes thereafter we ran into a low, thick fog. We turned tha piano about and headed into the wind, landing at 13:10 (:10 a. m. New York time) alter flying a total of fifteen hours. The water was very rough, much too rough to warrant an attempt to get away again. The outlook was exceedingly exceeding-ly gloomy. We realized that we could not go on, and must wait where we were to be picked up. The wind and tho condition con-dition of tile water prevented our taxiing over the sea to windward, and we soon found that radio communication between the plane and ships was difficult and unsatisfactory. un-satisfactory. Wings and Tail Badly Damaged. We put over a sea anchor shortly after we alighted, but it was carried away almost al-most immediately. Then we rigged a metal bucket as a sea anchor and that did a great deal of good. The wings and tail of the NC-1, however, got severe punishment pun-ishment from the rough sea, and the fabric fab-ric on the outer and lower wings was slit to preserve the' structure. In an effort ef-fort to reduce the punishment to the plane, too. I kept one of the center motors mo-tors running, but nevertheless both the wings and the tail were iiadly damaged. It looked for some time as if the plane would capsize. All hands realized the danger we were in, but none of them showed slightest fear. At 17:10 (1:40 p. m. New York time) we sighted a steamer, hull down, and sent a radio message to her. Then we taxied. The ship proved to bo the Ionia. She had no wireiss. After a little the sighted us. Then the fog shut down again and the ship disappeared dis-appeared from view. Later, wpen the fog cleared, we saw that the ship was heading for us. We got alongside at 19:20 (3:20 N. Y. time). At 20:20 were on board the Ionia An effort ef-fort was made to tow the piano but the line parted. A destrover cair.e alongside at 00:35 (8:35 New York time) and took charge of the NC-1. The Ionia landed us at Tlorta. The plane was left at latitude lati-tude 29 degrees, 68 minutes, longitude 30 degrees 15 minutes. The Tribune continues Inclny its eiclnslve pub-Hcntiou pub-Hcntiou of the jiersoijiil ojirrutivcs of llio command- Of llltj rillU'd Stilt t-H HUVy'H tnillriiltlllD- tic seaplanes. Tudny's iimtn llment glvs n vivid picture of iw mKiii of tlin NC-l from the moment It left Newfoundland to tho time It ciimo to grief In the roucli k-iih off thr Azores. It wiim writfu exclusively rr the Salt Lnke Tribune nnd t lie New Yorli World by LleilHo-uut LleilHo-uut Commander TielllnBcr, who commanded the plane, and wua cubled by Mm from tlie Azores lust evening. U In a flnf description of the purl played in the great adventure by the NC-1. BY LIEUTENANT COMMANDER PATRICK PAT-RICK N. L. BELLINGER Commanding NC-1. (Copyright 1919 by the Press Publishing Company, New York World.) (Special cablo dispatch to the New York World.) HORTA, Azores, May 22. At 22:10 Greenwich civiL time (6:10 p. m. New York time) the NC-1 left the water and took up her position in the formation astern of the NC-3 and NTC-4 bound for the Azores, to land at Horta or PoMa Delgada, depending on the gasoline consumption. Tho NC-1 got away with difficulty, due to the heavy load she carried. Finally, after a long run on the surface, she reached planing speed and hopped off. The Three and Four were far ahead. AVe could just make out the NC-4 in the distance. dis-tance. When night cam we lost sight of the other plane entirely. No. 1 station we passed on the port hand. It made us feel good to see our solid friend below be-low us, while we were passing over an array of icebergs which resembled gigantic gi-gantic tombstones. The course we followed fol-lowed took us over one iceberg just at dusk. Our altitude then was 1000 feet, which gave us room and to spare. The other station ships, placed fifty miles apart, we passed in their regular order, some one sido, some on the other. We found that star shells fired by the station ships at night were visible for a much greater distance than were the rays of the searchlights. On one occasion occa-sion two ships were visible to us at the same time. Flies at Height of 1200 Feet. The night was well on before the moon rose and we wondered whether the sky would prove to be clear or overcast. Luckily it was a partially clear moon that rose bright and full, and through passing clouds sometimes obscured It. the sky could always be sufficiently defined to be of inestimable aid to the pilots controlling con-trolling the plane. We flew along at an altitude of 1200 feet and got the air drift during the nightf rom the dropping flares, sighting on th 3m with the drift Indicator. The air was slightly lumpy through the night. A. station ship full In the rays of the moon was almost passed without being seen by us. Then it focused its searchlight search-light upon us to attract our attention. Nobody on board the NC-1 slept during the entire flight. The time was passed verv quickly and we found the work of watching the station ships and checking the air drift very interesting. Hot coffee and sandwiches were available for all hands throughout the flight. Finally, the glow of the dawn appeared in the east and soon thereafter the sun rose. The motors were hitting beautifully beauti-fully and were making a good seventy miles. Everybody was feeling fine and confident that nothing could stop us from making Ponta Delgada. Pilots Climb x Above Dense Fog. But soon wo began to encounter thick overcast patches. Visibility became poor. As we-went through one thick stretch, station ship No. 1 1 loomed dead ahead of us. Some of the station ships radioed weather reports to us. We passed No. 17 on the port hand at a distance of 12 miles at 10:04 g. m. t. (fi:04 New York time) and shortly thereafter, while we were flying, at an altitude of 600 feet, we ran into a thick fog. The pilots climbed to get above the fog. for it was very dense and bedimmed their goggles and the glass over the instruments in-struments very quickly. It was almost impossible to read the instruments. Pilots Baren and M etcher did excellent work and brought the plane to an altitude of 3000 feet, well above the fo. For a while there the sight was a beautiful one. but none of us could appreciate It. We could not see the water through the fog and we could not determine how far we were drifting. We dodged some fog. but soon encountered en-countered more. We continued on, sirle slipping and turning, in an effort to keep |
