Accident

Teal’S Eleven

Free Years

THE Guild of Air Force Pilots and Air Navigators announced in London, June 25, the award of the coveted Cumberbatch Trophy to Tasman Empire Airways “for safely operating passenger, mail and

cargo services for 11 years (April, 1940, to August, 1951,) with an acci dent-free record.”

The Cumberbatch Trophy, first awarded in 1939, is usually presen ted by the King—or Queen —at the Famborough flying display and ex hibition. It is not an annual award —this being the fifth occasion on which it has been made. As Grand Master of the Guild, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth is expected to pre

sent the Trophy to Mr. G. N. Ro berts, General Manager of TEAL, when he visits England later this year.

During the period covered by the award TEAL made 5,723 flights, carrying 130,791 passengers, 1,677,607 lbs of freight, and 2,245,407 lbs of mail. Routes concerned were Auck land-Sydney, Auckland-Suva, and Wellington-Sydney—and the total mileage covered was 7,407,992 ser vice miles.

Honour For “Bill” Taylor

The Guild also announced the award of the Johnson Memorial Trophy for feats of navigation to Captain P. G. Taylor, well known Australian trans-ocean aviator navigator. The award was made for “excellent work” in survey duties, and is made to Captain Taylor for the second successive year, according to the announcement.

Captain Taylor received the award last year in respect of his survey flight across the previously unflown Tahiti-Mangareva-Easter Island sector of the Southern Pacific route.

The sector from Peru to Easter Is land had already been flown by a Peruvian military plane, which crashed on Easter Island. Captain Taylor made the first east-bound flight on that sector, and a return flight along the same route to his starting .point, Sydney.

Mr. J. West, ADO Aitape, NG, proceeded on Australian leave in July.