3 MAY 1924, Page 9

* * There have been several dramatic features about the

great flight round the world which is being attempted by British and American airmen and at the eleventh hour by the French pilot, Lieutenant Peltier d'Oisy. After preliminary bad luck the British expedition, under Squadron-Leader McLaren, made splendid headway from Corfu to Western India without any mishap. At the week-end, however, came the forced landing at Patin; 172 miles from Ajmere, where engine repairs will probably necessitate a fortnight's delay. At the moment of writing the American expedition under Major Martin is at Dutch Harbour, Aleutian Islands. Like a bolt from the blue the French pilot started out on April 25th on. his attempt to fly to Japan. His first day's flight took him 1,240 miles in eleven hours without any stops to Bucharest. On April 26th, he flew from Bucharest to Aleppo in Syria, a distance of 940 miles in eight hours. On Sunday he reached Baghdad, and the latest report announces his arrival at Karachi. The further progress of the British expedition will be anxiously awaited. * * *