Cape Flight
The feat of Squadron-Leader Gayford and Flight- Lieutenant Nicholetts in beating the world's record in their non-stop flight to South Africa has an importance to which some other recent record-making attempts have no claim. If Lady Bailey, in flying over the now established route to South Africa, had succeeded by a few hours in beating Mrs. Mollison's record, she would have shown her pluck and endurance, but would have added nothing to our knowledge either of routes or of machines. The R.A.F. flight belongs to a different order of achieve- ment. It is a real test of the capacity of the Fairey Napier machine. It shows what kind of long-distance flight, covering in this case more than 5,000 miles, is practicable in peace or war for two experienced pilots in a perfected aeroplane. It is a test for the manufac- turers, and a useful advertisement to the world of the excellence of English workmanship. Just as Flight- Lieutenant Stainforth proved the speed supremacy of the Rolls-Royce seaplane, and Mr. Cyril Uwins proved the superior capacity of the Vickers Vespa aeroplane for gaining great height, so these R.A.F. officers have estab- lished the endurance capacity of the British Fairey Napier.
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