Abstract
SIR PHILIP SASSOON, speaking in the House of Commons recently, outlined fresh proposals for the development of Empire air communications. These, he stated, represent His Majesty's Government's considered scheme, but are necessarily provisional until the other Empire Governments concerned have examined them. There are three main features: an improvement on present time schedules, an increase of frequency of service, and the automatic transfer of all first-class mail to air transport. The new proposals envisage a time of seven days to Australia and four days to the Cape, with proportionate times for intermediate places. This will be, made possible by progressive development of ground organisation to enable night flying to operate over the whole of the routes. There will be possibly five services a week to India, three to Singapore and East Africa, and two to Australia and South Africa respectively. It is hoped to keep the charge the same as the present Empire rate of l?d. by reducing the permissible weight to half an ounce. It is suggested that correspondence covering eight sides of a special light paper can be sent within that limit. The new services will cater for passengers as well as mail. The completion of the negotiations, provision of the necessary fleet, ground organisation, etc., will take at least two years, and the Postmaster-General has stated that there is little possibility of the introduction of the new postal rate before 1937.
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British Empire Air Mails. Nature 135, 17 (1935). https://doi.org/10.1038/135017c0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/135017c0