INJURIES FATAL

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 50, Issue 151, 8 April 1930, Page 6

INJURIES FATAL

DEATH OF A PILOT. THE CRASH AT PORIRUA. NOSE-DIVE INTO MUD. (Per Press Association.) WELLINGTON, April 7. Pilot-Officer Morris John Cameron, of the New Zealand Territorial Air Force, died after crashing in a Velie Monocoupe aeroplane at Porirua today. He received serious injuries and died this evening in the Wellington Hospital without regaining consciousThe machine was observed to be cqming down in a spin. It was flattened out when near the ground, but the engine either stalled or the pilot cut it out too soon, and the ’plane nose-dived into the mud. Mr Cameron suffered a fractured skull, a fractured jaw and a fractured left leg: He was extricated from the machine with much difficulty and was removed to the Wellington Hospital. The nose of the machine was badly damaged. During the morning, the owner of the machine, Mr O. Cotterill, of Lower Hutt, had been flying. He made several trips and then Mr Cameron went up. He was stunting prior to the smash and appeared to have perfect control of the ’plane. The Monocoupe was imported by Mr Cotterill oyer a year ago. After being rigged, Mr Cotterill learned to fly it, and just before the pageant at Christchurch in February he passed his pilot’s examination in the machine. It was flown at the Canterbury pageant, but its low-powered engine did not allow it to get placed in any of the events. ... Pilot-Officer Cameron received his initial training in New Zealand during the war period, and then went to England, arriving there too late to go on active service. He received a good deal of training with the Royal Air Force and was looked upon as a competent pilot. He had attended, since the war, some of the refresher courses at the Wigram Aerodrome. He had lately been in business as a motor garage proprietor in the Hutt Valley. Beside the inquest, a board of inquiry will be set up under the aviation regulations and will endeavour to ascertain the cause of the accident.