AEROPLANE CRASH.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 21144, 30 March 1932, Page 6

AEROPLANE CRASH.

MYSTERIOUS ACCIDENT. ACTOR SERIOUSLY INJURED LYING TWO HOURS ON GROUND. A mysterious aeroplane accident occurred on the Sandridge golf links, p ort Melbourne, about 5 a.m. on Saturday March 19, as a result of which Mr. Campbell Copelin, aged 31, a well-known actor ■who was flying in the machine, Wa j badly injured. Nobody appears to have witnessed the accident, and it was net until nearly two hours after it had occurred that a work man who was passing this somewhat desolate spot, heard tho voice of a man evidently in great pain. The aeroplane was a de Havilland Moth, and belonged to the Victorian Aero Club, the secretary of which, Mr. G. Moore, said that the incident was inexplicable. " Copelin" said Mr. Moore, " was a pupil at t^3 club last May, but, as far as I know he did not obtain a flying certificate here although he may have obtained one some' where else." Mr. Copelin was found by Stanley Parrott, a coxswain, shortly before 7 a .m when he was walking to his work. Hearing moans, he looked through some trees on the golf links, and to his astonishment he saw a smashed aeroplane on the ground and a man lying several yards from it. " Another man came along on a bicycle about this time," said Mr Parrott, " and so I ran over to the dredge to obtain assistance, leaving the injured airman in the care of the stranger on the bicycle." Some men from a dredge then arrived, and tried to make Mr. Copelin more comfortable, but it was evident that he was dazed and in considerable pain, and that his back had been injured, as he could not get off the ground. He was given some water. All he could say was, "There was a crash; it was all very midden, and here I am. I don't know just what occurred." Extent of Airman's Injuries. In the meantime some men in a tugboat had taken the news to the nearest available telephone station at Dockhead, where the officer in charge telephoned the Victorian Civil Ambulance Service. An ambulance arrived a few minutes later and took Mr. Copelin to a hospital, where a hurried examination disclosed that he had fractured some bones in his spine. The diagnosis, however, was subject to confirmation after X-ray plates had been developed. Reconstructing the accident from the meagre details then available, it was evident that the aeroplane had landed on the golf links, and had overturned while it was running along the ground, as the wheel-marks showed that it had travelled about 25 yards before the left wing struck a tree. The machine must hav« then swerved suddenly on its nose and turned completely over on to its back, throwing the pilot out of his seat. The propeller had snapped off, the wings wer9 both broken, and the rudder was completely smashed. The engine was apparently undamaged. Apparently Mr. Copelin had taken the rear seat of the dual-controlled machine and had not been strapped in. The front seat was slightly " telescoped." The secretary of the club said he thought that it would take about £3OO to repair the machine. Tho machine was insured. Notable Actor's Career. Mr. Copelin's wife, who visited her husband in hospital, said that he had informed her that he had been lying on the ground for two hours in great agony before he was found. She said her husband had flown aeroplanes during the war. He was too ill to be interviewed. Mr. C'opelin is regarded as one of the finest comedy actors in Australia. He was born in England and came to Australia several years ago to gain experience of station life. Ho has had a very varied experience on stations in Gippsland and in Queensland. At one time he assisted in salvaging a wrecked ship off the Queensland coast. Later he joined the stage and made his first a P* pearance in J. C. Williamson s production " Sniilm' Through." While his way to Melbourne from Adelaide to take a prominent part in "Warm Corner." at the Comedy Theatre last )' ear > he fell out of the Adelaide express when the train was travelling at 30 miles an hour. He escaped injury.