CRASH OF A WIRRAWAY
AT URANQUINTY, NSW
ON 7 APRIL 1942

Wirraway

Byron Deveson told me that Oppy had volunteered to test fly a Wirraway after it had been re-built after some damage. Pilot Oppy was from Condoblin and would have been born about 1923.

Subject:   Two WW2 crashes in NSW
Date:             Sat, 15 Apr 2000 22:15:32 +1000
From:           Byron Deveson <bdeveson@bigpond.com>

I came across your site while I was showing my sister's father-in-law, Mr Arthur Parkinson of Canberra, what could be found on the Internet.

He was enthralled by the information on your site, and he would like to pass on some information that might be of interest to you.

About 1940 he was receiving training in the Empire Training Scheme (or some similar named scheme) and was on a RAAF Avro Anson that crash landed at Condoblin airport. The pilot misjudged the approach and landed short - and running through a perimeter fence.

The second crash occurred at Uranquinty on 7 April 1942. A pilot with the surname Oppy volunteered to test fly a Wirraway after it had been re-built after some damage. The Wirraway did not pull out of a power dive and the pilot was killed. Pilot Oppy was from Condoblin and would have been born about 1923.

I have a photo of a crashed and burning aircraft - taken at either Sale (Vic) or Laverton, probably prior to 1942. My father was in the Citizens Air Force during the 1930s and trained at Laverton, and was briefly at Sale before going to the SWP area.

I will scan this photo and send it to you - it appears to have been taken only a few seconds after the crash, and I think that it was an aeroplane that my father had been training in. My father (who is dead) once told me that a couple of aircraft that he normally flew in (as aircrew) had crashed while he was not in the aircraft. I would be interested to find out the details of the crash. The pilot was killed and my mother said that his body fat melted into his parachute.

Byron Deveson, Canberra

P.S.  Mr Parkinson is at email: pnsmcmullen@bigpond.com and I am sure he would be happy to provide any additional details.

In Memory of

ROBERT ALEXANDER OPPY

Leading Aircraftman
412025
Royal Australian Air Force
who died on
Tuesday, 7th April 1942. Age 20.

Son of Sydney Robert and Agnes Stella Oppy, of Coogee

Cemetery:  WAGGA WAGGA GENERAL CEMETERY, New South Wales, Australia
Grave Reference/Panel Number: C. of E. Plot. Sec. T. Grave 31.

ARCHIBALD MURRAY McCLYMONT

Leading Aircraftman
414066
Royal Australian Air Force
who died on
Tuesday, 7th April 1942. Age 21

Son of Archibald and Margaret Ida McClymont, of Texas, Queensland.

Cemetery: INVERELL CEMETERY
Grave/Memorial Reference: Presbyterian (Old) Plot. Row 3. Grave 3.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I'd like to thank Byron Deveson of Canberra and Gordon Birkett for their assistance with this web page.

Can anyone help me with more information on this crash?

"Australia @ War" WWII Research Products

This page first produced 21 April 2000

This page last updated 25 January 2020