Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Son of Thomas and Flora Evelyn Taylor of Burwood, Victoria

Harold enjoyed Tennis, Cricket, Swimming and Football.

Collision between Tiger Moth aircraft T5411 & A17-274 of Number 7 Elementary Flying Training School near Western Junction, Tasmania - both pilots were killed, no other crew on board the aircraft: Leading Aircraftman Eric James Holt 431775 was the pilot of A17-274 & Leading Aircraftman Harold Reginald Taylor 53567 was the pilot of T5411

AIRCRAFT COLLISION.
Two Trainee-Pilots Killed.
MELBOURNE, Jan 30.-LAC Harold Reginald Taylor, of Burwood, Victoria, was killed and LAC Eric James Holt, of Moonee Ponds, Victoria, died as a result of injuries received when two planes crashed in mid- air on Wednesday. Taylor an. Holt, who were pilot-trainees, were clerks before joining the RAAF. Holt was formerly a member of the RAAF Air Training Corps.

LAC Harold Reginald Taylor, who lost his life in an aircraft collision in Tasmania, was the eldest son of Mr and Mrs T. Taylor, of 2 Chester st, Burwood. He was 21, and was educated at Scotch College,  and before enlistment was in the inspectors' department of the Union Bank. He joined the RAAF in April, 1942, and served as a radio operator in the north. Subsequently he remustered to air crew, and was training as a pilot at the time of his death. He took a leading part in youth movements of Burwood Presbyterian Church, and was keenly interested in sport. His father served as a pilot in No 1  Squadron, AFC, in the last war.

FATAL AIRCRAFT
CRASH
Deaths Accidental
A finding of accidental death was returned by the coroner (Mr. R. K. Green) in an inquest on L.A.C. Harold Reginald Taylor (21) and L.A.C. Eric James Holt (18). R.AA.F. trainees, at the Launceston Police Court yesterday.
Taylor was killed in an aircraft accident near Evandale on January 27 and Holt succumbed to injuries received in the accident.
Sgt. W. O. Cartledge conducted the inquest for the police, Fllight-Lieut. V. W. Pennington, medical officer, stated that he visited the scene of the accident and found Holt severely injured. He rendered treatment before Holt was sent to hospital. Witness later examined the body of Taylor and found death to have been due to a fracture of the skull and lacerations to the brain. Mr. G. H. Stancombe,  Evandale, said that about 7.50 a.m. onl January 27 he heard the sound of a crash followed by that of another crash, which was not so loud. He said that a plane had crashed in a paddock on his  father's farm. He went over and found a man who was apparently dead in the aircraft. He saw another plane about 100 yards away. An unconscious man was found in the machine. The planes were  both at an angle to the ground with the tails in the, air and the engines buried in the ground.
Mr. T. G. Stancombe stated that he went to the scene and found the pilot apparently dead. The pilot of a second plane necarby was still breathing. Eleanor Gladys Parker, Evandale, said on January 27  she saw a plane flying low and a few seconds later pieces of aeorplane fabric falling to the ground. The falling fabric was much higher than the plane.
'After I saw the pieces of fabric in the air the plane came down low and circled arounld the house, flying in the direction of the place where the crashed planes were found," witness stated.
She did not hear the crash.
L.A.C. M. L. Armstrong said that on the morning of January 27 he examined a Tiger Moth aircraft flown by Taylor and found it to be airworthy and safe in every way. He could not say what caused the  accident. L.A.C. K. Revell said that he inspected the aircraft flown by Holt and found it to be airworthy. Flight-Lieut. A. C. Kerr said he examined the two aircraft which had been involved in the crash  and were badly damaged. All he could determine from the examination was that the planes had collided. Marks on certain parts of the aircraft and their relative positions indicated that they had  collided.
Both men were wearing parachutes at the time of the crash, but in his opinion had not sufficient altitude to use them.
The coroner said in his finding that all aircraft flown by Taylor came into collision with a machine flown by Holt on January 27. Taylor met his death accidentally and Holte died from injuries accidentally received. He was quite satisfied no one was at fault.