Winner, 9 May 1917
255 Private Thomas Henry Norman Powell, began his war as a member of the 2nd Field Ambulance. He was discharged from the AIF in 1917 to join the Royal Flying Corps so that he could become a pilot.
He was appointed 2nd Lieutenant when he graduated as a pilot on 16 March 1917 and died on 24 April 1917 in an accident.
His dossier records that he died from ‘a fracture of the skull caused from falling from an aeroplane.’ The press version was that he was flying at Northolt Airfield, Ruislip, Middlesex, lost control of his aircraft and crashed. (Bendigo Advertiser, 30 April 1917, p.8)
Norman Powell's mother Sarah worked tirelessly for the Sailors and Soldiers Mothers Association from the early 1920s. You can read about her post-war activities here.
You can read more about the Australian Flying Corps here.
The Coburg Harriers Athletics Club was established in 1896 and still exists. You can read about its history here.
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