A Merimbula pilot has come out of surgery and is doing well after a devastating Tiger Moth crash on the Gold Coast on Monday.
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Ryan Campbell, who was once the youngest person to fly a plane solo around the world, was taken to Princess Alexandra Hospital in a critical condition after being trapped by the legs in the wreckage of the bi-plane at Norwell, near Pimpama on the northern Gold Coast.
The 21-year-old Merimbula man was semi-conscious when authorities arrived, police said.
Mr Campbell’s uncle Andy Campbell said Ryan’s parents and brothers all flew up to be by his side while he is in hospital.
“They were understandably very shocked when they found out what happened and they are still a bit emotional,” Andy Campbell said.
“Ryan is going to be okay, he has sustained injuries but it could have been a lot worse.”
Andy Campbell said Ryan will have to remain in hospital for a number of weeks while they treat his injuries.
It is understood Ryan Campbell alerted emergency services to the crash which he believed was caused by an engine failure or partial engine failure.
“It was just after take off and the aircraft hadn’t reached any great altitude,” said Andy Campbell who is also an experienced pilot and the owner of Merimbula Air Services.
“If the aircraft suffers loss of power at low altitude and you’re forced to land the plane the window of opportunity you have to make decisions is extremely limited.
“He would have had very limited time to work out where he was going to land the plane.
“The area they were in had long grass and they weren’t the best conditions for landing,” he said.
“During his training on this aircraft, he did do a lot of forced landings so he was well versed and current on such situations, but in these circumstances there wasn’t a lot of choice.”
The 58-year-old male passenger died at the scene.
At 19, Mr Campbell became the youngest person to fly solo around the world after 70 days piloting a specially-modified single-engine Cirrus SR22, named 'The Spirit of the Sapphire Coast'.
From the age of six he was determined to become a pilot, and could fly a plane before he could drive a car. He had his first flying lesson at 14, made his first solo flight at 15, got his private pilot's licence at 17 and his commercial licence at 18.
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