 On 2 April 1932, he was taking off from Mascot, New South Wales, in a de Havilland Moth when he struck the perimeter fence and crashed, resulting in major damage to the aircraft and injuries to himself and his passenger.His performance in the early 1930s was highly regarded by his superiors, regularly being assessed as "above average" or "exceptional".From late 1934 to early 1935, he collaborated with the Director of Equipment, George Mackinolty, on an investigation into the state of aircraft production in Australia to highlight shortfalls in local defence in the face of possible future conflict with Japan.