Tom Grieve

A few short months ago, I posted on this site, an account of an attempt to fly from Pattaya to Crown Airfield by three Flexwing microlight aircraft as representative's of OCA. If you haven't already done so. you can read the story HERE. It's with great sadness that I have to tell of the accidental death, of the leader of that group of flyers, Tom Grieve. After our time in Ubon and Loeng Nok Tha, Neville Wareham. Jim Curtis and myself travelled to Pattaya for a joint holiday. We arrived on Sunday 18th November to be informed by Taff Williams, of a flying accident the previous day.

I listened, with a sinking feeling as Taff informed me that Tom had passed away the previous day after crashing into a pier in Pattaya Bay. As the days went by, my companions supported me as I focused on contacting Tom's family and friends. We attended a wake organised by his friends, where we learned the details of his funeral service and the location of the temple where his body lay awaiting burial. We saw the many wreath's left by family and friends and knew we wanted to show our respect to a friend of OCA.

We purchased a wreath on behalf of myself and OCA which we laid in a prominent position beside his coffin. Tom Grieve was a man who's generous nature played a part in his death. As he had done for me, he answered the appeal, in this case to scatter the ashes of a stranger, over a place he had loved in life. Things went badly wrong and Tom Grieve, an adventurer of the old school, lost his life. His obituary has been published in the Microlight Flyer magazine of January 2013. The editor Geoff Hill, has kindly arranged for it be made available for exclusive publication on this website HERE