Antanas was born on 2 Jan 1938 in Taraugė. He arrived with his parents Domas and Kaze and
brothers Tomas and Victoras. They arrived at Sydney on the Protea 25 March
1949.
Antanas enlisted in the RAAF, and
was attached to the 76th Squadron, as a Flying Officer.
Flying Officer Antanas Karpys, was
killed instantly when his Mirage crashed during aerobatic manoeuvres near the
base on 29 September 1967, aged just 29 years.
The Mirage jet crashed
60 feet from the married quarters at Williamtown Air Base, disintegrating into what
searchers described as "a million pieces".
Karpys was doing a series
of solo stunts at 500 feet when the jet broke up on its 500 up on third roll,
brushing trees and TV aerials on houses in the quarters where he had lived.
The RAAF inquiry team searched
the crash area for pieces of the $2.4 million aircraft, which cut a swathe 80
yards by 700 yards north east of the base. Since their introduction to the RAAF in
1964, five Mirage aircraft have crashed and two pilots, including Flying
Officer Karpys, killed. Another Mirage crashed at the end of the
month, but fortunately the pilot was ejected from the plane and survived.
