Kapell played the final concert of his Australian tour in Geelong , Victoria , on October 22 , 1953 , a recital which included a performance of Chopin 's " Funeral March " Sonata . Days after the concert , he set off on his return flight to the United States , telling reporters at Mascot Airport he would never return to Australia because of the harsh comments from some Australian critics . He was aboard BCPA Flight 304 when on the morning of October 29 , 1953 , the plane , descending to land in fog , struck the treetops and crashed on Kings Mountain , south of the San Francisco airport . Everyone on board died . His friend , broadcaster Alistair Cooke , covered Kapell 's death in his '' Letter from America '' on October 30 , 1953 . On November 2 , Kapell ’s funeral took place at the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue in New York ; interment followed at the Mount Ararat Cemetery near Farmingdale , New York
BCPA Flight 304
BCPA Flight 304
William Kapell