Edward Orrick McDonnell (November 13, 1891 – January 6, 1960) was an American

vice admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of Vice ...

and

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

recipient.

Biography

McDonnell was born on November 13, 1891 in

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

. He graduated from the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (USNA, Navy, or Annapolis) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as United States Secre ...

in 1912. He received the

for actions at the United States occupation of Veracruz, 1914. Sent for aeronautical instruction at the Wright Company in

Dayton, Ohio Dayton () is a city in Montgomery County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Ohio, sixth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 137,644 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Dayton metro ...

and flight training at

Naval Air Station Pensacola Naval Air Station Pensacola or NAS Pensacola (formerly NAS/KNAS until changed circa 1970 to allow Nassau International Airport, now Lynden Pindling International Airport, to have IATA code NAS), "The Cradle of Naval Aviation", is a United Sta ...

, McDonnell was designated a naval aviator in March 1915. He then served as an aviation instructor at NAS Pensacola and at NAS Huntington Bay, Long Island, New York. On August 14, 1917, McDonnell took off from NAS Huntington Bay in a seaplane and conducted a test launch of an aerial torpedo. The torpedo hit the water at a bad angle and bounced, nearly hitting his aircraft. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, he served as an aviator in France and Italy from late 1917 to September 1918. On March 10, 1919, Lieutenant Commander McDonnell flew a British-built

Sopwith Camel The Sopwith Camel is a British First World War single-seat biplane fighter aircraft that was introduced on the Western Front in 1917. It was developed by the Sopwith Aviation Company as a successor to the Sopwith Pup and became one of the b ...

off an overhauled gun turret on the USS ''Texas'' and thus became the first man to fly an airplane off a

battleship A battleship is a large, heavily naval armour, armored warship with a main battery consisting of large naval gun, guns, designed to serve as a capital ship. From their advent in the late 1880s, battleships were among the largest and most form ...

. In January 1920, McDonnell transferred to the active reserves. He worked as an executive for several New York City investment houses, eventually becoming a partner at

Hornblower & Weeks Hornblower & Weeks was an investment banking and brokerage firm founded by Henry Hornblower and John W. Weeks in 1888. At its peak in the late 1970s, Hornblower ranked eighth among member firms of the New York Stock Exchange in number of retail ...

. As a reserve naval aviator, McDonnell had active-duty assignments at NAS Pensacola and aboard the seaplane tender . Promoted to commander in July 1940, McDonnell traveled as a naval observer on the first

Pan American Airways Pan American World Airways, originally founded as Pan American Airways and more commonly known as Pan Am, was an airline that was the principal and largest international air carrier and unofficial overseas flag carrier of the United States for ...

flight to the southwest Pacific. In October 1940, he was recalled to active duty. In early 1941, McDonnell served as air attaché in London before being transferred to the U.S. embassy in

Peiping "Beijing" is from pinyin ''Běijīng,'' which is romanized from , the Chinese name for this city. The pinyin system of transliteration was approved by the Chinese government in 1958, but little used until 1979. It was gradually adopted by various ...

. In July 1941, he was given command of Naval Air Station New York City and also made District Aviation Officer for the Third Naval District. After United States entry into

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, McDonnell was promoted to captain in December 1941 and then to rear admiral in 1942. In June 1943, he transferred to a staff position at the Naval Air Training Center in

Corpus Christi, Texas Corpus Christi ( ; ) is a Gulf Coast of the United States, coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat and largest city of Nueces County, Texas, Nueces County with portions extending into Aransas County, T ...

. In May 1944, his rank reverted to captain so that he could command the escort carriers from July to December 1944 and ''Nehenta Bay'' from December 1944 to September 1945.

Released from active duty in December 1945, McDonnell became a rear admiral in the naval reserves. When he retired permanently in December 1951, he was advanced to vice admiral on the reserve retired list. Vice Admiral McDonnell died in the 1960 bombing of National Airlines Flight 2511 in

Bolivia, North Carolina Bolivia is a town in Brunswick County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 149 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Brunswick County. History The town was settled by European Americans in the 1890s and was incorporated i ...

. At the time of his death, he was living in Mill Neck, Long Island and traveling from New York to Miami, where he had a vacation home in

Hobe Sound, Florida Hobe Sound is an unincorporated area and census-designated place (CDP) in Martin County, Florida, United States, located along Florida's Treasure Coast. The population was 13,163 at the 2020 census, up from 11,521 in 2010. Geography Hobe Sound ...

. McDonnell was serving as a director on the boards of Pan Am and

Hertz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or Cycle per second, cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in ter ...

. He was buried at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

Medal of Honor citation

Rank: Ensign, Organization: U.S. Navy, Born:13 November 1891, Baltimore, Md., Accredited to: Maryland, Date of issue: 12/04/1915 Citation:

For extraordinary heroism in battle, engagements of Vera Cruz, 21 and 22 April 1914. Posted on the roof of the Terminal Hotel and landing, Ens. McDonnell established a signal station there day and night, maintaining communication between troops and ships. At this exposed post he was continually under fire. One man was killed and 3 wounded at his side during the 2 days' fighting. He showed extraordinary heroism and striking courage and maintained his station in the highest degree of efficiency. All signals got through, largely due to his heroic devotion to duty.

Navy Cross citation

Rank: Lieutenant Commander, Organization: U.S. Navy, Date of issue: 10/18/1919 Citation:

For distinguished and heroic service as a pilot attached to U.S. naval aviation forces abroad. Lieutenant Commander McDonnell took an important and valuable part in organizing U. S. northern bombing group. He made several extremely hazardous flights over the Alps in machines which were known to be structurally imperfect.

Namesake

The

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...

was named in his memory.

References

: {{DEFAULTSORT:McDonnell, Edward Orrick 1891 births 1960 deaths United States Naval Academy alumni Military personnel from Baltimore United States Navy Medal of Honor recipients Battle of Veracruz (1914) recipients of the Medal of Honor United States Naval Aviators Members of the Early Birds of Aviation United States Navy personnel of World War I Recipients of the Navy Cross (United States) United States Navy reservists American business executives United States air attachés United States Navy World War II admirals Recipients of the Air Medal United States Navy admirals People from Nassau County, New York Mass murder victims People murdered in 1960 People murdered in North Carolina Unsolved murders in the United States Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1960 Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in the United States Burials at Arlington National Cemetery

Biography

Medal of Honor citation

Navy Cross citation

Namesake

See also

References