James Clark Edgerton (February 2, 1896 – October 26, 1973) was a U.S. Army

aviator An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators because they a ...

and

Air Mail Airmail (or air mail) is a mail transport service branded and sold on the basis of at least one leg of its journey being by air. Airmail items typically arrive more quickly than surface mail, and usually cost more to send. Airmail may be the ...

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...

who as a young lieutenant flew the

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, leg on the first day of scheduled Air Mail service in the

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on May 15, 1918. Edgerton, who retired as a

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

, was also credited with being the first pilot ever to fly into a

thunderstorm A thunderstorm, also known as an electrical storm or a lightning storm, is a storm characterized by the presence of lightning and its acoustics, acoustic effect on the Earth's atmosphere, known as thunder. Relatively weak thunderstorm ...

and with devising the first fire-extinguishing system installed for an aircraft engine. He also helped to organize a civilian pilot-training program and during

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he served as executive officer for air operations of the War Department."James Edgerton, Air Mail Pioneer: Colonel Who Flew on First Regular Route Dies at 77". ''New York Times'' Oct 30, 1973, p. 46 During his first Air Mail flight from Philadelphia to Washington Edgerton flew into a thunderstorm at 10,000 feet. "One instant the airplane became a tremendous

elevator An elevator (American English) or lift (Commonwealth English) is a machine that vertically transports people or freight between levels. They are typically powered by electric motors that drive traction cables and counterweight systems suc ...

, leaping skyward hundreds of feet," Edgerton noted after landing at the Polo Grounds in Washington, "then the bottom promptly falls out, dizzy fall of hundreds of feet. I was attacked by solid waves of air.""PILOT STORIES: James C. Edgerton"
Smithsonian Institution National Postal Museum Edgerton flew 52 trips over a total of 7,155 miles, spending 107 hours in the air and making only one

forced landing A forced landing is a landing by an aircraft made under factors outside the pilot's control, such as the failure of engines, systems, components, or weather which makes continued flight impossible. However, the term also means a landing that has ...

as an Army Air Mail pilot. When the Post Office Department took over flying operations of the Air Mail Service later in 1918, Edgerton stayed with the service eventually becoming the Superintendent of Flying Operations. Later he organized and became superintendent of the Radio Service of the Post Office Department establishing its first aeronautical radio stations.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Edgerton, James Clark United States airmail pilots 1896 births 1973 deaths