When Lieut Thomas E Selfridge became the first death in a crash of a powered airplane in 1908, who was the pilot?
Thomas Selfridge Thomas Selfridge Thomas Etholen Selfridge (February 8, 1882 – September 17, 1908) was the first person to die in an airplane crash. A first lieutenant in the U.S. Army, he was also the first Active Duty member of the U.S. military to die in a crash while on duty. He was killed while seated as a passenger in the Wright Flyer, on a demonstration flight piloted by Orville Wright. Selfridge was born on February 8, 1882, in San Francisco, California. He was the grandson of Rear Admiral Thomas Oliver Selfridge Sr. He graduated from the United States Military Academy in
Thomas Selfridge W. Baldwin, which flew three feet off the ground for a distance of about 100 feet. Selfridge designed "Red Wing", the Aerial Experiment Association's first powered aircraft. On March 12, 1908, the "Red Wing", piloted by Frederick W. Baldwin, raced over the frozen surface of Keuka Lake near Hammondsport, New York, on runners and managed to fly 318 feet, 11 inches, before crashing. "Red Wing" was destroyed in a crash on its second flight on March 17, 1908, and only the engine could be salvaged. On May 19, 1908, Selfridge became the first US military officer to pilot a modern