Arthur L. Welsh
Encyclopedia
Arthur L. "Al" Welsh was a Jewish, Russia
n-born American
pioneer aviator who became the first flight instructor for the Wright Brothers. He was killed in an aircrash in 1912.
, Ukraine
, which was then part of the Russian Empire
. He was one of six children of Abraham and Dvora Wellcher. In 1890 the family emigrated to Philadelphia, speaking no English. He attended both public school and Hebrew school
there. His father died when he was 13-years old and he was sent to Washington, D.C.
to live with relatives shortly after his mother remarried. He was a top student who did best in math and mechanics, and was excellent at swimming.
He changed his surname to "Welsh" when he joined the United States Navy
as a 20-year-old, expecting greater success in the Navy with a name that didn't sound "too Jewish". He received an honorable discharge after a tour of duty that lasted four years. He contracted typhoid fever
one month after he was discharged and spent four months recovering in a hospital.
after seeing a flight demonstration in Virginia
, but did not receive a job offer with the company. He traveled to Dayton, Ohio
, convinced that he could make a positive impression in person. The brothers gave him a job in the Wright Company
's new flying exhibition division, even though he didn't have the experience they were looking for.
He began his orientation with the Wright Company in Dayton and traveled to the company's winter flying location in Montgomery, Alabama
where he showed strong potential as a pilot with Orville as his instructor. Called back to Dayton, he was asked to help establish the company's flight school at Huffman Prairie
. He worked there as an instructor and test pilot
alongside pioneers Frank Trenholm Coffyn
and Ralph Johnstone
. There he taught students including Hap Arnold
, who would become a five-star general leading the United States Army Air Corps
during World War II
. He set multiple records for flight time and altitude and won several flying competitions.
Student George William Beatty
flew his first solo flight
on July 23, 1911, and that same day flew as a passenger with Welsh to establish a new American two-man altitude record of 1,860 feet, one of Welsh's many such records.
at the United States Army Aviation School
in College Park, Maryland
on a Wright Model C
that had recently been purchased by the Aeronautical Division, U.S. Signal Corps
. The United States Army Signal Corps
had established a series of ten acceptance tests for the aircraft, and Welsh and Hazelhurst were taking the Model C on a climbing test, the next to last in the series required by the Army. Shortly after takeoff, the plane pitched over while making a turn and fell 30 feet (9.1 m) to the ground, killing both crew members. They had both been ejected from their seats, with Welsh suffering a crushed skull and Hazelhurst a broken neck
. The New York Times
described Welsh as "one of the most daring professional aviators in America" and his flying partner Hazelhurst as being among the "most promising of the younger aviators of the army".
A board of inquiry was formed by the United States Secretary of War
Henry Lewis Stimson, which concluded that Welsh was at fault in the crash, having risen to 150 feet, with the plan to dive at a 45-degree angle in order to gain momentum for a climb, but had made the dive too soon, with the board's results reported in the June 29, 1912 issue of Scientific American
. In a 2003 interview, a cousin of Welsh's reported the family's belief that the tests were run too rapidly and that Welsh was doomed to fail by carrying too much fuel and a passenger, giving a craft that would be unable to make the planned maneuver with the weight it was carrying.
Former student George William Beatty
, who had set up his own flying instruction school on Long Island
, replaced Welsh as the government's test pilot at the College Park facility.
in Washington, D.C.
, then an Orthodox Jewish
synagogue, with services led by the congregation's cantor
Joseph Glushak. The funeral was attended by Orville Wright and his sister Katherine, who had traveled from Dayton, Ohio
and who were still in mourning for their brother Wilbur, who had died less than two weeks earlier. Welsh was buried at the Adas Israel Cemetery in the Douglass
neighborhood of Washington, D.C.
Welsh was survived by his wife Annie, who died in 1926, and by their two-year-old daughter Ailene. His daughter lived into her 90s, living in England and adopting the name Abigail and keeping the last name Welsh, and recalled in a 2003 her recollections of the warmth and kindness of members of what she called the "Wright Circle" and how she had crawled through the legs of Hap Arnold as a toddler when he visited the family home. She expressed her regret that "I wish I had known my father. I heard so many good things about him."
In his 1949 book Global Mission, Hap Arnold credited Welsh with having "taught me all he knew, or rather, he had taught me all he could teach. He knew much more."
Welsh grew up in the same Washington D.C. neighborhood, Southwest, as another Russian immigrant, Asa Yoelson. Asa grew up and changed his name to Al Jolson
and became a legendary singer. It's not on record if the two ever met. Welch and Jolson however favor one another when photos are studied.
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n-born American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
pioneer aviator who became the first flight instructor for the Wright Brothers. He was killed in an aircrash in 1912.
Early life
He was born as Laibel Welcher on August 14, 1881, in KievKiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
, Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
, which was then part of the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
. He was one of six children of Abraham and Dvora Wellcher. In 1890 the family emigrated to Philadelphia, speaking no English. He attended both public school and Hebrew school
Hebrew school
Hebrew school can be either the Jewish equivalent of Sunday school - an educational regimen separate from secular education, focusing on topics of Jewish history and learning the Hebrew language, or a primary, secondary or college level educational institution where some or all of the classes are...
there. His father died when he was 13-years old and he was sent to Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
to live with relatives shortly after his mother remarried. He was a top student who did best in math and mechanics, and was excellent at swimming.
He changed his surname to "Welsh" when he joined the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
as a 20-year-old, expecting greater success in the Navy with a name that didn't sound "too Jewish". He received an honorable discharge after a tour of duty that lasted four years. He contracted typhoid fever
Typhoid fever
Typhoid fever, also known as Typhoid, is a common worldwide bacterial disease, transmitted by the ingestion of food or water contaminated with the feces of an infected person, which contain the bacterium Salmonella enterica, serovar Typhi...
one month after he was discharged and spent four months recovering in a hospital.
Pilot
After his recuperation, Welsh moved back to Washington, D.C. While working as a bookkeeper at a local gas company, Welsh wrote a letter to the Wright brothersWright brothers
The Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur , were two Americans credited with inventing and building the world's first successful airplane and making the first controlled, powered and sustained heavier-than-air human flight, on December 17, 1903...
after seeing a flight demonstration in Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, but did not receive a job offer with the company. He traveled to Dayton, Ohio
Dayton, Ohio
Dayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...
, convinced that he could make a positive impression in person. The brothers gave him a job in the Wright Company
Wright Company
The Wright Company was the commercial aviation business venture of the Wright Brothers, established by them in 1909 in conjunction with several prominent industrialists from New York and Detroit with the intention of capitalizing on their invention of the practical airplane. It maintained a...
's new flying exhibition division, even though he didn't have the experience they were looking for.
He began his orientation with the Wright Company in Dayton and traveled to the company's winter flying location in Montgomery, Alabama
Montgomery, Alabama
Montgomery is the capital of the U.S. state of Alabama, and is the county seat of Montgomery County. It is located on the Alabama River southeast of the center of the state, in the Gulf Coastal Plain. As of the 2010 census, Montgomery had a population of 205,764 making it the second-largest city...
where he showed strong potential as a pilot with Orville as his instructor. Called back to Dayton, he was asked to help establish the company's flight school at Huffman Prairie
Huffman Prairie
Huffman Prairie, also known as Huffman Prairie Flying Field or Huffman Field is part of Ohio's Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park...
. He worked there as an instructor and test pilot
Test pilot
A test pilot is an aviator who flies new and modified aircraft in specific maneuvers, known as flight test techniques or FTTs, allowing the results to be measured and the design to be evaluated....
alongside pioneers Frank Trenholm Coffyn
Frank Trenholm Coffyn
- Biography :He was born in Charleston, South Carolina on October 24, 1878 to George M. Coffyn, a banker.He married Louise D. Adams around 1900 and had the following children: Nancy Lou Coffyn and Kingsland A. Coffyn ....
and Ralph Johnstone
Ralph Johnstone
Ralph Johnstone was a pioneering early aviator who died in a crash.-Biography:He was born in Kansas City, Missouri in 1886. He started as a vaudeville trick bicycle rider. With a signature finale of performing a mid-air forward somersault. He became a Wright exhibition team pilot...
. There he taught students including Hap Arnold
Henry H. Arnold
Henry Harley "Hap" Arnold was an American general officer holding the grades of General of the Army and later General of the Air Force. Arnold was an aviation pioneer, Chief of the Air Corps , Commanding General of the U.S...
, who would become a five-star general leading the United States Army Air Corps
United States Army Air Corps
The United States Army Air Corps was a forerunner of the United States Air Force. Renamed from the Air Service on 2 July 1926, it was part of the United States Army and the predecessor of the United States Army Air Forces , established in 1941...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. He set multiple records for flight time and altitude and won several flying competitions.
Student George William Beatty
George William Beatty
George William Beatty was a pioneer aviator who set early altitude and distance records, including one record set on the same day that he flew his first solo flight.-Early life and education:...
flew his first solo flight
First solo flight
The first solo flight of a new pilot comprises that pilot completing a take off, and usually a short flight and safe landing, by him or herself...
on July 23, 1911, and that same day flew as a passenger with Welsh to establish a new American two-man altitude record of 1,860 feet, one of Welsh's many such records.
Death
He died in a crash on June 11, 1912, while flying with Leighton Wilson Hazelhurst, Jr.Leighton Wilson Hazelhurst, Jr.
Leighton Wilson Hazelhurst, Jr. was a pioneer aviator who was killed in an aircrash with Al Welsh piloting. Hazelhurst was the third United States Army officer to die in an aviation accident.-Biography:...
at the United States Army Aviation School
United States Army Aviation School
The United States Army Aviation School is located at Fort Rucker, Alabama-History:In 1912 the facility was located in College Park, Maryland.* Organic Army Aviation first entered into combat in November 1942 on the coast of North Africa...
in College Park, Maryland
College Park, Maryland
College Park is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, USA. The population was 30,413 at the 2010 census. It is best known as the home of the University of Maryland, College Park, and since 1994 the city has also been home to the "Archives II" facility of the U.S...
on a Wright Model C
Wright Model C
|-References:*], Dr. Richard Stimson, The Wright Stories...
that had recently been purchased by the Aeronautical Division, U.S. Signal Corps
Aeronautical Division, U.S. Signal Corps
The Aeronautical Division, Signal Corps was the world's first heavier-than-air military aviation organization and the progenitor of the United States Air Force. A component of the U.S...
. The United States Army Signal Corps
United States Army Signal Corps
The United States Army Signal Corps develops, tests, provides, and manages communications and information systems support for the command and control of combined arms forces. It was established in 1860, the brainchild of United States Army Major Albert J. Myer, and has had an important role from...
had established a series of ten acceptance tests for the aircraft, and Welsh and Hazelhurst were taking the Model C on a climbing test, the next to last in the series required by the Army. Shortly after takeoff, the plane pitched over while making a turn and fell 30 feet (9.1 m) to the ground, killing both crew members. They had both been ejected from their seats, with Welsh suffering a crushed skull and Hazelhurst a broken neck
Cervical fracture
A cervical fracture is commonly called a broken neck. There are seven cervical vertebrae in the human neck, and the fracture of any can be catastrophic. The most common causes are traffic accidents or diving into shallow water...
. The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
described Welsh as "one of the most daring professional aviators in America" and his flying partner Hazelhurst as being among the "most promising of the younger aviators of the army".
A board of inquiry was formed by the United States Secretary of War
United States Secretary of War
The Secretary of War was a member of the United States President's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War," was appointed to serve the Congress of the Confederation under the Articles of Confederation...
Henry Lewis Stimson, which concluded that Welsh was at fault in the crash, having risen to 150 feet, with the plan to dive at a 45-degree angle in order to gain momentum for a climb, but had made the dive too soon, with the board's results reported in the June 29, 1912 issue of Scientific American
Scientific American
Scientific American is a popular science magazine. It is notable for its long history of presenting science monthly to an educated but not necessarily scientific public, through its careful attention to the clarity of its text as well as the quality of its specially commissioned color graphics...
. In a 2003 interview, a cousin of Welsh's reported the family's belief that the tests were run too rapidly and that Welsh was doomed to fail by carrying too much fuel and a passenger, giving a craft that would be unable to make the planned maneuver with the weight it was carrying.
Former student George William Beatty
George William Beatty
George William Beatty was a pioneer aviator who set early altitude and distance records, including one record set on the same day that he flew his first solo flight.-Early life and education:...
, who had set up his own flying instruction school on Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
, replaced Welsh as the government's test pilot at the College Park facility.
Personal
Welsh's funeral was held on June 13 at Adas Israel CongregationAdas Israel Congregation (Washington, D.C.)
Adas Israel, located in the Cleveland Park neighborhood, is the largest Conservative synagogue in Washington, D.C.-History:The congregation was founded in 1869 by 69 members of the Washington Hebrew Congregation who objected to that congregation's move towards Reform Judaism.Sermons were given in...
in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, then an Orthodox Jewish
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
synagogue, with services led by the congregation's cantor
Hazzan
A hazzan or chazzan is a Jewish cantor, a musician trained in the vocal arts who helps lead the congregation in songful prayer.There are many rules relating to how a cantor should lead services, but the idea of a cantor as a paid professional does not exist in classical rabbinic sources...
Joseph Glushak. The funeral was attended by Orville Wright and his sister Katherine, who had traveled from Dayton, Ohio
Dayton, Ohio
Dayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...
and who were still in mourning for their brother Wilbur, who had died less than two weeks earlier. Welsh was buried at the Adas Israel Cemetery in the Douglass
Douglass, Washington, D.C.
Douglass is a residential neighborhood in Southeast Washington, D.C., on the eastern side of St. Elizabeths Hospital, on the border of the Congress Heights Metro Station. It is bounded by Suitland Parkway to the north and east, Alabama Avenue to the south, and the St. Elizabeths campus to the west...
neighborhood of Washington, D.C.
Welsh was survived by his wife Annie, who died in 1926, and by their two-year-old daughter Ailene. His daughter lived into her 90s, living in England and adopting the name Abigail and keeping the last name Welsh, and recalled in a 2003 her recollections of the warmth and kindness of members of what she called the "Wright Circle" and how she had crawled through the legs of Hap Arnold as a toddler when he visited the family home. She expressed her regret that "I wish I had known my father. I heard so many good things about him."
In his 1949 book Global Mission, Hap Arnold credited Welsh with having "taught me all he knew, or rather, he had taught me all he could teach. He knew much more."
Welsh grew up in the same Washington D.C. neighborhood, Southwest, as another Russian immigrant, Asa Yoelson. Asa grew up and changed his name to Al Jolson
Al Jolson
Al Jolson was an American singer, comedian and actor. In his heyday, he was dubbed "The World's Greatest Entertainer"....
and became a legendary singer. It's not on record if the two ever met. Welch and Jolson however favor one another when photos are studied.
See also
- List of aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents before 1916
- List of accidents and incidents involving military aircraft (pre-1925)
External links
- Arthur L. Welsh at Early Aviators