William Pershing Benedict
William Pershing Benedict | |
|---|---|
| Born | William Pershing Benedict 20 July 1918 |
| Died | 31 August 1974 (aged 56) |
William Pershing Benedict (July 20, 1918 – August 31, 1974) was an American pilot who was born in
U.S. Army Air Forces. 18 months after joining the U.S. Army Air Forces, at 26 years of age, Benedict achieved the rank of Major and was made Squadron Commander. He is best known for being the first American man to land an aircraft on the North Pole
.
Early life
Benedict joined the
P-47 Thunderbolts
. He returned to the U.S. on leave and married his Canadian fiancée on January 7, 1945. He then returned to Europe for the remainder of the war.
Landing at North Pole
The Soviet Union had already accomplished this task unbeknownst to the U.S. Government at the time.C-47 modified with skis. Readings taken by the scientists accompanying Benedict and his crew verified that they were the first American men to set foot on the exact geographical North Pole.
Post-Air Force years
Benedict retired from the Air Force in 1962 with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He then worked as a firefighting pilot in California where he was killed in a plane crash on August 31, 1974, while flying a Grumman F7F Tigercat dropping fire retardant in the Ukiah area.
Literature
- Common, Charles A.: Born to Fly: Some Life Sketches of Lieutenant Colonel William H. Benedict, self-published in 2002; revised in 2006.
- Smith, E.A.W.: Benedict's Wars, Red Leader Press, 2005. ISBN 1-885832-37-0.
- Thruelsen, Major Richard and Arnold, Lieutenant Elliot: Mediterranean Sweep, chapter titled, The Scroungers, pg. 63–79, Duell, Sloan, and Pearce, 1944.
External links
- Review of Compton's book. (In Italian)
- Transcript of a 1997 interview with Fletcher, mentioning Benedict and the flight to the North Pole.
- Biography on polar landing site
- Excerpts from Benedict's War
References
- ^ "Polar Approaches Infosheets" (PDF).