MANAGEMENT IN AVIATION HISTORY BENCH MARKS
In 1961, the National Guard Bureau began commissioning a series of oil paintings that depict signifi cant historic events within the various early organizations and modern guard units, “to inspire present- day National Guard Soldiers and Airmen.”
For the entire National Guard gallery series of historic paintings, visit
www.nationalguard.mil/ Resources/ImageGallery/
HistoricalPaintings.aspx.
LEFT: “Trail-Blazers in the Sky,” by artist Woodi Ishmael, depicts aviators from New York’s First Aero Company gathered near their JN-4 “Jennies” on Nov. 19, 1916, following their round-trip fl ight of 10 aircraft from Mineola, NY, to Princeton, NJ. The Bureau notes, “The adventurous National Guard pilots set the stage for the accomplishments of the Air National Guard in the years to come.” In June 1916, the New York First Aero Company became the fi rst to be called into Federal service.
RIGHT: “The Great Flood of 1927,” by artist Gil Cohen, depicts the 154th Observation Squadron, Arkansas National Guard, assisting victims of the disastrous Mississippi River fl ood. One of the unit’s JN-4s fl ew 20,000 miles in a little more than onea month, making aerial patrols over levee breaks, delivering food and medicine, and assisting other responders.
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aircraft. McMillen became the unit’s sole aviator. To raise funds for more aircraft, Nebraska’s governor “requested” that McMillen donate his exhibition earnings to the National Guard’s new Aviation Corps. While not on tour, McMillen was often aloft taking the fi rst aerial photographs of several Nebraska cities and experimenting with bomb drops (using one hand to light the dynamite while at the controls). He made night fl ights, adorning his aircraft with electric lights — this impressed his senior offi cers. During this time, aviator Lt. Edgar W. Bagnell [1890- 1958] joined McMillen in the Nebraska National Guard. Military troops were then being deployed along the U.S.-Mexico border to disperse bandits led by Francisco “Pancho” Villa. Instead of border patrol, both Bagnell and McMillen were given the opportunity to attend the Curtiss school in Virginia to obtain the reserve military aviator (RMA) certifi cation required of an offi cer in the Aviation Corps. Because government funding was not available, the Aero Club of America stepped in and paid Bagnell’s and McMillen’s fl ight instruction fees. McMillen earned his RMA within a month and returned to exhibition fl ying in Nebraska. Bagnell took further lessons at the Curtiss school in Mineola, NY, and remained on the east coast between 1916 and 1917 to assist in fundraising for the National Guard. Nicknamed “Happy” by his pals in the National Guard, Bagnell was described as a humorist due to his spontaneous comedic “pantomime and mimicry.” Twelve more volunteers applied for fl ying instructions and joined the Nebraska Aviation Corps, briefl y renamed the Aero Company. When U.S. participation in the European confl ict seemed imminent, McMillen was eager to join the army and trade his Curtiss pusher for a Curtiss JN-4 (“Jenny”). Unfortunately, he had sustained two broken legs, a broken shoulder bone and numerous other injuries in a near-fatal crash during an exhibition fl ight in Iowa. These injuries rendered him physically unacceptable for federal service. McMillen often professed his disappointment
to friends and fellow aviators that he could not take active military duty. He continued to serve as a member of the Nebraska National Guard, earning income as an exhibition fl ier. McMillen died in a crash of his Curtiss aircraft on Sept. 2, 1916, at an event in St. Francis, KS.
A SLOW TAKE-OFF Nebraska historian Robert Casari traced Bagnell’s attempts to remain a military airman after the Mexican border confl ict subsided. Bagnell was assigned to the 3rd Aero Squadron at San Antonio, TX, as a member of the Signal Offi cers Reserves Corps in 1917. Twenty-one guardsmen were trained by the Army prior to the U.S. entering WWI, which Casari points out was, “a miniscule number considering that the country was in a serious international crisis. Only New York had a complete Aero Squadron organized, yet it was equipped with just four trainers at its peak.” WWI ended before Bagnell’s squadron saw service in Europe, and he began civilian life as a test pilot for Glenn Curtiss. He later worked as crew for an airline in Mexico, and held various jobs in the U.S. unrelated to aviation until he found his niche as a machinist in California. He died of an illness there at age 68. The U.S. National Guard did not receive adequate
government funding to be organized eff ectively until the 1920s. Much of its legacy is due to the dedication of men like Nebraska’s McMillen, Schaff er and Bagnell. “While the experiences during WWI were unfortunate,” summarizes Casari. “The Air National Guard in the next decade was fi nally able to take its place in supporting federal military aviation.”
Giacinta Bradley Koontz is an aviation historian, magazine columnist and author who has received the DAR History Medal and honorable mention from the New York Book Festival. She has appeared on the History Channel and in PBS documentaries. For more information, visit
www.GiaBKoontz.com.
DOMmagazine
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