Selfridge was born in San Francisco in 1882. His father, Thomas O Selfridge Jr. and grandfather, Thomas O Selfridge Sr. were both Rear Admirals in the US Navy. Thomas graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1903, the same class as General MacArthur. Before his assignment with the Aeronautical Division, he served in both the 5th and 1st Field Artillery Regiments.
Stationed at Fort Myer, Virginia, Selfridge was one of three pilots trained to fly the US Army Dirigible number one. He also became the Army's representative to the Aerial Experiment Association. The AEA produced a number of early experimental aircraft, including the Redwing, which Selfridge designed, the Cygnet, designed by Alexander Graham Bell(flown by Selfridge) and the White Wing, in which Selfridge became the first US military officer to pilot a modern aircraft.
In 1908, The Army had reached a tentative agreement to purchase on of the Wright Flyers. When the Wrights visited Ft. Myer, Selfridge arranged to be a passenger on a demonstration flight. A little over 5 minutes into this flight, a propeller broke, leading to a catastrophic failure of the Flyer and sending it head first to the ground. Orville Wright was badly injured, but Selfridge suffered a fracture at the base of his skull. He underwent surgery, but died three hours later having never regained consciousness. It was speculated that he may have survived if he had been wearing a helmet. This led to all early US Army pilots having to wear heavy headgear for protection.
Selfridge was buried in the cemetery adjacent to Ft. Myer, Arlington National Cemetery.
Selfridge can certainly be considered as one of our first military aviation pioneers. His service can be seen as inspiration to many of our early pilots.
Thank you Thomas Selfridge for your contributions and commitment to pioneering excellence.
Selfridge, seated just before the final flight.
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