William Billingsley
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| William Devotie Billingsley (24 April 1887 - 20 June 1913) was an early aviator in the United States Navy.
Born in Winona, Mississippi, Billingsley graduated from the Naval Academy in 1909. On December 2nd, 1912, Ensign Billingsley reported for duty at the Aviation Camp, Annapolis, MD and was assigned to the Navy-Wright B-2 for instruction. Billingsley, designated as Naval Aviator No. 9, was the first naval aviator killed in an airplane crash. On June 20, 1913, Ensign Billingsley, while piloting the B-2 at 1,600 feet over water near Annapolis, Maryland, was thrown from the plane and fell to his death. Admiral John Henry Towers, also unseated in the turbulence, was nearly killed in the same accident as he clung to the plane and fell with it into the water. The Clemson-class destroyer USS Billingsley (DD-293) was named in his honor. |
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This article includes text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.
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