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Thomas Etholen Selfridge (February 8, 1882 – September 17, 1908) was a first lieutenant in the U.S. Army and the first person to die in an airplane crash. He was also the first active-duty member of the U.S. military to die in a crash while on duty.
Sep 17, 2010 · Sep 17, 2010 7:00 AM. Sept. 17, 1908: First Airplane Passenger Death. 1908: During flight trials to win a contract from the U.S. Army Signal Corps, pilot Orville Wright and passenger Lt. Thomas...
- Jason Paur
Oct 28, 2021 · October 28, 2021. Lieutenant Thomas Selfridge died at 8:10 p.m. on September 17, 1908, never having regained consciousness after the crash. Orville Wright suffered severe injuries, remaining...
On Sept. 17, 1908, a modified Wright Brothers aircraft crashed during a demonstration at Fort Myer, Va., seriously injuring pilot Orville Wright and killing the observer, U.S. Army Lt. Thomas E. Selfridge. Selfridge's death was a severe blow, for through his experiments with Alexander Graham Bell, he had gained great technical knowledge and ...
Nov 8, 2023 · Tragically, Selfridge died while aboard the Wright Brothers' two-person aircraft. Ironically, his death was attributed to a lengthened propeller that fractured upon striking a bracing wire during a turn — a modification inadequately tested by the Wrights, ultimately claiming Selfridge's life.
Mar 3, 2024 · Selfridge died that afternoon, the first man killed in a heavier-than-air flying machine. Orville Wright was hospitalized for several weeks. Selfridge is buried in Section 3 of Arlington National Cemetery, near the very spot that he fell to his death.
Selfridge fractured his skull and perished a few hours later. It is amazing really that the first fatality occurred 5 years following the beginning of powered flight; not because of the volume of flight time accumulated, but due to the primitive state of aircraft control.