Texas Death Index #11896
Widowed, White, Male, Southern Regional Director for American Airlines.
Wellington was the fourth of five children born to Francis Robert McFail and Elsie Elizabeth Irons.
He was one of only 10 recipient's of the Airmail Flyers Medal of Honor.
Citation for the "Airmail Flyers Medal of Honor":
For extraordinary achievement while piloting air mail plane No. NC 12285 on a flight from Texarkana to Dallas, Texas, on the afternoon of December 6, 1933. Pilot McFail left Texarkana at 1:10 p.m. and shortly after 1:50 p.m., while flying at an altitude of 5900 feet, a slight motor vibration was noted, followed later by a rending crash and jar, as the motor ripped loose from the plane. Pilot McFail's head and body were forced to his knees as the plane was immediately whipped up in a vertical climb to about 6500 feet as a result of the loss of the weight of the motor. He could not open his eyes for the moment but on regaining muscular control he noted the plane had reached the peak of its climb and was falling off to the right. It went into a half turn with tail down and right wing pointed down. The pilot felt pressure on the controls and righted the ship into a dive. He unbuckled his belt to jump but realizing that he had some control over the plane he decided that he could land it with a good chance of not hurting the ship or himself. He remembered that there was an emergency landing field in the vicinity and re-buckled his belt, determined to land the plane in the field if possible. Relying on his experience with a glider, he maneuvered a figure S and brought the plane to a landing, without further damage to the plane or to himself and with no damage to the mail.
Widowed, White, Male, Southern Regional Director for American Airlines.
Wellington was the fourth of five children born to Francis Robert McFail and Elsie Elizabeth Irons.
He was one of only 10 recipient's of the Airmail Flyers Medal of Honor.
Citation for the "Airmail Flyers Medal of Honor":
For extraordinary achievement while piloting air mail plane No. NC 12285 on a flight from Texarkana to Dallas, Texas, on the afternoon of December 6, 1933. Pilot McFail left Texarkana at 1:10 p.m. and shortly after 1:50 p.m., while flying at an altitude of 5900 feet, a slight motor vibration was noted, followed later by a rending crash and jar, as the motor ripped loose from the plane. Pilot McFail's head and body were forced to his knees as the plane was immediately whipped up in a vertical climb to about 6500 feet as a result of the loss of the weight of the motor. He could not open his eyes for the moment but on regaining muscular control he noted the plane had reached the peak of its climb and was falling off to the right. It went into a half turn with tail down and right wing pointed down. The pilot felt pressure on the controls and righted the ship into a dive. He unbuckled his belt to jump but realizing that he had some control over the plane he decided that he could land it with a good chance of not hurting the ship or himself. He remembered that there was an emergency landing field in the vicinity and re-buckled his belt, determined to land the plane in the field if possible. Relying on his experience with a glider, he maneuvered a figure S and brought the plane to a landing, without further damage to the plane or to himself and with no damage to the mail.
Texas Death Index #11896
Widowed, White, Male, Southern Regional Director for American Airlines.
Wellington was the fourth of five children born to Francis Robert McFail and Elsie Elizabeth Irons.
He was one of only 10 recipient's of the Airmail Flyers Medal of Honor.
Citation for the "Airmail Flyers Medal of Honor":
For extraordinary achievement while piloting air mail plane No. NC 12285 on a flight from Texarkana to Dallas, Texas, on the afternoon of December 6, 1933. Pilot McFail left Texarkana at 1:10 p.m. and shortly after 1:50 p.m., while flying at an altitude of 5900 feet, a slight motor vibration was noted, followed later by a rending crash and jar, as the motor ripped loose from the plane. Pilot McFail's head and body were forced to his knees as the plane was immediately whipped up in a vertical climb to about 6500 feet as a result of the loss of the weight of the motor. He could not open his eyes for the moment but on regaining muscular control he noted the plane had reached the peak of its climb and was falling off to the right. It went into a half turn with tail down and right wing pointed down. The pilot felt pressure on the controls and righted the ship into a dive. He unbuckled his belt to jump but realizing that he had some control over the plane he decided that he could land it with a good chance of not hurting the ship or himself. He remembered that there was an emergency landing field in the vicinity and re-buckled his belt, determined to land the plane in the field if possible. Relying on his experience with a glider, he maneuvered a figure S and brought the plane to a landing, without further damage to the plane or to himself and with no damage to the mail.
Widowed, White, Male, Southern Regional Director for American Airlines.
Wellington was the fourth of five children born to Francis Robert McFail and Elsie Elizabeth Irons.
He was one of only 10 recipient's of the Airmail Flyers Medal of Honor.
Citation for the "Airmail Flyers Medal of Honor":
For extraordinary achievement while piloting air mail plane No. NC 12285 on a flight from Texarkana to Dallas, Texas, on the afternoon of December 6, 1933. Pilot McFail left Texarkana at 1:10 p.m. and shortly after 1:50 p.m., while flying at an altitude of 5900 feet, a slight motor vibration was noted, followed later by a rending crash and jar, as the motor ripped loose from the plane. Pilot McFail's head and body were forced to his knees as the plane was immediately whipped up in a vertical climb to about 6500 feet as a result of the loss of the weight of the motor. He could not open his eyes for the moment but on regaining muscular control he noted the plane had reached the peak of its climb and was falling off to the right. It went into a half turn with tail down and right wing pointed down. The pilot felt pressure on the controls and righted the ship into a dive. He unbuckled his belt to jump but realizing that he had some control over the plane he decided that he could land it with a good chance of not hurting the ship or himself. He remembered that there was an emergency landing field in the vicinity and re-buckled his belt, determined to land the plane in the field if possible. Relying on his experience with a glider, he maneuvered a figure S and brought the plane to a landing, without further damage to the plane or to himself and with no damage to the mail.
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