We Forgot about Pitcairn

I was reading through the December 2017 issue and noted the Tailview piece, “Harry Atwood: Aerial P. T. Barnum.” As a docent at the Wings of Freedom Aviation Museum in Horsham, Pennsylvania, and a former career Navy flier, I have a long association with and passion for aviation history. If you check the history books, you will see that James G. Ray, chief pilot and vice president for operations of Pitcairn Aviation, Inc., landed a PCA-2 autogyro on the White House lawn to receive the Collier Trophy from President Herbert Hoover on April 22, 1931. Right you are, Dick. Good catch! And in 2015, Doug Hughes, a Florida mail carrier, landed a gyro on the capital lawn to make a statement. He flew almost completely across Washington, D.C., and the defense radar never saw him!—BD