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MoH sailor among Aviation Hall inductees

DAYTON, Ohio — Naval aviation pioneer William Moffett and Herbert Kelleher, a founder of Southwest Airlines Co., were among those announced as inductees into the National Aviation Hall of Fame, officials said Friday.

Moffett, a native of Charleston, S.C., received the Medal of Honor for his action in support of the landing at Veracruz, Mexico, in 1914 while commanding the cruiser Chester. During World War I, he took command of the Great Lakes Naval Training Station and established an aviation training program.

Under Moffett’s tutelage, naval aircraft tactics were developed and the first aircraft carriers were introduced. Moffett died on April 4, 1933, when the airship Akron went down off the coast of New Jersey.

The induction ceremony is scheduled for July, 19, 2008.

Kelleher, born in Haddon Heights, N.J., is executive chairman of Dallas-based Southwest Airlines, which began service in 1971 with three airplanes. Today, Southwest operates a fleet of 513 airplanes performing about 3,300 flights a day.

Other inductees include Col. Clarence “Bud” Anderson, a military pilot who flew in both World War II and the Vietnam War; and aerobatic champion Sean Tucker.

Anderson, born in Oakland, Calif., flew the P-51 Mustang in World War II and the F-105 Thunderchief during bombing runs over North Vietnam. He has logged over 7,500 flight hours in more than 130 types of aircraft.

Tucker, a native of Eagle Rock, Calif., earned his pilot’s license at 17. He has flown crop dusters and owned a helicopter business. He began flying in air shows in the mid-1970s and has won numerous aerobatic competitions.

The hall was founded in 1962 in Dayton, the hometown of the Wright brothers, and later chartered by Congress. Wilbur and Orville Wright were the first of more than 190 enshrinees.

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On the Net: http://www.nationalaviation.org