Colonel Leslie MacDill was a

United States Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical r ...

officer.

MacDill Air Force Base MacDill Air Force Base (MacDill AFB) is an active United States Air Force installation located 4 miles (6.4 km) south-southwest of downtown Tampa, Florida. The "host wing" for MacDill AFB is the 6th Air Refueling Wing (6 ARW), assig ...

near Tampa, Florida is named in his honor. Colonel MacDill was one of aviation’s early pioneers.

Biography

Colonel MacDill was born at

Monmouth, Illinois Monmouth is a city in and the county seat of Warren County, Illinois, United States. The population was 8,902 at the 2020 census, down from 9,444 in 2010. It is the home of Monmouth College and contains Monmouth Park, Harmon Park, North Park, Warf ...

, on 18 February 1889. Following his graduation in 1909 from

Hanover College Hanover College is a private college in Hanover, Indiana, affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). Founded in 1827 by Reverend John Finley Crowe, it is Indiana's oldest private college. The Hanover athletic teams participate in the H ...

with an A.B. degree, and from

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universit ...

in 1911 with an A.M. degree, he was commissioned from civilian life as a second lieutenant, Coast Artillery Corps, on 13 April 1912. He served with the 6th Company, Coast Artillery Corps from 10 December 1912, until his detail in 1914 in the Aviation Section, Signal Corps. Upon completion of his flying training at the Signal Corps Aviation School at

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

, California, he was rated a Junior Military Aviator on 2 July 1915, which automatically advanced him to the rank of first lieutenant. He was promoted to captain on 15 May 1917; he commanded a training group assigned to Foggio Italy in 1917. His second in command was future mayor of New York Fiorello LaGuardia; he was promoted to Major 1 July 1920; to lieutenant colonel 1 August 1935; and to colonel on 26 August 1936.

Death

Colonel MacDill died as the result of an airplane crash on the morning of 9 November 1938, in Washington D.C. The accident occurred several minutes after his takeoff from

Bolling Field The origins of the surname Bolling: English: from a nickname for someone with close-cropped hair or a large head, Middle English bolling "pollard", or for a heavy drinker, from Middle English bolling "excessive drinking". German (Bölling): from ...

in a BC-1 aircraft. Accounts pieced together from numerous eyewitnesses indicated that something went wrong with the motor. Colonel MacDill first tried to get back to Bolling Field, and then with death staring him in the face, aimed his plane for a narrow space between two houses. The descending plane cut down telephone and power wires, knocked down a pole, clipped off tree limbs, plunged to the ground and burst into flames. Colonel MacDill and his passenger Private Joseph G. Gloxner were killed instantly.

References

MacDill AFB biographyUnited States Army biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:MacDill, Leslie 1889 births 1938 deaths Accidental deaths in Washington, D.C. United States Army personnel of World War I Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in the United States Aviation pioneers Hanover College alumni Indiana University Bloomington alumni People from Monmouth, Illinois United States Army Air Forces colonels Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1938 Military personnel from Illinois