Wilson Falor "Bud" Flagg (October 25, 1938September 11, 2001) was a

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

Rear Admiral. On October 15, 1993, he was censured for failing to prevent the 1991 Tailhook conference scandal, effectively ending any chance for further career advancement.Lewis, Neil A. (October 16, 1993)
"Tailhook Affair Brings Censure Of 3 Admirals"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

''."Tailhook admirals censured"
'' The Times-News''/

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. ne ...

. October 16, 1993. p. 3A. Google News. Retrieved March 21, 2014.Serrano, Richard (October 16, 1993)
"33 Top Officers Disciplined in Tailhook Case"
''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

''. He and his wife Darlene were killed on board American Airlines Flight 77 during the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commer ...

of 2001."Wilson Flagg, 62, A Retired Admiral"
''The New York Times''. September 15, 2001.

Early life

Wilson Falor Flagg was born October 25, 1938 While in high school, Flagg, known by the nickname "Bud", met his future wife, Darlene Ellen "Dee" Embree (October 22, 1938 - September 11, 2001). They became sweethearts, and married after Flagg graduated from the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...

in Annapolis, Maryland in June 1961.

Career

Flagg attended flight school in Pensacola, Florida, and became a Navy pilot in 1962. He served on active duty from 1961 to 1967, including three tours as a fighter pilot in

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainlan ...

during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...

. After leaving active duty, he continued flying the

F-8 Crusader The Vought F-8 Crusader (originally F8U) is a single-engine, supersonic, carrier-based air superiority jet aircraft built by Vought for the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps (replacing the Vought F7U Cutlass), and for the Fren ...

, logging more than 3,200 flight hours. He subsequently embarked upon dual careers as an

American Airlines American Airlines is a major airlines of the United States, major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the world when measured ...

captain and an officer in the Naval Reserve. His decorations included the

Distinguished Service Medal Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a high award of a nation. Examples include: *Distinguished Service Medal (Australia) (established 1991), awarded to personnel of the Australian Defence Force for distinguished leadership in action * Distinguishe ...

, the

Meritorious Service Medal A Meritorious Service Medal is an award presented to denote acts of meritorious service, and sometimes gallantry, that are worthy of recognition. Notable medals with similar names include: * Meritorious Civilian Service Award *Meritorious Service Me ...

, the

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establish ...

and the Navy Commendation Medal with Combat V. In 1987 he became a rear admiral, and was posted at

The Pentagon The Pentagon is the headquarters building of the United States Department of Defense. It was constructed on an accelerated schedule during World War II. As a symbol of the U.S. military, the phrase ''The Pentagon'' is often used as a meton ...

, where he was one of the top officers for the Naval Reserve. In 1993, two years after the 1991 Tailhook Association scandal, he was one of three top officials who received letters of censure for failing to stop extensive incidents of sexual harassment at the association's Las Vegas convention. Flagg retired from the Navy in 1995 as a rear admiral and from American Airlines in 1998, although at the time of his death, he still had an office at the Pentagon, for instances in which the Pentagon contacted him for technical advice.

Personal life and death

The Flaggs lived in Mississippi, California, and Connecticut before settling in the early 1990s to Daybreak Farm, a Black Angus beef cattle farm in

Millwood, Virginia Millwood is an unincorporated community located in Clarke County, Virginia, United States. Millwood is the home of many of Clarke County's most historic sites including the Burwell-Morgan Mill (1785), Carter Hall (1792), the Greenway Historic Distr ...

. They also owned a home in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

, and Dee Flagg was active in Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church in

Winchester, Virginia Winchester is the most north western independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is the county seat of Frederick County, although the two are separate jurisdictions. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Winchester wit ...

, and the Greenway Garden Club in Clarke County. Both were members of the Blue Ridge Hunt. During the

in 2001, the Flaggs and their friend, Barbara G. Edwards, were on board American Airlines Flight 77, heading to a family gathering in California. They were killed when it crashed into the Pentagon. The Flaggs were both 62, and were survived by their sons, Marc and Michael, and four grandchildren. At the

National 9/11 Memorial The National September 11 Memorial & Museum (also known as the 9/11 Memorial & Museum) is a memorial and museum in New York City commemorating the September 11 attacks of 2001, which killed 2,977 people, and the 1993 World Trade Center bomb ...

, Flagg, his wife and Edwards are memorialized at the South Pool, on Panel S-70.Wilson F. Flagg
. Memorial Guide:

. Retrieved October 28, 2011.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Flagg, Wilson 1938 births 2001 deaths United States Naval Academy alumni United States Naval Aviators United States Navy personnel of the Vietnam War Recipients of the Air Medal United States Navy rear admirals (upper half) Recipients of the Navy Distinguished Service Medal American Airlines Flight 77 victims American terrorism victims Terrorism deaths in Virginia People murdered in Virginia Burials at the United States Naval Academy Cemetery